BioGamer Girl recently chatted with Tod Fennell about acting, games and more. Read on.
BioGamer Girl: What’s it like working on a game over a show or a movie? What are the major differences?
Tod Fennell: The preparation and the environment are totally different, but performance is exactly the same. In film or television, your wardrobe, hair and make-up and the set itself (unless you're shooting on green screen) all help you get into character. In games, all that stuff is in your imagination. We usually brief with the game developers and they show us images of the environment and tons of artistic renditions of our characters. As an actor, you've also got to get used to all the tech you're wearing and interacting with. It's like being in a sci-fi movie! We've got black skin tight suits on with sensors, microphones and face cameras strapped to our bodies. It takes some getting used to at first but it's a blast once you get used to it.
BGG: Do you play any video games yourself? If so, what? What's your favorite game and why?
TF: I used to be really into the Diablo series and League of Legends. I like MMO RPGs and first person shooters like call of duty. I'm a bit of an addict though and I must cut myself off every once in a while.
BGG: What got you into motion-capture for games in the first place? Were you approached or is this something you sought out on your own? What's the process there?
TF: Both my parents were professional dancers and I grew up doing a lot of martial arts and dance, so that helps. I started doing just voice for games like Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six series and Assassin's Creed 2 in 2007. In 2011, I worked with a facial recognition camera for the first time on Assassin's Creed 3. Back then, it was still a big clunky bicycle helmet with vice grips to keep it from wobbling around the actor's head. I remember one session, I was trying to be tough but the vice grips were killing me and when the director asked me if I needed a break, I was like "I'm good" and he goes "No... we’re going to take a break, your face isn't moving anymore." (laughter)
BGG: With motion capture, you're often dealing with objects or people that aren't even there. Does this make it more challenging than traditional acting?
TF: In one sense it does, because you must constantly remind yourself what is where, but on the other hand, it's very liberating because you can literally create any environment you want in 3D space.
BGG: Do you think games are the future of entertainment over traditional films and shows because of the interaction they provide viewers? What do you think about VR?
TF: I think VR is going to change the world in ways people who haven't tried the latest VR can imagine. I just tried the HTC VIVE last week and... I was blind but now I see. It's impossible to explain the experience to someone who hasn't tried it. But I think it will have phenomenal implications for fully immersive story telling in film, gaming, and education. Imagine teaching a class on molecular biology and being able to put the student in an environment where they've been shrunk down to the size of an atom and navigate through molecules from the inside out? It's mind blowing.
BGG: Let's go way back - What inspired you go into your career? Who are some of your inspirations? What films made you want to do what you do?
TF: When I was a kid, I used to run around the basement watching Ghostbusters and Back to the Future, reciting all the lines of all the characters. My parents were supportive and brought me to the Montreal Children's Theater. I went to a few big auditions and landed my first role in a film at 7 and I've been at it ever since! I'm inspired by the pure genius of Stanley Kubrick and his films, I'm a huge fan of comedy and what the guys over at South Park are doing as well as Seth MacFarlane with Family Guy. As far as actors go, I think Jake Gyllenhaal and Leonardo DiCaprio are killing it right now. Christian Bale too.
BGG: Has there ever been a good movie based on a video game? If so, which one and why?
TF: I'll be honest, they haven't had a great record of accomplishment. But Silent Hill was pretty awesome, and so was Resident Evil. I am optimistic for "Assassin's Creed". Fasssbender is a beast.
BGG: Anything else you would like to mention or add?
TF: I love what I do. It's hard work, but if you can find something you love to do, go for it. Block out the naysayers, work like hell and stay positive through the tough times. And ALWAYS, ALWAYS be grateful. That last part is easier said than done.
To learn more, visit the official Tod Fennell Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and IMDB page.
More about Tod Fennell
Actor Tod Fennell finishes off the year on a high note with a list of highly anticipated projects. First up is the second season of the American television series THE ART OF MORE set to be released on November 16, 2016 on Crackle.
THE ART OF MORE is a groundbreaking drama starring Dennis Quaid that goes into the underbelly and surprisingly cutthroat world of premium auction houses. Fennell plays Cliff Kerbis, a laid-‐back, nonchalant and youthful entrepreneur, who is the head of Yottabidi, an online auction start-‐up.
Tod Fennell is also in Tom Clancy’s THE DIVISION, an online-‐only open world third-‐person shooter video game developed by Ubisoft Massive and published by Ubisoft. THE DIVISION is set in a near future New York City in the aftermath of a smallpox pandemic; the player, who is an agent of the titular Strategic Homeland Division, commonly referred to as simply "The Division", is tasked with helping the group rebuild its operations in Manhattan, investigate the nature of the outbreak, and combating criminal activity in its wake. The Division is structured with elements of role-‐playing games, as well as collaborative and player versus player online multiplayer.
Fennell is a motion-‐capture actor as a Riker who are escaped convicts from Rikers Island. The Rikers are hardened criminals who revel in their crime and even threaten to plunge the city if they can’t claim it for themselves. He also plays a Lab Tech who is Dr. Kendall’s clumsy lab assistant.
Other projects for Fennell include NATURAL BORN OUTLAWS, a show that profiles some of America's most notorious criminals and the law-‐enforcement officials who brought them to justice. He portrays Melvin Purvis, an American law enforcement official and FBI agent who was given the nickname Little Mel because of his short stature. He is noted for leading the manhunts that tracked such outlaws as Baby Face Nelson, Pretty Boy Floyd and John Dillinger.
You can also see Tod Fennell in the animated science fiction adventure feature film APRIL AND THE EXTRAORDINARY WORLD voicing Julius, a young scoundrel and police informer hired to find April who can't help but fall in love with her and in the second season of A STRANGER IN MY HOME, a show about deceitful strangers who turn trusting homeowners into victims.
Tod Fennell was born in Montreal, Quebec where he began taking classes at the young age of five at The Montreal Children’s Theatre. He shot his first feature film BECAUSE WHY? at the age of seven and landed his first leading role in KAYLA at 12. He also held a supporting role for 52 episodes of YTV's LASSIE and recurred in the hit television series ARE YOU AFRAID OF THE DARK. Fennell managed to successfully make the transition from child actor to teen, with the help of projects like THE REAGANS and again on YTV with the series MENTAL BLOCK where he played a high school bully. He again proved more than able to reinvent himself as an adult actor in THE SPIDER WICK CHRONICLES as well as Space Channel's hit series 4400.
Since then, Fennell has appeared in various projects including WUSHU WARRIOR, ASSASSIN’S CREED, THE FESIVAL, END OF THE LINE, BETHUNE, THE MYSTERIES OF ALFRED HEDGEHOG and DEUS EX: HUMAN REVOLUTION.
He has had the opportunity of working with and learning from many of his favourite actors along the way including Morgan Freeman, Billy Bob Thorton, Beau Bridges, James Brolin, Roy Dupuis, Kirsten Dunst and Mary Louise Parker.
Outside the acting world, Tod Fennell classifies himself as a health nut, having worked several years as a personal trainer. He holds a black belt in Shotokan, has two years of Horseback riding and five years of dance training under his belt.
Understanding the importance of philanthropy, Fennell supports various causes that are close to his heart including WORLD VISION CANADA, CANADIAN RED CROSS and the SPCA. He also considers himself a space and astronomy nerd and supports organizations such as THE PLANETARY SOCIETY, the SETI Institute and the Multidisciplinary Association for Psychedelic Studies (MAPS).