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Tommy (actually: Thomas) Krappweis was born May 9th in 1972 as the son of a postal clerk and a sports teacher in Munich-Neuperlach. His brother Nico, six years younger than him, absolved an apprenticeship as a carpenter and meanwhile works as a sound designer with his brother for his company.

The athletic father - Werner Krappweis already was German cycling champion several times - sent Tommy Krappweis to Judo lessons when he was a child. These lessons became the basics of his stuntman career and „physical comedian“. Aged eight Tommy Krappweis acted for the first time in school‘s theater - in a play written by himself out of a book called „Pumuckl and the flu pills“. Still eight years old he made his first movie on Super 8: a stop motion animated short with Playmobil and Lego figures. When he was twelve years old Tommy discovered Buster Keaton in the ZDF TV series „Fathers of oldies“ for himself and immediately was excited which caused that he began to practise falling down the stairs. Nowadays he, a fan of the early slapstic movies, owns over 100 celluloid copies of silent movies from 1900 to 1925 and was often engaged as a competent advisor for this.

In the following years of his childhood Tommy was making countless „agent thrillers“, „action movies“ and animations on Super 8 film - a medium that‘s still used by Tommy in video clips until today.

After absolving and leaving German junior high school Tommy attended the College of further education for Design in Munich two years long until he received his advanced technical certificate. He was tought in painting, drawing, sculptoring, history of art and graphic design. Besides he wrote short stories, had his first exhibition with self-drawn cartoon pictures and learned to play several musical instruments: guitar, harmonica, piano and drums.

He performed in several music bands - for example in the still excisting band „Harpo Speaks“ - and was also seen at the Marienplatz in Munich as a streets musician with an acoustic guitar and as a slapstic artist. His first televion appereances were also experienced with only 16 years: minor parts with dangerous stunt scenes in the ZDF series „SOKO 5113“ produced in Munich. He was often engaged as an actor - whenever body stunts were required for the role. Aged eighteen after graduating the college Tommy Krappweis got a job in the western city „No Name City“ in Poing, Upper Bavaria. From 1990 until 1992 his job included being clobbered and shot to death four times a day.

Besides Tommy Krappweis developed his first own comedy act: „Annie Oakley, the fantastic sharp shooter“. Afterwards he hoofed it with the western circus „Red Grizzly Saloon“ through many amusement parks of Germany, wrote and coreographed stunt shows and acted himself over and over again in shows.

In early 1994 the television channel RTL engaged Tommy Krappweis for the youth TV magazin „Disney TV“ which he moderated seven months long. Here he also was his own writer, made own articles and presented the „world‘s first free formulated Disney show“. For DTV Tommy also worked several weeks in Florida, Orlando in Wald Disney World where „they cut my hair every three hours to make them shorter again - but still I think these parks are as marvellous as they were back then!“

After that he worked again for the „Red Grizzly Saloon“ that had grown into a completely moving western city and for which he was creating a new show. He wrote the script, directed, coreographed and felt to act again after being a host for seven months.

Finally 1995, when the third season of the show started, Tommy Krappweis was casted as a comedian for the team of the show „RTL Saturday Night“. There he played just everything - from a carpet sellsman to an easter bunny - and demonstrated his talent also behind the camera by writing countless sketches, categories and ideas. Tommy‘s first successes became apparent with his parodies of „Derrick“ which meanwhile became classics and in which he worked as a writer and actor. „...although my photo was often subtitled ,Starring Olli Dittrich as Harry‘ in the TV magazines“ Tommy laughs today.

His highlight was the gag rubric „FAR OUT“, created by him, Mirco Nontschew and writer Holger Schmidt.

As Pain and Splatter those two comedians presented „Extreme Trends“ from the USA for more than 30 episodes. Here Tommy Krappweis was able to demonstrate in every episode that it was impossible to destroy him in any way. No matter if „Extreme Bungee“ (without any rope) or „Extreme Supermanning“ (stopping driving trucks with one hand) - nothing could stop them and just a week later they returned with „Extreme Tattooing“ or „Extreme Wainting-for-the-bus“.

This rubric was a big hit for the audience and the expressions and hooklines of the series soon began to take part in the German everyday language. Tommy Krappweis was responsible for the script, direction, cut and sound.

Finally the „7th comedian“ got attention - Tommy received his first offer to direct and won fame in the industry by working as a director and a script doctor. This just accommodated his wish to be a „director with creative control over my work“.

In order to approach his goal he founded the company „bumm film“. The production facility for movie and video including postprocessing of video and audio material on 400 square meters was built out of an ancient barn in Upper Bavarian Altkirchen near Munich.

Tommy Krappweis‘ Partners are his same-aged (ex-) wife Sabine as well as David Gromer, Erik Haffner, Norman Cöster and Jochen Donauer who - like Tommy - work for the „bumm film“ as writers, directors, project managers and producers. His brother Nico leads the sound studio.

„With ,bumm film‘ I realise own projects and commissioned work, of course - given that they‘re fun. We prefer to make an exact choice of each project. Besides I want to give young talents a chance to realise their ideas in my studio - because this is what I had wished for all the world for myself.“ the (ex-) comedian explains. That‘s why the company‘s logo can be spotted in the credits of really crazy productions of young geniuses at many short movie festivals. „And I hire the real good ones!“

The company bumm film produced for the sixth season of „RTL Saturday Night“ a lot of movie clips that were written, directed, edited, finished and given to production by Tommy, Wigald Boning and Matthias Edlinger. That‘s how projects were made that captivated by their exciting tempo, their cinematic picture language and their action orientated topics.

