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-   -   Why aren't foreigners "allowed" to be voice actors? (https://www.japanforum.com/forum/japanese-movies-tv/36728-why-arent-foreigners-%22allowed%22-voice-actors.html)

tokusatsufan 03-20-2011 07:34 PM

Why aren't foreigners "allowed" to be voice actors?
 
Doesn't anyone find it strange that foreign characters in anime,for example, are always voiced by Japanese people? I'm sure that I'm overthinking it and foreigners just don't want to be voice actors but it does strike me as more than a bit odd. Is it because they want clear Japanese voices and they're worried accents could get in the way?

MMM 03-20-2011 07:40 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tokusatsufan (Post 858113)
Doesn't anyone find it strange that foreign characters in anime,for example, are always voiced by Japanese people? I'm sure that I'm overthinking it and foreigners just don't want to be voice actors but it does strike me as more than a bit odd. Is it because they want clear Japanese voices and they're worried accents could get in the way?

Not at all. Where else are you going to find native speakers?

Even within Japan, there are often characters using Japanese dialects that are not from those regions (especially Kansai dialect). Native speakers can hear the difference a mile away.

Anjin 03-20-2011 07:40 PM

It's not easy but possible.

tokusatsufan 03-21-2011 12:38 PM

Has a foreigner ever actually voiced a foreign character? I've never seen any.

WingsToDiscovery 04-01-2011 10:41 AM

There used to be a bulletin posted outside of where I lived that was seeking foreign voice actors for cartoons/games within Japan. Granted, I don't know if they were looking for English or Japanese, but at least the jobs exist.

More to your point, however, topics like these are easy to pick at subjectively but really don't make that much sense if you think about it. First and foremost, a cartoonist would have to create an anime. Then they'd have to sit and wait for not only a foreigner who speaks perfect Japanese, and has a decent enough voice to voice act, but also even wants to do voice acting. That's a pretty tall order considering the relatively small number of foreigners in Japan (let alone those who speak fluent Japanese, have the voice ability, and want that kind of job).

It's not weird at all.

SHAD0W 04-01-2011 10:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tokusatsufan (Post 858113)
Why aren't foreigners "allowed" to be voice actors?

What are you basing this information on?

tokusatsufan 04-01-2011 10:50 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by WingsToDiscovery (Post 859763)
First and foremost, a cartoonist would have to create an anime. Then they'd have to sit and wait for not only a foreigner who speaks perfect Japanese, and has a decent enough voice to voice act, but also even wants to do voice acting. That's a pretty tall order considering the relatively small number of foreigners in Japan (let alone those who speak fluent Japanese, have the voice ability, and want that kind of job).

It's not weird at all.

Ah I see. It was just something I noticed,that's all,I'm sure there's no malice behind it.

Nyororin 04-01-2011 12:48 PM

Voice acting isn`t something you can just apply for and walk in off the street and do. There are dedicated schools for it, and you pretty much have to pass, be verified, and then enter a studio. Most voice actors/actresses attended these schools straight out of high school.

Foreigners in Japan just usually aren`t in the position to do this. You can`t get a visa to attend a voice acting school... Not to mention that the schools aren`t exactly cheap either.

And even then, you have to sign with a studio and work your way up through the ranks... Minor voice overs in dubbed films, commercial voice overs, nameless background characters in anime... And then if you`re lucky a regular part.

It`s a serious career.

siokan 04-01-2011 01:26 PM

It is a person who has the permanent resident status or it is a naturalized person.
Person who lives in Tokyo outskirts.
Person who can work by low wage.
Person who does not say selfishness.:rolleyes:

It is difficult to satisfy it.
Because attitudes toward work are different, it is hard to treat it very much.

tokusatsufan 04-28-2011 09:21 PM

The thing is,you have foreign characters that are supposed to be from the Anglosphere in anime and,I hate to say it,but they can't speak English.

MMM 04-28-2011 09:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tokusatsufan (Post 863569)
The thing is,you have foreign characters that are supposed to be from the Anglosphere in anime and,I hate to say it,but they can't speak English.

Sean Connery played a Russian sub captain in "The Hunt for Red October". Trust me, the Japanese actors are doing fine.

