Carrie Dobro

Q Hypernauts was your first time acting in a science fiction, wasn't it? Even though the scripting and the story plot for the series were nicely done, did it concern you that you would be playing an alien holy person giving guidance to three teens? (Not your usual concept outside of science fiction)

A Actually, Hypernauts wasn't the first taste of sci-fi I'd had in Television. I had done a small role as a human doctor on an episode of Babylon 5 before working on Hypernauts. I'd never been an alien before, however, and the whole idea fascinated me. The fact that Kulai was a new alien species meant I could do anything I wanted in creating the race. As far as being holy, well, how often do you get to play the religious figure for an entire people. It was a blast!!

Q How were you chosen to play Kulai?

A A whole series of auditions, just like everyone else. Audition for the casting people, then a call back to producers, then a callback to the network.

Q Were you interested in science fiction prior to acting in a science fiction series?

A I must admit I'm not a genre specific person in any media, although I do like sci-fi quite a bit. I've read a lot of sci-fi/fantasy....Tolkien's trilogy (every 3 years), Orson Scott Card, Asimov, Drake etc. As far as TV goes, I must admit I was always a fan of the old star trek's and would watch them on re-runs all the time.

Q When you work in costume and in special effects make-up, does your appearance help you create the character?

A I would have to say absolutely... your outself self helps create your inself self. When I first looked in the mirror after they "created" Kulai on my face, I didn't see me at all. I saw a completely different being..it definately helped create who she was inside. Also, from a practical standpoint, the ways you can use your face to show expressions is different. A slightly raised eyebrow as yourself has meaning, under all the prosthetic makeup that Kulai had, you'd never even see it. The process was challenging and a lot of fun!

Q Much of your acting in Hypernauts was to ships, mechsuits, glooses, and other creatures that were created and added later by CGI. Was it difficult to adjust to acting with something that was not really there? How about the puppeteered Gloose?

A First of all I must say I loved, loved, loved the gloose. When you're not looking down and you can't see the "man behind the curtain" who is actually operating the puppet, it looks totally real. Our gloose operator was great and the gloose's facial expressions were easy to relate to. As far as working with blue screen or computers, it just takes your imagination!

Q Have you been in contact with anyone from Hypernauts since the series was cancelled?

A I've been in contact with a few people from the show over the years, they were a great group to work with!

Q Is there anything that stands out in your memory about the show?

A Just how much fun it was to go to work every day. What a treat it is to be able to work with a character who continually changes. It was a wonderful experience all around!

Q Do you do many conventions? Do many people remember you as Kulai?

A I've done a few conventions for the Crusade series I did (the Babylon 5 spin-off) and actually a lot of people have come up to me to say that they loved Hypernauts and were sorry that we got killed off the air. It was nice to hear.

Q Have I missed anything that you would like to share?

A If anyone is interested in ordering a photo of Kulai, they can go to crusadebabes.com and look in the photo gallery.

As the site master of HYPERNAUTS on the 'Net, I'd like to also note...if you haven't been to Crusade Babes, you should. In addition to being a fun site, It also offers a nice biography and information on Carrie Dobro.

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