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I've been thinking of this recently; how do English dub actors prepare for a role?

Would they watch all of the episodes of a series they are going to be in? With this approach, it seems they get the story and their character mostly explained to them, and they can use the Japanese voice actor as inspiration on how they can do the voice.

Or do they just get a basic character outline and then make their own interpretation of it? I can see this being another good way to this, since they will have their own interpretation of the character which may be better or worse than the Japanese voice actor. Plus, if the producers don't give major plot points to the voice actor they can be more spontaneous during the really sudden and emotional plot twists.

Anyone else have any information or ideas on this subject? I'm actually pretty interested in it, myself.

Judging from DVD extras and convention panels I've been to, most VAs do not watch the entire series before recording the lines. After all, while they generally like anime, they're not huge fanboys / girls like us and they don't want to spend all their time either watching or working on anime. Generally, the director is the one who watches through the whole series and explains the setup of the series and the motivations of the characters. In fact, it's better for the VAs not to have all the information, because that way, they only know what their character knows and what the director tells them. If they know that their character dies in episode 15 or turns evil in episode 20, it'll skew their performances in the earlier episodes. This was especially the case with Evangelion, according to the commentaries, since everyone in that series has some kind of secret agenda that the other characters don't know about.

They hear the Japanese versions of their lines while recording in the booth, so they do have that base for inspiration.

Heres an interesting video on the Bosch who recently got the lead role in code geass. His way of getting ready is quite funny.

Zalis116 wrote:

They hear the Japanese versions of their lines while recording in the booth, so they do have that base for inspiration.

Not always.

In the interview of Hellsing Ultimate Vol.1, Freeman says it works as a double-edged sword. Because the Japanese tracks are obviously completed prior to an English dubbing, most of the responsibility and trust will emanate from the ADR director who is essentially the only one that knows anything/everything about the characters, along with the overall pacing of their scripts, development, etc.

The reason used for Freeman's logic in not getting a listen for their Japanese counterparts is that one can easily "fall into a trap" of merely impersonating or mimicking said seiyuu, and therefore distracting the VA from constructing the character themselves.

If you think about it, when the Japanese produce their voices and characters from scratch, it's a lot more difficult because all they have is a script and (hopefully) a really, really good sound director. Not to say having a pre-established body of work for the English VAs is any excuse for a less than stellar production, but it's something to consider for both sides.

Without a good Japanese cast, or even the efforts of a pre-established work ready to use and adapt, English ADR people would probably have a tougher time casting and directing such roles. This is why it irks me when people claim "the dub surpasses the original." It's disparaging to the original voices and all their efforts. I don't appreciate having them thrown under the bus when it was those very efforts that gave ADR people an idea of what to do for the dub.

Basically, it's all on the director's shoulders. He listens to the original, holds auditions for casting, tweaks the script from what his scriptwriters give him, then utilizes what he knows and applies it to the voice talents of whoever he/she casts.

I think this takes away a lot of the pressure as opposed to a VA simply hearing the Japanese voice, and then going off of that. This way, we can only blame the director too, not the actor. I guess you could call that person the scapegoat.

Tony K. wrote:

This is why it irks me when people claim "the dub surpasses the original." It's disparaging to the original voices and all their efforts. I don't appreciate having them thrown under the bus when it was those very efforts that gave ADR people an idea of what to do for the dub.

How is it disparaging if it's accurate? You have even given a reason that could explain the truth of the statement (ADR people being given ideas). Just because they gave ideas, however, does not by necessity mean that they did better than the English-speaking cast. It is the same as saying "It's disparaging to say 'the anime is better than the manga.'" Neither is an insult. An insult would be to say "the English dub rocks but the Japanese is horrible." And even this could be true, no? There is always the possibility the ADR director could decide NOT to do certain things based on what he/she believed to be failures of the original. You could credit the original with that, but that doesn't necessarily mean the original is better.

I don't know, it is just as disparaging to the english actors to claim it is completely impossible for them to surpass the original in terms of performance and quality.

I don't see any problem with claiming a dub is better than the other if the person truly thinks that is the case. One coming first doesn't automatically give the cast greater talent, nor does it make the performances magically better. You could tell an artist to paint a picture and then afterwards tell another artist to paint the same subject and it's entirely possible that second artists picture will come out better. It isn't an insult to the first artist, sometimes one person will just do something better than another.

Nor do I even buy in to the idea that english cast couldn't do it without the pre-existing roles. There's no reason they couldn't do it from the ground up, it's done in the US all the time with integrate CG in film and with domestic television. It just means they don't have an original dub to get ideas from, but even without ithose deas they'd still be able to piece together a cast with the information at hand and they would likely be able to do so without increased difficult. It's not as though voice acting from the ground up is a Japanese only art that the rest of the world lacks for some reason as though it were DNA encoded.

I wouldn't even say the Japanese have it tougher since the US dub artists have other factors to contend with the Japanese do not. For one they have to please a fanbase that is likely already set on a specific sound and tone to a character without simply impersonating it. They have to match to the already animated lip movements while still keeping the script true to the original. You're simply some problems/bonuses for another set.

Xanas wrote:

An insult would be to say "the English dub rocks but the Japanese is horrible."

Which I hear a lot (not on this site, but browsing on others), and it ticks me off.

