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Anime

The Method of Making it in Anime

August 30, 2022 by Mami Okada

Top Anime Casting Director Mami Okada shares some great tips for those who want to make it in Anime

 

Mami Okada
Casting Director and Director of Operations at
Bang Zoom! Entertainment

 

How did you come to be a Casting Director?

To cut a long story short, I came to the States as an International student and secured an internship with Bang Zoom, at the time the company was very small and only had three other people working there. They were just starting out but they had a big series already and I came on as its first intern, then I just stuck around and it’s been 20 years now! I really didn’t know anything about Anime prior to starting at Bang Zoom because I didn’t really watch it when I was in Japan. When I arrived in the States I realized how huge it actually is!

 

What do you enjoy about your job?

There Are so many things that I enjoy. Sometimes even actors who I have been working with for years can still surprise me. I can hear a new voice from an actor that I’ve worked together with for years. It can be different experience every day and often very challenging but that is what keeps me going and my work interesting,

 

How has the industry changed since you started out?

So many changes are happening in the Anime industry. It’s definitely changed dramatically since when I first started the job. It used to be that only a very small group were passionate about English versions of Anime, now it is becoming more mainstream. There is more attention coming from places like video games and it changes the way I think and approach my work.

 

Tell us about the process you use to cast an Anime series…

The casting process is not the same every time. In general, when we get a series from our clients we discuss with our producers to find out what they’re expecting to hear when it comes to auditions. The final decisions will be up to the producers and sometimes the creators in Japan. We’ll discuss the requirements and then we’ll decide which roles we need to do auditions for.

 

How do you choose who to audition?

I select group of actors who are most likely to fit in a role or come close to the range of the character. I will send around 10 characters to each actors so they can choose which one they understand or connect with the most. I will send that out to about 25 actors at most, then I’ll narrow it down to a shortlist and submit them to the producers.

If a character requires something very specific by the producers that I haven’t found, I will reach out to agents. Agents might have someone who would be perfect for the project we are looking to cast.

 

What are you looking for when you are casting an English version of Anime?

We have to be respectful to the original performance when casting English versions. We take the directions from the original voice so we look for the voices that are similar to the original. We are never looking for a perfect fit but they should bring the same energy and emotion to the performance. We definitely focus more on that than who sounds like the Japanese voice. That can be your direction and then you need to make your own character. We still need to make sure that the character performance will fit visually with the animation. Performance is crucial when it comes to casting.

The performance has to come from the heart. I always suggest actors should make sure ti have all the emotions reachable. Keep your emotion within your reachable range stored in mental “drawers”. open the “drawer” and get the emotion. In the next moment, you’re going to open a different “drawer” and get to that emotion.

 

Do you have to have an Anime demo to work in the genre?

I personally don’t think you need to have a special Anime demo. A lot of actors have commercial demos and character animation demos. I’m not sure about the other casting directors but for me, I like to listen to both of them. I love to actually listen to anything and everything you’ve got. As I mentioned, Anime can be cinematic or it can be wacky or cartoony, I love to listen to the range of the actors.

 

Is being able to do ADR essential?

It’s definitely essential to be able to do ADR, which is the process in which you match your performance to the video. It’s not only animation that is a preferred skill for, but also tons of foreign language tv shows that adapt to other languages. All the big steaming services are grabbing good foreign titles and dubbing them into English or other languages so it’s really busy and it’s good for you to learn the skills of how to do it. It might feel a little intimidating at first because you have a beat’s timecode and you have a restricted time that you can perform, but eventually, it will come to you more naturally. It’s a lot like music – when you’re listening to the music, you know when to start singing. It’s a similar concept. I recommend taking classes o ADR because if you book your first gig and don’t know what to do, your nerves about doing the technical aspects will affect your performance.

 

Mami Okada’s Top Tips for delivering a successful lip sync!

