VAM 203 | Interview with Crispin Freeman, Part 4
Welcome to episode 203 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!
As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:
http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast
Welcome to fourth and final part of an interview of me, hosted by my good friend and fellow voice actor, Julie Nathanson! As I mentioned in episode 200, Julie had offered years ago to turn the tables on me and interview me on my own podcast! I thought it was a great idea and I’m so grateful that she agreed to take over as interviewer for this 4 episode series!
In the previous episode, Julie and I talked about how I began my voice acting career working on anime dubs in New York city in the late 1990s. We talked briefly about my demos before we dove into a longer discussion about AI and whether I think artificial intelligence and machine learning can create meaningful storytelling. She then shared more questions from our voice acting colleagues, including one from Steve Blum about whether or not my deep analytical knowledge about storytelling ever gets in the way of my spontaneity as an actor. This gave me the opportunity to articulate my personal acting process with more specificity and nuance than I’ve ever done before. It was a very satisfying conversation and if you haven’t already, I would suggest that you listen to the 3 previous episodes of this interview before continuing with this final segment.
We begin this episode with some more questions from my voice acting colleagues. The first is from JP Karliak who says that even though voice actors may be facing some new and daunting challenges recently, he’d like to know if there’s anything about the voice acting industry that makes me optimistic and excited for the future. The next comment is from Stephanie Sheh who talks about how my willingness to admit my shortcomings as a director allowed her to be more honest and trusting with me as an actor. The final contributor is Jennifer Hale, who wants to know if there’s any question that I’ve never been asked, but that I’ve always wanted someone to ask me.
Jennifer’s query prompts me to share with Julie three stories or wisdom fables about the artistic process. While I’ve occasionally told one of these stories in previous interviews, I’ve never told all three of them at the same time. The stories were originally told to me by Rinde Eckert, a virtuosic theater artist and composer, and they are educational metaphors that are densely packed with wisdom. Furthermore, they encapsulate some of the core pieces of advice that I would want to impart to any aspiring voice actor. These stories also segue quite elegantly into my definition of the word “mastery” and how it applies to the artistic process. It’s a wonderful way to bring my time together with Julie to a satisfying conclusion and I’m so glad for the opportunity to share these insights with my listeners!