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[Interview] Yoo Hai-Jin has breathed life into a robot with his “Yoo Hai-jin-ness”!

February 12, 2021February 15, 2021 Jiji

Yoo Hai-jin has never disappointed his audience. His exceptional ability to move the heart of audiences with his down-to-earth style of performance that brings laughter and inspires viewers in films like Luck Key, A Taxi Driver, Confidential Assignment, 1987: When the Day Comes, Intimate Strangers, Mal-Mo-E: The Secret Mission, and The Battle: Roar to Victory, shines through again as Bubs in Space Sweepers.

A robot that has dreams and can feel a wide range of human emotions including boredom, Bubs has been brought to life with such personality by actor Yoo Hai-jin. The first Korean actor to perform the role of a robot through motion capture, Yoo Hai-jin played his character wearing a suit fitted with motion capture devices to portray the movements of Bubs along with his voice. It was Yoo Hai-jin who made it possible to create Bubs, the humorous and cheeky robot that can’t be found anywhere else in the world.

Bubs, the harpoon-throwing robot of the debris collection spaceship Victory

“Why do I always seem to be the only one working?”

He is the military robot that was picked up by Captain Jang at a recycling center. With eyes lighted
like headlights and machine limbs long and lean, he has a brilliant ability to throw a harpoon at
space debris. He has the best ability to move fast because unlike humans who need to wear
spacesuits, he doesn’t have to wear one. He is also the accountant in the crew and desperately
saves up to make his life-long dream come true, but Victory is always struggling with little money.
He can be naggy, but he is also the life of the party who is impossible not to like.

INTERVIEW

Q : Please tell us about your character and what you focused on most to bring the character to life.

Yoo Hai-jin : Bubs is a robot that throws a harpoon to collect space debris on board the debris collection spaceship Victory. He does much of the hard labor required, and therefore, complains a lot. I know I may be biased, but he is such an adorable character. But when he collects space debris or fights the enemy, he can be of great help because he has stronger power than humans.

Q : What was motion capture performance like?

Yoo Hai-jin : It was my first experience. At first, I was only going to record my voice acting to be added on to the scenes, but I thought I might not be able to deliver my best performance because I wouldn’t be able to immerse myself into the character. So, I decided to perform wearing a motion capture suit with sensors attached to portray the character’s movements as well. As it was a new experience for me, I’m looking forward to seeing how my performance has been translated onto the screen.

Q : Did you make any suggestions for the design for Bubs?

Yoo Hai-jin : When Director Jo showed me the design for Bubs at the beginning, I noticed that he had no mouth. I suggested that we give him one since I thought it would help audiences understand better what he says and make it easier to express his emotions.

Q : What was it like on set while you were filming?

Yoo Hai-jin : I thought everyone in the cast, Song Joong-ki, Kim Tae-ri, and Jin Sun-kyu, was quite similar in personality. We had a fair share of laughs on set, but at the same time, I felt calm and focused working with the rest of the cast. I thought that the chemistry among the cast was great.