For Sonny Tilders, the most difficult part of being the creative mastermind behind Walking with Dinosaurs - the Arena Spectacular is probably also the easiest. When the former graphic designer was asked to come up with a set of giant prehistoric beasts for the show a decade ago, he and his team had to start from scratch.
'But with dinosaurs, everyone has had a go in illustrating or animating them,' says the 43-year-old creative director of The Creature Technology Company. 'There is so much material out there, and in a way it's a matter of going through that material and reducing that to something you think makes sense.
'When I design a particular species, I'd certainly look at the bones or a drawing and I'd lift that from a book or one of those more scientific journals, and copy it and use that as a template. Then I'd look at other references ... in the end, I'd [choose] which looks to have the strongest body form.'
The fact that no one has actually seen a dinosaur, that they remain almost mythical creatures, also works to his advantage. 'To be honest, there are aesthetic and artistic choices that you are making as much as anything because, in the end, this type of show is not about museum details and accuracy; it's meant to be evocative, and to create that sense of awe and wonder.'
To be part of Walking with Dinosaurs - the Arena Spectacular, which begins its Hong Kong run later this month, is a childhood dream come true for Tilders.
'It's a lot of fun for someone who likes mucking around with animatronics and has been crazy about dinosaurs since a boy,' he says. 'I'm actually using some of my very first dinosaur books for this show. It's great to make use of them professionally 30 years later.'