All 16 sketches were produced after a certain formula which Tommy learned from this idols of silent movie times: „Beginning and end have to be quick and effective - what‘s between mainly arises as a result of hard work at the set. That‘s how good physical comedy works in sketches.“ International stars like Jackie Chan work after this formula - rather a novelty for Germany. „There‘s one reason why a slapstick comedy made in Germany seldom works: somebody sits in front of a PC and makes up a story, then a director tries to realise this at a studio set. In most cases this is how to fail.“ says the young producer.

While the sixth seaon was running the company bumm film produced the video music clip „Bad finger“ to the single of Stefan Raab, directed by Tommy and Matthias. Here the „bumm film“ demonstrated that they were able to go the other road if necessary: „Each single scene was filmed and cut exactly after the storyboard. The finished clip is in a ratio of one to one of what we suggested Stefan and his record company before shooting.“This clip soon became a maximised hit on VIVA TV and was opening many doors to the company.

Afterwards the bumm film made a series of 15 election clips starring Wigald Boning for RTL and two further clips for Stefan Raab: „Böörti Vogts 98“ and a clip with the remixed version of the title song of „Derrick“ - shot at Tommy‘s former school in Neuperlach. On Super 8.

In April 98 Tommy Krappweis worked as a director for the DoRo of Vienna where he produced „The history of football“ in five parts for Wigald‘s and Olli‘s „Everything about football“. Therefore „bumm film“ realised stop motion animations in their own studio.

The preference for this technique can be seen in many „bumm film“ productions. „The classical stop motion animation has often a lot more charme than today‘s usual CGI animations out of the computer. Although I admire Toy Story as much as Wallace & Gromit for example.“

Then Tommy once more stood in front of the camera: Suppourted by Stefanie Kellner (Marienhof) he moderated 10 episodes of „Movie Check“ for RTL Exclusiv Weekend and also functioned as director, actor and producer of the series.

In front of the camera it was Tommy‘s task to check himself incredible scenes from movies and tv shows for their contact of reality. Therefore Tommy was bound and thrown into water, shot at by heavy artillery piece over and over again and he had to free himself from handcuffs only with a hairpin while hanging ten meters high upside down on a rope. With the help of his stunt experiences he survived the film shooting without any considerable harms.

Right after that Tommy plunged into his next project: Directing two seasons of commercials for the company Katjes featuring Stefan Raab. One spot for „Yogurt-Gums“ which was written by Tommy himself (and in which his wife Sabine is seen with a spoon inside her head) bestowed a high sales increase on Katjes (while the competitor Haribo lost turnover similarly) and it bestowed a job for further episodes on himself.

For this commercial „Kitty kids from Katjes“ Tommy let his wife be thrown 4 meters backwards against a wall after she was hit by Stefan Raab with a bag of liquorice. „I told my wife back then that this is gonna be a hard road with me! And this would effect our jobs as well as our private life. But we‘re both tough.“ says the ex-husband grinning.

At the moment the „bumm film“ is producing a weekly series for the KIKA called „Tom‘s Test“ with Tom Lehel and it already contains more than 120 episodes. It receives hightest rankings by children and it also can excite adults because of its ingenuity. „This series opened us the door to KIKA.

Here the success story of „Chili TV“ and „Bernd das Brot“ started to run its course. We created three bizarre characters as mascots for the KIKA and designed them as a dual system: children as well as adults laugh but not on the same scenes. And besides we proved that there is a big target audience including contrarians who just don‘t to laugh always about the typical same old thing.“

Bernd even rised with his hit „Dance the bread“ up the charts and remained there adamantly for months just what noone than Bernd can do it (written November 2003: Number 41). There‘s already an music album working on like crazy by the bumm film.

Bumm film also produced other video clips like the „Ö Lapalöma Boys“ with „Tequilla“ in which Tommy can be seen as a stuntman and the trashy Super 8 clip with Stefan Raab‘s „Wire Mesh Fence“ (earned gold three times) - again on Super 8.

Company Brainpool engaged Tommy and Erik Haffner as a directing team for sketches of the „Ingo Appelt Show“ on channel Pro7. For the pilot episode both were nominated for the Grimme Prize and „while the season was running the rating of the sketches rose just as high as the rate of the live performed parts sank. What a pity the show was cancelled because Ingo really surprised us with his performances as a slapstick comedian.“

Meanwhile the bumm film studio is getting enlarged, of course and Tommy still performs with his band „Harpo Speaks“. They appear in different formations: as a duo starring Tommy Krappweis singing and playing guitar and Andreas Lenz v. Ungern Sternberg playing the piano and in a cast with about 14 people. „I want to make live-music and I love the 50‘s and 70‘s music. We just go on stage and see what happenes next. We have an unexhaustible repertoire full of songs and we improvise live. „House of the rising sun“ in Hiphop style, „Hit the road Jack“ as slow blues, a 70‘s funk version of „Besame Mucho“ - all done. The greatest part of it is that the audience totally enjoys that every time and every gig ends with a party.“

Tommy Krappweis is satisfied. „Everyone‘s complaining that German comedy is stagnant and that no one wants to try anything new. This might be right but our advantage is the fact that only people who look for something that hasn‘t been done in Germany come to us. And we only managed it because we still consequently refuse everything that‘s not good enough to us. Whoever does these jobs just to earn money ought not to complain that the television channels would hardly take risks - himself he doesn‘t take risks either.“

„Comedy is mainly surprise and if you‘re not able to surprise and challenge the people out there over and over again they just stop laughing - and that‘s a damn bad thing for a comedy show.

Each colleague of my company would rather check movie tickets than write churned out gags for the first comedy show that comes along.“

„We are producing several own projects in association with Endemol Entertainment at the moment and I just can tell you: What is made here will rock the German comedy world extremely. And if not...either we will starve or end up as millionaires. I‘d prefer the second option...“

Guido Mahr conducted the interview.