  • Practice a neutral American accent.
  • Trust the script.
  • Preview the original language if the studio allows you to watch the original video.
  • Quickly look at the line, then quickly memorize.
  • Pay attention to the actual lift movement so you can practice during the preview.
  • Keep the rhythm.
  • Have a reason for performance choices.
  • Watch Anime in both languages if you can. Stop, rewind, switch the audio channel, and try to perform alongside the original voice.

 

 

 

 

Filed Under: Anime, Blog, Blog Tagged With: Mami Okada

Josh Martin Interview

August 8, 2022 by Alan Shires

ALAN SHIRES: How many characters have you dubbed in your career to date?

JOSH MARTIN: Unfortunately, I cannot give you an exact number, but I would say well over 50, one way or another, either actual lines, or a quick death scene or a battle scene. I have done plenty of ‘yes sirs’.

ALAN SHIRES: Is this just anime or video games as well?

JOSH MARTIN: Yeah video games as well and commercials too.

ALAN SHIRES: What’s the biggest challenge with lip syncing and how do you beat it?

JOSH MARTIN: It is just about going for it; doing it the best you can and following what the lips are doing and trying to do your best to match that. It does not always work as the translations don’t always match up so often there is a creative freedom to fudge a syllable.

 

ALAN SHIRES: And the directors are cool with that type of freedom?

JOSH MARTIN: Sometimes you have 3 seconds to do 3 sentences, the Japanese lip flaps might have 30 flaps and you have to do it. So, matching every ‘T’, ‘Um’, ‘P’ and every syllable is not going to happen. But doing it so often and understanding the rhythm of things you can see it in the corner of your eye. You’ll see the flaps going whilst you’re reading. With practise and experience comes better execution of the whole thing over time.

ALAN SHIRES: What is your favourite genre of voiceover and why?

JOSH MARTIN: It has to be anime. It was my first type of voiceover, before that I worked with a comedy troop and I got to apply some of that into anime. Whereas commercials have to be done in a certain way but anime is my favourite.

 

ALAN SHIRES: Why is it your Favourite?

JOSH MARTIN: I like the process, I like the art, I like the subject, I like the fans, I like the people I work with. It is a dream job. I grew up with cartoons from the 70s, 80s and 90s. I get to do a lot things I have watched and I get to meet some people I listened to growing up so that’s fun as well.

ALAN SHIRES: Sounds like amazing fun! So, talking to voiceover artists what’s the biggest tip you can give them with lip syncing/dubbing whether it be Spanish to English, Japanese to English?

JOSH MARTIN: The biggest tip is to be able to see the script and the screen at the same time. It is very technical; you need to do the same work an actor does too. That’s all the script analysis and all the character work. So, beyond that it’s important to get the technical down as well as the lip sync as that’s a different process.

ALAN SHIRES: So foundationally you’re saying that they need to go into the booth as an actor, but they also need the additional skill of using their peripherals so they can see everything?

JOSH MARTIN: Exactly, thank you Alan I am going to bring you everywhere so you can translate what I mean.

ALAN SHIRES: Last but not least can you book work in lip-syncing/dubbing without an agent?

JOSH MARTIN: I can’t see why you couldn’t book work without an agent, but what I would say is with an agent it’s going to be higher quality and probably a little better paid in theory. There will be less of a grey area to worry about but at the same time if you’re just starting out and have not done any voice over work you can’t get an agent as you’ve never done any voiceover work. Luckily in this day and age of technology you can get on someone’s fan work or an original piece and they need someone reasonable and someone just starting out. That’s a place I know a lot of actors at Funimation and other places that have started out just like that. There is definitely a better opportunity to make that happen without an agent. However, I would strongly recommend making that a goal to get that agent because that’s going to get you what you want.

 


By: Alan Shires

Voice Artist and VON Business
Development Manager

 


Josh Martin

Voiceover Artist, Actor, Singer & Entertainer

Filed Under: Anime, Blog, Blog

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