Exclusive Interview With The Voice Actor Behind The Count In “The Count Of Monte Cristo”
Friday, June 29th, 2007I
have to admit that I used to be a "strictly subtitles" fan, but that
all changed when I heard the voice actor who did Mido Ban in GetBackers when
Animax made the decision to go all English dub. As time passed, I was
astounded by how much he grew as an actor. To say that he grew by leaps
and bounds is an understatement. The fact that he is able to do justice
to such varied but wonderful roles as The Count in The Count of Monte Cristo, Kuwabara in Yu Yu Hakusho, Shimada Kanbei in Samurai 7 and Hana in Tokyo Godfathers is proof enough of how talented and versatile he really is.
It
is the dream of every writer to be able to interview the people they
admire. Needless to say, I am so very happy that RUSSELL was so
gracious enough to answer my questions.
So…do you want to know how it is to be an Animax dubber? Let Russell show you how it’s done! ;-D
* * * * * * * * * *
Voice
acting is a very unique career. Why did you choose to go into this
profession and how many years have you been a voice actor?
To
be honest, I kind of fell into voice acting; I was working a gig at a
theme park and one of the other actors there told me about an audition
at a recording studio. I was lucky enough to get cast as part of the
team and have been here since about 2003.
What university course should one take to become a voice actor, and how many years does it take to study /train to become one?
I
have a degree in Theatrical Performance and Production, but I suppose a
university education isn’t really necessary to become a voice
actor. What you need is a good foundation in acting and
improvisation. Improvisation will make you learn quickly, and
dubbing in particular is based a lot around speed and timing. So, how
long does it take to become a voice actor? Everyone is different.
Some people are good at it right away and some folks really need to
work at it. I’d say someone who works at it can get the basic technique
down in a couple months but, since every character you play is
different, the learning never stops.
What
was it like the first time you went into the studio to dub? For which
anime was it and who’s the character you’re playing? How difficult was
that first attempt for you?
The first time I stepped into
a dubbing studio I was terribly nervous. I don’t even think it was an
anime. I think the first thing I dubbed was a Hong Kong Kung Fu
movie I guess I played Thug #1 — lots of "Oof" and "AAAUUGH"
reactions, with a couple "Yes sir’s" thrown in for good measure.
My first actual anime was a series called Daigunder,
in which I played two characters: Eagle Arrow and Ginsome. It was
a great piece to learn on because all my characters were robots with no
mouths! Even so, I remember being quite frustrated, because all the
other dubbers were much more experienced than I was, I felt like I was
holding them all back whenever I made a mistake, which was a lot. 
How
would you describe a typical dubbing day for you? Do you have to do
additional research (such as reading the actual manga) in order to get
the right "feel" for the character?
Between
the time I wake up and travel to the studio I try to warm up my voice
and my enunciators (my mouth, lips, tongue, etc.), I’m sure the folks
on the bus think I’m nuts. We generally start the day at ten in the
morning, with the goal to get about four episodes done. This may sound
like a lot, and it is, but we are always pressed for time.
Some
of you may be disappointed with this answer… but … the most research I
generally do, is read the Wikipedia entry regarding the anime if it’s
available. We are often cast in a new series when we show up to
the studio, so we have no way of knowing in advance whom we will be
portraying in the new series. Remember what I said about improvisation? In the world of Television, the deadlines are tough. I am always
surprised to see a cartoon I dubbed less than a week ago, have already
being aired on Animax. The director generally helps out by giving us a
few clues about the character, and we always listen to the original
Japanese voice prior to dubbing.
I
noticed that there are times that you would have to dub different
characters in one episode. Do you dub these characters individually
(like you dub one character first, then when you’ve finished all the
lines, you move on to the next?) How long does one typical dubbing
session take, especially when you have to do multiple characters?
Yes,
occasionally we are doing multiple characters in the episode. If
their dialogue doesn’t overlap, it is possible to do both characters at
the same time, switching voices back and forth. Other times, like when
I’m doing a difficult voice for one character, I do one first and then
go back and "pick up" the second voice. A typical dubbing session lasts
about one and a half to two hours per episode.
Are
there any specific health measures that you take to protect your voice?
What particular instances are you not allowed into the studio?
Well,
most importantly you should train your voice. A solid acting
course should cover vocal technique. Voice training helps you to place
your voice correctly for projection, pitch, or for screaming. We scream
a lot in anime if you haven’t noticed. A full day of loud screaming can
leave my throat feeling like hamburger meat, even if I use it
correctly.
Case in point, Yu Yu Hakusho - I played Kuwabara. That guy was never quiet. So of prime importance - voice training.
A
few good voice habits to get into are: drink a lot of room temperature
or warm water to keep your chords lubricated and plastic, warm up
before the job, and try not to hit the town too hard. Alcohol and
speaking over loud music can really tire your voice out. And watch what
you eat, cream sauces and dairy products can leave your voice feeling
thick and hard to control.
Generally I work regardless of rain
or shine. If I am pretty sick, like flu or sore throat or something
nasty, I’ll stay out of the studio.
Which
anime character did you enjoy doing the most? Which character was the
most difficult/challenging? I must admit that one of my favorite
characters that you did, next to The Count, was Hana from "Tokyo
Godfathers". Was it fun doing such a colorful gay character? Also,
among the anime characters you’ve done, who would you say has a
personality similar to yours?
Thank you, it’s nice to
know that there are people out there who like my work. It’s funny
that you mention those two characters. They are two of my most favorite
characters as well. The Count was quite challenging. Not only was his
low voice difficult to maintain for an extended period of time, he was
complex and portraying his many layers with only my voice was a lot of
fun. Hana in Tokyo Godfathers is perhaps my all time favorite
character I’ve played to date. She has so much going on, a layer
of feminine artifice that masks the fact that she is a man that wishes
above anything else in the world to be a housewife and mother.
Yes, I think I had the most fun playing Hanna.
Which Anime character has a personality similar to mine? Hmmm. I’m thinking perhaps Eikichi Onizuka from GTO mixed with Sven Volfied from Black Cat, and maybe a little of Hana from Tokyo Godfathers tossed in for spice.
Among the anime projects that you have done for Animax, which would be the most memorable for you and why?
Well, there’s Tokyo Godfathers - as I’ve already mentioned. But I can’t forget Get Backers. Ban Mido was my first main role, and I had a great time playing him. I think he is so cool.
Is there a particular dream anime project that you would like to do? What anime would that be, which character, and why?
I have read the Death Note
manga and would like to be involved in that project, should they decide
to do an English dub. It would be cool to play "L" simply because I
like detectives, and suspenseful stories. If not "L" then the
Shinigami, Ryuk — He is just so weird.
Many
anime fans have this dream of becoming voice actors themselves. Would
you personally recommend this line of work? What advice can you give
them to get them started in this career?
I would only
recommend this line of work if you like cartoons, making funny voices,
and screaming at televisions. Those are prerequisites for dubbing
anime. Since I like those three things I recommend my job!
If you would like to be a voice actor, here are a few tips:
1) Practice your voices - it’s always good to have a few on hand at an audition.
2) Get some acting training
3) Do some improvisation
4)
If you can, put together a voice reel. This is what usually is
going to get you that audition. If you have no work to cut one together
from, make up a reel yourself. Look at other voice actor reels to find
out what they’ve done.
5) Don’t let rejection get
you down! Unfortunately, the chances are that you will be rejected more
than you will be hired. Competition can be stiff, so keep your chin up
and keep going for it!
