Forum - View topicAnswerman - Why Do Some Voice Actors Like Not Knowing About Their Roles?
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nobahn
 Subscriber Posts: 5120 |
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All right; that is enough: DmonHiro & Just-another-face, neither one of you shall address the other unless it is in a painfully polite manner.
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DmonHiro
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I don't see how I was being impolite. I did not curse or insult Just-another-face. Also, I'm only talking about anime dubbing, not American cartoons. And yes, I am anti-dub for the exact reason that anime dubbing is not taken as seriously in the West.
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levonr
 Posts: 812 |
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What? Actor's goal is always to get more work. Its not in an actors best interest to lack effort because that would mean less work. You know anime voice actors get paid very little, yet they still stay. I've heard over & over of actors saying they have to really enjoy the acting for them to stay in this tough low pay business. In the end it doesn't matter if their an anime expert that watches every anime they do or not. The only thing that matters is their job which is to act. I could care less if they seen the anime or read the manga. |
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Just-another-face
Posts: 324 |
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I was just trying to dispute what he was saying. If anime acting isn't being taken seriously in the U.S., then how does one explain the many fans who are dedicated to the actors and actresses who make appearances at anime conventions and such for the sake of said fans who appreciate what they do? I'm sorry, but I don't buy that weak argument that we don't take it seriously.
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ParaChomp
 Posts: 1018 |
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It's what I've been finding what has been lacking with dubs as of late. The actors treat it as another paycheque as opposed to a stepping stone for a future career in voice acting. With that and the low pay in mind, it's obvious why some voice actors like not knowing about their roles: it's time consuming and not worth it. There are good handful of common voice actors who came from dubbing. Troy Baker and Steve Blum come to mind. |
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nobahn
Subscriber Posts: 5120 |
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Just-another-face & DmonHiro--
Please continue your debate through PMs. I don't want to see it here. Thank you. |
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notrogersmith
 Posts: 192 |
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I can think of another reason why a voice actor would like to not know about his/her role. Imagine that you're stuck taking a voice acting gig for My Sister is a Ninja Maid Foxgirl. Sure, it's a paycheck, and you got to eat, but for the sake of your own sanity, wouldn't ignorance of what that anime's about be bliss?
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Hoppy800
 Posts: 3331 |
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There's been many instances of voice talent either getting bored or didn't care and voice their characters lazily or back in the day, you had some voice actors in dubs outside of the US who may have been hired not knowing the anime or what was in said anime, coming in and ending up getting offended at the content and slacking off with the voice acting or worse going nuts with the dialogue producing results that range from a very hilarious gag dub to the obvious didn't try.
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Mr. Oshawott
 Posts: 6773 |
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Does this anime show really exist? I can't even find the title in ANN's Encyclopedia. |
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lemurs
Posts: 103 |
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For most of them it's not an easy way to make a living. No matter which country they work in, it seems like most everybody's just trying to scrape by. |
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omiya
 Posts: 1832 Location: Adelaide, South Australia |
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I asked Cassandra Lee (Morris) at a Q&A at AVCON 2012 about the role of Kyuubey from Puella Madoka Magica. The Japanese voice actress was reportedly quite distressed part way through the voice recordings due to spoiler[Kyuubey going from innocuous and apparently friendly to evil] and the voice actress not knowing the story beforehand. I asked if Cassandra Lee (Morris) had been aware of the story ahead of time (English language voice actors being aware of the full anime story ahead of time has sometimes been mentioned as a negative impact on how they voice their roles), and she answered that she had not known of the full story ahead of her voicing Kyuubey.
Remember that Stanley Kubrick kept the script of Dr Stangelove from the actors as much as possible so as to avoid them appearing to know or not be surprised at what was going to happen next. This "not knowing the outcome of the story" might be a little different from "not knowing about their roles" but I can see the value in leaving an element of surprise for the voice actors. |
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Mr. Oshawott
Posts: 6773 |
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Come to think of it, the feeling of not knowing what goes on in a show could actually be a benefit in helping the acting sound more natural...
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Alan45
 Village Elder Posts: 9853 Location: Virginia |
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In one commentary after another it is mentioned that the person directing the voice acting tells the actor how to sound and what emotion to project. If an English dub is poorly done, it is more likely the director's fault than that of the actor.
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SouthPacific
Posts: 689 |
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Yeah in specific moments in the show, but overall? No way, going into something not knowing your character or what the show is about until you're in the booth and about to do your lines just seems like a really bad practise. And if you're not really into the show or connect with anime in general it's likely that even if you're not aware of lets say a very dramatic moment in the show it wouldn't matter if you're presented with it at the very moment you're supposed to do your lines, since the lack of interest in the show will prevent you from getting emotional about it anyways. |
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xchampion
 Posts: 370 Location: Idaho Falls, Idaho |
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When it comes to voice acting american dubs of anime it really is the low of the low when it comes to acting in american. Well, that's just how it is viewed within the industry and they truly get no respect within the industry either. They get paid like crap too. No joke.
I went to a voice acting panel at a convention here in Boise, Idaho last May. The panel consisted of Ian Sinclair who voiced Space Dandy and Monica Rial who voices Bulma in Dragonball series now. They put in this way. Ian Sinclair is the voice over guy for a Big Car Dealership in Chicago with several locations and he makes more money doing one session for those guys then he does for dubbing anime for a whole year. A lot of American anime voice actors do it because they enjoy it and not because of the money. If it was only because of the money then no one would be voice dubbing anime. This is the truth. It's how it is and how it will alway be. I respect the hell out of the voice actors who dub anime and so should you. Even if you don't like dubs yourself. At least Seiyu in Japan get respect in their industry unlike their American counterparts. If you want to trash the English dubbing industry at least understand how it works and what they have to do in relation to their pay before you do it. Rant over! |
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