Dub
actors have become downright fashionable at Anime Expo. Fans crowded
into a meeting room to hear from members of the cast of Gun Sword, the
Geneon dub release of the anime series about a cynical adventurer, the
girl who accompanies him and the mysterious, sexy woman who moves into
their lives. On the left is Dave Vincent, who voices the cynical,
condiment-loving Van. Next to him is Jennifer Sekiguchi, voice of
little Wendy, who sits next to Michelle Ruff, who has moved from
voicing Chi in Chobits to playing the sultry Carmen 99 in Gun Sword.
Holding it all together is Liam O'Brien, the dub's director and
provider of utility voices for the project. "It's a blast to play Van,"
said Vincent. "There are so many different levels to him. A lot of
people compare him to Spike (Spiegel from Cowboy Bebop), but there are
so many differences. As the show moves, Van changes." Sekiguchi, who has
been cast in an increasing number of lead roles in 2006 dubs, said Gun Sword
also reminded her Bebop."It's not just looking cool or cute. When I
look at the pictures, there's something behind the eyes and the
expressions that gives it history - like it's a real person." While the
actors don't perform together, Sekiguchi is glad to have Ruff as part
of the cast...
...and
Ruff returns the favor. "I like having other actors to play off of -
it's a more organic read," she said. It's good to hear what the other
English actors have done." It's also a credit to Ruff that she's been
convincing as both the worldly Carmen 99 and the innocent Chi. "I can
speak for Carmen 99 - on the outside she looks like this crazy vixen
girl who has gone coo-coo, but we'll get an idea of why she's the
character she is." Ruff is one of the actors who prefers to head into a
dubbing session cold, with no research on what will happen to her
character from episode to episode. "I definitely don't like to know
beforehand, because the director may have more of an idea of where he
wants the series to go. If I have a preconceived notion of the
character, I can't follow this." The Gun Sword director, O'Brien, said
directing is "... not really a challenge for me, it's a challenge for
the actors. If you do something four or five times, its' tiring,
especially when it's action and you're clenching your guts. Being a
voice actor, I think my acting has gotten much better since I started
directing - I make better reaction sounds." At the time of the panel,
the cast had dubbed the first three Gun Sword DVD volumes, and O'Brien
cautioned fans that "It kind of comes off like a western in the first
episode, but it's not. It's a story of revenge."
Dub
actors have become downright fashionable at Anime Expo. Fans crowded
into a meeting room to hear from members of the cast of Gun Sword, the
Geneon dub release of the anime series about a cynical adventurer, the
girl who accompanies him and the mysterious, sexy woman who moves into
their lives. On the left is Dave Vincent, who voices the cynical,
condiment-loving Van. Next to him is Jennifer Sekiguchi, voice of
little Wendy, who sits next to Michelle Ruff, who has moved from
voicing Chi in Chobits to playing the sultry Carmen 99 in Gun Sword.
Holding it all together is Liam O'Brien, the dub's director and
provider of utility voices for the project. "It's a blast to play Van,"
said Vincent. "There are so many different levels to him. A lot of
people compare him to Spike (Spiegel from Cowboy Bebop), but there are
so many differences. As the show moves, Van changes." Sekiguchi, who has
been cast in an increasing number of lead roles in 2006 dubs, said Gun Sword
also reminded her Bebop."It's not just looking cool or cute. When I
look at the pictures, there's something behind the eyes and the
expressions that gives it history - like it's a real person." While the
actors don't perform together, Sekiguchi is glad to have Ruff as part
of the cast...
...and
Ruff returns the favor. "I like having other actors to play off of -
it's a more organic read," she said. It's good to hear what the other
English actors have done." It's also a credit to Ruff that she's been
convincing as both the worldly Carmen 99 and the innocent Chi. "I can
speak for Carmen 99 - on the outside she looks like this crazy vixen
girl who has gone coo-coo, but we'll get an idea of why she's the
character she is." Ruff is one of the actors who prefers to head into a
dubbing session cold, with no research on what will happen to her
character from episode to episode. "I definitely don't like to know
beforehand, because the director may have more of an idea of where he
wants the series to go. If I have a preconceived notion of the
character, I can't follow this." The Gun Sword director, O'Brien, said
directing is "... not really a challenge for me, it's a challenge for
the actors. If you do something four or five times, its' tiring,
especially when it's action and you're clenching your guts. Being a
voice actor, I think my acting has gotten much better since I started
directing - I make better reaction sounds." At the time of the panel,
the cast had dubbed the first three Gun Sword DVD volumes, and O'Brien
cautioned fans that "It kind of comes off like a western in the first
episode, but it's not. It's a story of revenge."