Xanas wrote:

...There is always the possibility the ADR director could decide NOT to do certain things based on what he/she believed to be failures of the original. You could credit the original with that, but that doesn't necessarily mean the original is better.

I'm not trying to imply the original is automatically better just because it's made first. Each language track can have their own particular strengths and faults (such as titles full of Engrish dialogue/terminology or non-Japanese specific elements), but then things can get messy when we try to throw in our own subjectivity on voice casting, inflection, delivery, and all that other stuff (and yes, we are all subjective/sentimental when it comes to language preference, be it for Japanese or English voices).

I was simply trying to say that without the original, it would be harder to adapt/improve any shortcomings that "just don't work" in Japanese, but might make more sense in English. I'm especially anxious to hear what they did for the Yakuza arc of Black Lagoon: Second Barrage, whenever that comes out in English.

Keonyn wrote:

It just means they don't have an original dub to get ideas from, but even without those ideas they'd still be able to piece together a cast with the information at hand and they would likely be able to do so without increased difficulty. It's not as though voice acting from the ground up is a Japanese only art that the rest of the world lacks for some reason as though it were DNA encoded.

I'm only referring to anime. If anime were made in America from scratch like over in Japan, then more power to the sound director of the original English track. Vampire Hunter D: Bloodlust is the only title I can think of right now that had an English track first, then a Japanese. And of course, U.S-origin cartoons are proof enough that the idea works on both sides.

But my point is, because most anime is from Japan and that ADR directors already have something to work with, it gives them and the English cast a little more leeway. The rest of the effort just lies in their self-confidence and ability to perform the way they feel is best.

Keonyn wrote:

I wouldn't even say the Japanese have it tougher since the US dub artists have other factors to contend with the Japanese do not. For one they have to please a fanbase that is likely already set on a specific sound and tone to a character without simply impersonating it.

Good point, but that's where personal preference and subjectivity come into play. If someone has a preconceived notion with the Japanese cast already in their mind, then that first impression they initially had is more than likely stuck with them by the time an English dub comes around.

That person could be a sub fan or dub fan, and it may or may not matter more so than to someone else with different preferences. Some people might prefer one language over the other, yet be more critical to "the other" track if that's the way they are. Otherwise, every single DVD would be dub-only and we'd have a uniform system for watching anime.

I hear they do pilates, sip some green tea and recite bible verses. Any validity to this?

Last edited by thaberkorn on Wed Dec 12, 2007 12:37 pm; edited 1 time in total

Well, at Funimation, we don't really get to watch the entire show - we get access to the script the day we record. Coming from a theatre background, I would appreciate the opportunity to work on a character a little more deeply by knowing all the ins and outs of their personality. But, I'd say we develop it as it goes along. For instance, I'm currently recording on XXXHolic and I'll be in the booth for about sixty hours just for the first eight episodes - so, we get to know the characters fairly well by that point. The closest thing we have to knowing the backstory is in the character history notes used for auditioning before a show goes into production. We mostly get the backstory from the director the day of recording and watch clips of the show here and there in the booth that are important for the scene we're about to record. The director does watch the entire series though, and guides the actors accordingly. Mixed in with being mindful of the story is making sure we match flaps, give a clear and appropriate read, and drink plenty of water Smile

From what I gather from audio commentaries that is the standard in the States, although a few actors will go out of there way to hunt down the rest of the series on their own. I recall Crispin Freeman has mentioned that he usually tries to get a hold of the series before recording (I think he mentioned on the Boogiepop DVD in regards to Kare Kano which he worked on as staff as well) but then again he comes across as a anime fan as well as professional.

Glad to see you here Todd! I love the audio commentary on Suzuka Volume 2 where you come across as a really nice (much nicer than Yamato) person. Thank you for the effort put into getting peoples names right.

Thank you, sir - Suzuka was a lot of fun. I'm starting to get on the forums a bit more when I can. You're right though, some people do seek out the subs themselves. Everyone is usually doing a thousands things at once like writing or directing while acting at the same time, so that makes it difficult to get the subs and watch the entire series. But, I guess I do need to follow in the footsteps of this professional you speak of...

I know that those voicing minor roles will sometimes not even really know what the story of the series is as they are only given the scenes they are in. I know at very least that this was the case for the VA who was Himeno's dad (totally blanking on his name) in Pretear (ADV).

Having hosted a Black Lagoon panel in August up here at the Anime Evolution con in Vancouver, I learned that dub actors have different ways of preparing, just like other actors.

Some actors prefer to watch the original Japanese subtitled version in order to get a read of the body language prior to recording.
Others prefer to just read the scripts and go in without seeing what happens.

As touched on above, the director does a whole lot of prep work to ready themselves too, so that they can guide the actors.

It's really interesting in hearing an actor's point-of-view. I quite enjoyed their story-telling. I highly recommend taking in a panel where actor's are talking about their work on a show, at the next con you may attend.

Corey Fischer
Ocean Productions

The same way a Japanese prepares for a role.

demonroach wrote:

The same way a Japanese prepares for a role.

And what way might that be? Care to explain it? After all, the rules do require it:

Quote:

3) Discussions should carry some measure of intelligence to them. Consider if what you are writing is relevant or important to others. If it does not contribute to the discussion, do not post it. Please post detailed answers to questions, lists and one-liners do not contribute.

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