Animazement - Friday - Actors Speak

Why do these five people give up normal lives to add their voices to the world of English-language anime? They make some money, it's a fun job and they get to meet fans at conventions and make new friends. The acting quintet of (left to right) Rachael Lillis, Brett Weaver, Lisa Ortiz, Amy Howard and Pamela Weidner had a room full of friends at an Animazement panel on Friday afternoon.

Why act and try to make a living out of it? "Because they throw you in jail if you steal," said Ortiz (right). "You mean people do this for a living?" replied Weaver (left). Weaver added, "I get a lot of personal satisfaction out of going into the booth and creating a character." Ortiz said she would like stage or film roles, but she likes voice acting so much that she studied that craft in college. Ortiz admitted to fans that she really liked the G.I. Joe series when she was a kid. "Don't even speak evil of it," she said.

Lillis, who has added a role in the Irresponsible Captain Tylor TV series to her Pokemon resume, agrees that acting is fun but voice acting is special. "Along the way you reach a niche you fall into. I knew when I was 13 and I saw my first episode of Inspector Gadget that this was what I wanted. I saw the character of Penny and I thought, `Wow, she's not your typical female animated character.' "

Howard has done no voice roles since two years of voicing Nova in Star Blazers, but she's auditioning for more parts. "You meet some great people who become your support group," Howard said about her acting friends. "You need them because it's a tough business." Beyond the glamour is the likelihood that you'll be rejected for a role, and even Howard had to ask "Why would someone want to subject themselves to this sort of stuff? You guys," she said, motioning to the audience, "are the reasons."

"You actually get feedback from the fans," Weidner said. "You take that to heart for your next project - you're working for the fans. It's so rare in this day and age that you can work at a job you enjoy." Weidner, who has added roles in Sailor Victory to her Skuld and Miss China roles, likes the job so much that she's working as a recording engineer when she's not behind the mike.

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