| The two worlds of anime voice acting - Japanese and
English-language performances - don't get together very often. That gap
was divided at Animazement when veteran actor Akira Kamiya (left) and veteran
voice director Scott Houle (right), assisted by a translator, sat down
to talk in front of anime fans. The main difference between the two worlds
of acting is the way the voice recordings are handled. In North American
animation, the voice parts are recorded first and the animators use those
recordings as a guide. In Japan, the animation comes first and the actors
dub their roles in a group, often needing no more than a couple of hours
to finish a 22-minute show. The fans learned that the differences go beyond
mere technique. |
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| Houle's questioning prompted Kamiya to reveal that
Japanese anime production is something like the "just-in-time" industrial
production techniques that revolutionized the auto industry - although
anime production doesn't sound as controlled or organized. Kamiya said
that most Japanese voice casts usually get the voice script on the day
of the recording session. "The first time you see your characters might
be in the studio," Kamiya said. "Normally you have no details about the
character in advance." "You have to develop the character voice very quickly?"
asked Houle. "Part of our job entails developing the characters instantly,"
Kamiya replied. |
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| Kamiya added that the film that Japanese actors perform
their roles to is often not completed. Many times the actors deliver their
lines only to key frames or timing marks. And since the actors must adjust
to the finished animation, Kamiya said "Rather than delivering your
lines, your attempt goes into making sure your character `syncs up,'" referring
to the practice that the voice tracks match the animated characters' lip
flaps. Houle lets his English-language dub actors change their lines as
they see fit, but there's no such flexibility with the Japanese performances.
"There are some shows that are just slapped together," Kamiya said. |
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