Forum - View topicAnswerman - Why Do Some Voice Actors Like Not Knowing About Their Roles?
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Renasviel
Posts: 143 |
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Oh, it absolutely is an interpretation. You do realise that, for dubs, they hire script writers as well, don't you? They don't just lift the subs from Crunchyroll or translate the original script and stick them in as lines for dub actors to follow - they rewrite the script to make it more natural to be spoken in English, for an English-speaking audience (or whatever language it is being dubbed in, to be honest). That automatically makes the work an interpretation of the original work, which is typically an interpretation of the source material anyway, and thus not particularly original at all. Voice Actors don't have much leeway, granted - emotions still have to reflect what their character looks like on screen, but there is some margin to move with, and that is where the interpretation part comes in. As for your point about an actors improvisation not being implemented into the script, sure, but the same is true for the Japanese voice actors and actresses as well. I swear, some people must think that the process is somehow entirely different, but there is still a script writer, and voice actors still have to follow the script, making your point essentially moot. Directors are there to guide voice actors. That's pretty much their job. |
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SouthPacific
Posts: 689 |
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Unless times have changed drastically since I was in highschool (they haven't) I still stand by my previous post. And last time I saw a poll the bulk of western anime fans were 16-25, so i'll be part of that crowd for several years to come. |
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Touma
 Posts: 2651 Location: Colorado, USA |
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He said "not unanimously praised."
I have seen very little anime on television and I have never watched any streaming anime. I mention that so that you might believe that I am asking serious question and not just making sarcastic comments. When anime has been shown on TV in the US isn't it usually dubbed in English? Was subtitled anime ever shown on TV? I believe that streams were usually subtitled only, but aren't English dubs becoming normal now? If the answer to either of those is "yes" then I have to ask why? Dubs are very expensive, possibly more expensive than anything else that is done to produce a localized anime. So, if people really do not want dubs why are the studios spending all of that money on making dubs? |
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NearEasternerJ1
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@SouthPacific You know, the "I know a guy who is xxx" mantra is anecdotal evidence, which is not valid. Whilst the claim of "most people in the USA/Canada prefer dubs" is also at fault for its unsubstantiated claim, it does not mean that your point has any reason to be considered.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Anecdotal_evidence#Scientific_evidence_as_legal_evidence As for the debate of Japanese VAs vs English dub VAs, it's a non point. The Japanese being "better" or "not better" doesn't make English dub VAs bad. If people thought with logic instead of using fallacies, then perhaps people would see that. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/False_dilemma |
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SouthPacific
Posts: 689 |
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Whoops, my bad. Got way too late last night, my eyes must've been in semi-sleep mode  .
I believe all anime shown on US TV are dubbed, I might be mistaken about this but someone at the network that airs anime (Adult Swim I believe?) have said that all anime they air will be dubbed. Why they do this i'm not completely sure, as it would mean that it takes a long time for them to get more recent anime on air. And the overwhelming majority of streams are still subtitled, with the exception being broadcast dubs which is almost exclusively the work of Funimation, so dub streaming is not the norm at all. Though with disc sales declining as much as they do while streaming becomes more popular it would not be strange for them to become more available through streams. As for Funimation doing broadcast dubs it's not strange at all, they're going to dub the shows anyway and their niche in the US anime industry is certainly dubs, and this only strengthens their position on that. Whether broadcast dubs will pay off (my point about when anime gets discussed about and recieves the most attention would make it seem like broadcast dubs do not garner the attention of the masses of fans) or if it's the DBZ license that's carrying them is up to anyone's guess as Funimation hasn't made any data on this public, AFAIK. @NearEasternerJ1 I'm fully aware of that being anecdotal evidence, I didn't say it was scientifically proven, the main point was that anime gets the overwhelming majority's attention during the initial airing and not when the dub is released. You'd think that if most people enjoyed dubs the shows would get the most attention when they're released but that's not the case at all. |
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Haterater
 Posts: 1727 |
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It depends on the circle of the audience I would imagine. I can imagine more people talking more about Glitter Force than than when the show aired due to the circumstances of that coming out. Perhaps those who watch Toonami have their own circles to talk overall of the shows airing than each individual show. Dub DVDs I can imagine many watch but not talk about as to not encounter spoilers or have friends they can talk among themselves.
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HeeroTX
Posts: 2046 Location: Austin, TX |
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America doesn't respect voice acting, full stop. If you want proof of that, just look at any MAJOR Hollywood animated film. Look at who the voices are, are they primarily VOICE actors, or are they primarily "on-camera" live actors? I also think we prove it in HOW we do dubbing. I fully understand that voice each character individually and then editing the voices together may be "easier" from a production standpoint, but if you want better ACTING then the ACTORS should be allowed to play off of each other and work together (like they do in Japan), we do not do that for many animated roles. (I also realize that lips flaps is a thing, but if they respected the craft, is it any more so than "live" timing of facial expressions, positioning, etc? If it was about the ACTING it seems like they'd put in a bit more effort to get that right.
