Q&A: Louis Koo

A comics and sci-fi buff, actor Louis Koo Tin-lok has been amassing toys and memorabilia featuring his favourite characters for years. His collection, which includes a battalion of life-sized action figures from movies such as Star Wars, Alien and The Terminator as well as superheroes such as Spider-Man and Batman, are usually kept at his workshop in Fo Tan. But, inspired by a meeting with a Japanese toy collector last year, he has decided to show off part of his huge collection at a mall, where fans can take snaps with the exhibits - more than 100 items including 21 life-sized action figures - in return for a contribution to his charity. Which is your favourite item? I love them all. We've divided the exhibition into different sections, including Star Wars, Spider-Man, Iron Man, The Terminator, Batman and The Lord of the Rings. But this venue isn't big enough for a quarter-scale model of an X-wing [the fighter jet from Star Wars]. I hope we can find a larger venue in the future to display all the action figures. You bought your first life-sized action figures from a toy shop in France while attending the Cannes Film Festival seven years ago. What did you buy? I bought figures of R2-D2, C-3PO, Darth Vader as well as Hellboy. I can't remember how much I paid. But I did bargain the price down by 40 per cent. Of all the Star Wars characters, which do you like most? Darth Vader. I don't know why. This is what makes it special - I just love it for an unknown reason. Maybe I feel a special connection to him - some people call me 'Dark Warrior' [the name of Darth Vader in Chinese] on the internet. I have three life-sized action figures of Darth Vader. One of them is a costume from the first film. When they were filming the new Star Wars trilogy, they found the original mask was actually not quite balanced, so they made the costume all over again. I later collected the new version when it was produced. Is Star Wars your No1 sci-fi movie? Yes, I think Star Wars is a classic which influences a lot of sci-fi movies. It's not just that the visual effects were a breakthrough - it covers a wide range of areas and concepts. Why is Spider-Man your favourite superhero? I really appreciate the movie series. Superheroes always seem too perfect, but Spider-Man is like a real person. Although he is a superhero, he lives a normal life and has his own problems. For instance, because he is out saving people, he is late for work and his boss shouts at him. You've stopped collecting new action figures. Why? I haven't bought any new action figures over the past two years. Iron Man is the very last item I collected. I think we shouldn't be too addicted to anything. Also, I really don't have time to keep looking around for new items. Are there any other life-sized action figures that you are keen to collect? Yes, all the robots from the Transformers films. A Bumblebee figure was exhibited when the movie opened. It was huge, about two storeys high. I wouldn't have the space in Hong Kong to keep it, however. I only have a human-sized Bumblebee and Optimus Prime in my workshop. How's the feeling of being surrounded by so many life-sized action figures? When I invited my old schoolmates and some fans to visit my workshop, their first reaction was 'Wow!' then they would say: 'That's crazy!' Whenever I look at the action figures, it fires my passion to produce a sci-fi movie. Many people think I'm an avid toy collector. In fact, what I appreciate is the movie itself. All the action figures I've collected are from movies that I like. So you want to be the producer of a sci-fi movie? I will definitely take part in the production but I won't be the investor. We already have a list of story ideas. Although there are companies in Asia specialising in special effects for films and we can buy powerful software from Hollywood, we are still not ready for it yet. There hasn't been any Asian sci-fi movie that has been really successful. It's not because of money - it's more about our technique and technology. You have to first make a huge investment in nurturing talent. Apart from computer graphic design, we need a squad of professionals who have advanced skills in prop-making, set design and special make-up. It could take a decade or even longer to nurture such talents. Has anyone asked you to sell items in your collection? No, I won't trade my collection. Many of them are rare collectables that you can't buy any more. 'Louis Koo's Life-sized Figurine Extravaganza' runs at the Atrium and Centre Bridge, 2/F, Cityplaza, Taikoo Shing, until April 18