VAM 059 | The Differences Between Voice Acting in Animation, Video Games and Anime
Welcome to episode 59 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
In this episode I’d like to share with you what it’s like behind the scenes when you’re voice acting in Animation, Video Games or Japanese Anime. Each one of these mediums presents unique challenges to a voice actor. While the goal in all of them is the same, to sound believable as a character, they each require a different mindset and set of skills in order to accomplish that goal. It’s incredibly helpful to to have an understanding of what acting demands will be placed on you in each of these professional recording environments before you arrive at the studio! I think you’ll find it an invaluable introduction so you’re not caught flat-footed when you enter a studio!
Thanks for listening!
Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #59 Here (MP3)
I usually try to watch documentaries and other behind the scenes stuff to learn and see what it’s like. I also got that Adventures in Voice Acting DVD that Bang Zoom! put out a few years ago.
Speaking of acting, I’m off to my Acting III class.
Thank you for your time and wisdom.
Very informative! The main reason I got into anime was watching the “Behind-the-Mic” stuff, and I thought it was sooooo cool.
I’ve also heard another reason you only get the lines you need is because the writers have poured their life into the script, and don’t want anyone taking the ideas of theirs and using it to profit off of. Copyright and all that.
Anyways, I love your lecture episodes. They’re always informative. Can’t wait till the next~!
Copyright laws protect them from you trying to develop their property on your own. That’s not nearly as much of a concern as an actor possibly releasing either the cast list or storyline information to the general public. That hampers their ability to market their show properly as well as gives their competition knowledge about what they are planning. They’re not really worried about you knowing, they’re worried about you letting other people know about it.
Glad you like my lecture episodes! I try to share as much useful info as I can!
Thank you so much for the recommendation on throat coat teas. I’m highly satisfied with the results.
Glad to hear it!
That’s interesting that anime voice acting is done via ADR in Japan. I was always under the impression it was pre-layed. Why do they do it that way? Wouldn’t doing pre-lay make it easier on the voice actors?
I also have a couple of questions about what kind of work output is expected in a professional recording session. If you are a main character in an anime series, how many episodes or lines should you typically have done in a 4 hour recording session? On the flip side of that, if you are a main character in an American cartoon how many episodes are you expected to get done in a 4 hour pre-lay recording session?
To this day I still don’t know why anime is recorded ADR style in Japan. Someone with more knowledge than me will have to answer that one.
If you’re asking about the rate of speed for a voice actor, in Anime the expect you to be able to record 30 loops or lines in an hour. In video games it’s probably higher, around 40 or 50 since there is no lip flap to match. In American original animation they expect you to get your line in no more then 4 or 5 takes, preferably the 2nd or 3rd take.
This is valuable information. Thank you
You’re welcome.
There is something about lip flap that has confused me, you guys don’t know your lines or what your character looks like until you get in the booth. But do you get to preview the flip flap? It sounds like you hope the line your reading matches the first time
Most of the time, yes we do get to preview the lip flap in Japanese before we have to record the line. However, when I worked on Digimon Data Squad, we didn’t get any preview, we just had to go for it without having seen the lip flap beforehand. Then we really had to trust the writing to fit the lip flap that existed.
Thank you for that, information like this will help my confidence
My pleasure.