As far as the actors themselves, that really is a mixed bag. I know some that love their characters and some that it mostly is "just a job" (for people who say they see X at a convention and they clearly love their characters, sorry to tear the curtain, but for the ones for whom it is "just a job", going to cons is "just a job" too, heck the ones that are really proud of their ACTING ability may even look at "how well they can fool the fans" as more proof of their acting than VO work (but that's just a random fanciful thought, not based on anything)). That said, considering the WAY we do dubs, whether or not the American actor knows the role is less important than if the DIRECTOR does, since as others have said, they're more getting the actor where they need to be regardless and THAT is the same job as their Japanese counterpart. Not saying the Japanese side is "definitely" better actors, but one other note I'd say is that many Japanese voice actors (outside of anime) also do things like drama CDs (ie. voice ONLY items), outside of radio ads (which isn't really "acting", in the sense I'm meaning) or podcasts (which USUALLY aren't (supposedly) "in character") American actors don't really do "voice only" stuff. Also, while I do think American actors do some good work on anime dubs, am I the ONLY one that's kinda put off by them often pimping their NONanime work (when talking to anime fans)? Especially when it sometimes seems they clearly find it more "interesting"? |
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leafy sea dragon
 Posts: 7163 Location: Another Kingdom |
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It's the most dedicated, devoted fans who want their stuff as soon as possible and are least willing to wait because they read pre-release stuff and get hyped. The more casual fans, or the merely interested, will be very willing to wait, not only because they might prioritize other things ahead of a particular anime, but also because they might not pay attention to anime-related news or discussions and will watch whatever passes in front of their eyes. Series with broad, casual appeal like Naruto are like this, and they are reflected in sales patterns of Naruto stuff being steady over time: That's because people who enjoy the show or the manga will often stumble across these things and buy them months or years later. Series that rely largely on a hardcore audience (most anime, really) will sell well out of the gate but fizzle off quickly because that casual audience isn't there to consume them later on. You see this in pretty much everything. In video games, compare sales of a Smash Bros. game, which has a broad audience and thus continues to sell well until the next Smash Bros. game comes out; to traditional fighting games (except Street Fighter and Mortal Kombat, which have a similarly broad audience and get long-tail sales too), like Guilty Gear or King of Fighters, which have a small, dedicated audience but not much else outside of them and get much lower sales long after their releases. |
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Just-another-face
Posts: 324 |
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Maybe because most people who watch Toonami are North American English speakers and they prefer it in their native language? It's not really that hard to figure out. |
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SouthPacific
Posts: 689 |
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I'm fully aware of that many americans do not watch much subtitled material, but most of the anime fans (americans) i've spoken to online watch their anime subtitled. |
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Just-another-face
Posts: 324 |
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As NearEasternerJ1 already pointed out, that's just hearsay on your part. I'm pretty sure "most of the anime fans" you've spoken to online don't even constitute a very large number of the overall anime viewership here. |
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SouthPacific
Posts: 689 |
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Yes, i'm not saying that it's fact, which is impossible to say since there are no actual recorded figures on this matter. I'm saying that's what it looks like from my perspective and my experiences. But as I stated before there's fact in that most anime, essentially everything outside larger titles like Pokemon, gets the overwhelming majority of its attention during the initial Japanese airing. |
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Alan45
 Village Elder Posts: 9853 Location: Virginia |
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@SouthPacific
I think what you are missing here is that by the time anime shows up on TV, it has long been available to fans by streaming, disk and "other" methods. If by disk it may even have been available dubbed as well as subtitled. Basically any anime fan that really wanted to has already seen the show. The TV network puts this out for a mostly new audience. A different group of people from the anime fans you see on the net. These are extremely casual fans, people who are not familiar with anime at all and others that are watching just because it looks interesting. This group is not about to be attracted by a subtitled show. The main thing that anime on TV does is recruit new fans. Those interested enough to try to find out more about the shows and track them down. Also in the US, anyone who has access to a decent internet connection has access to the streaming sites. Most are available for free with ads and unlike regular TV are on demand. Most of the people you talk with on the net don't need to wait for a show to come on TV. |
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Haterater
Posts: 1727 |
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That is not easy, especially if flap lips have "stops" that interrupt the flow of a line. I hear it all the time and its quite annoying. I think "if only the animation would let the lips stop the pausing, that line would flow so naturally". But the actor always has to take a bit of pause or hurry the line to keep the timing. Which can make the acting tough to pull through of it not sounding natural enough. And its for all dubbed stuff, as I bet even Japanese dubs of things have this challenge of natural sounding acting while being in line with flip flaps. Although what I see sometimes of sub anime of the original, they sometimes ignore lip flaps. |
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leafy sea dragon
Posts: 7163 Location: Another Kingdom |
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There's also how you have to look for them on streaming sites to actually find them. Hence, you need to have a certain interest level and familiarity with a show to watch it. There is no stumble-across factor for shows like Parasyte -the maxim- if it weren't for how it's on Toonami. (Thisis the primary reason why I still love watching television as it's traditionally been: I love the stumble-across factor you just don't get with streaming. I love just staying on a channel and seeing if I'll like whatever happens to show next. Do any streaming services have that feature, where if you finish watching one show, they'll line up an episode of a different, similar showright afterwards?) |
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