Realism 04-28-2011 09:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tokusatsufan (Post 863569)
The thing is,you have foreign characters that are supposed to be from the Anglosphere in anime and,I hate to say it,but they can't speak English.

Ever heard of Hollywood?

Tom Cruise and his whole German crew spoke perfect, non-accented English in Valkyrie

In Memoirs of a Geisha they spoke English

All those movies like Troy, Kingdom of Heaven, Gladiator all spoke English

RobinMask 04-28-2011 09:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Realism (Post 863576)
Ever heard of Hollywood?

Tom Cruise and his whole German crew spoke perfect, non-accented English in Valkyrie

In Memoirs of a Geisha they spoke English

All those movies like Troy, Kingdom of Heaven, Gladiator all spoke English

Ah, Hollywood . . . I have a feeling the awful accents shall outweigh the good ones. Such as the German accent in the new "Indianna Jones", or the awful so-called English in the recent "Robin Hood" . . . the ammount of Indian and British accents butchered in Hollywood, and the American accents butchered in English films, are a dime a dozen.

It's the same everywhere though. In Japanese anime they fail a lot to do foriegn accents . . . "Gravitation" is cringe-worthy in the flashbacks in America.

I wonder why casting directors pick people who aren't used to certain accents, or sound awful in imitating them, but it's pretty common. It's very rare I come across someone and go 'really, they aren't actually x-nationality?' or 'wow, that sounds realistic' :P

tokusatsufan 04-28-2011 11:28 PM

Well then someone's gotta be the one to move forward. Kamen Rider Psyga and Mac Windy are the best!

RickOShay 04-29-2011 01:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tokusatsufan (Post 863569)
The thing is,you have foreign characters that are supposed to be from the Anglosphere in anime and,I hate to say it,but they can't speak English.

Dude, they are just cartoons. Calm down.

And why would they need to speak English in a Japanese anime?

Are they like trying to speak English in some scenes, and you find it offensive or silly or something?

myk 04-29-2011 01:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RobinMask (Post 863577)
It's the same everywhere though. In Japanese anime they fail a lot to do foriegn accents . . . "Gravitation" is cringe-worthy in the flashbacks in America.

Yeah in Evangelion 2.0 there was a guy that was supposed to be speaking English. Couldn't even understand wtf he was saying.

Quote:

I wonder why casting directors pick people who aren't used to certain accents, or sound awful in imitating them, but it's pretty common. It's very rare I come across someone and go 'really, they aren't actually x-nationality?' or 'wow, that sounds realistic' :P
Don Cheadle is one of those guys. He's real good with accents.

Ryzorian 06-02-2011 03:21 AM

Availability of voice actors that are both anglo and actually speak japanse well enough to be understood is probably very low..like hardly any. For the various reasosn stated. I would also think Most American actors anyway never considered voice acting as much as film work..Anime was and is a big part of japanese entertainment and serious drama is done through that medium. In the USA, cartoons are cartoons.

RealJames 06-02-2011 02:03 PM

I asked a few of my Japanese friends here (in Kansai area) and they all felt that it was far more strange that non-kansai people were voice acting kansai accents, some of them even get irritated when they hear the rubbish accent ><

One of them thought the reason foreigners aren't voice acting the foreign roles is cuz it's a shit job apparently except for the very few who make it to the top

RTyokohama 06-02-2011 04:50 PM

How about "甲斐田ゆき(Yuki Kaida)"?
She did foreign student from USA in "げんしけん2".
I'm native Japanese speaker, so I don't know how her English is good.
but she studied abroad many years

tokusatsufan 06-02-2011 05:36 PM

Thank you for pointing me to that example. I might have a look at that.

tokusatsufan 06-02-2011 05:46 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RealJames (Post 867067)
One of them thought the reason foreigners aren't voice acting the foreign roles is cuz it's a shit job apparently except for the very few who make it to the top

Oh that makes sense. I suppose a considerable amount of the English speakers are Americans,and they don't think "Oh yeah blood,I'll be a voice actor! That's really exciting that is!" Not to say none of them want to do it,but in Britain we have more of a media course culture thing.

tazzy 06-11-2011 07:47 PM

meh, it happens in the west too. Look to Heroes, apparently Japanese people found Ando's Japanese quite hilariously bad (Korean-American actor).
Anime is made for Japanese who don't know the difference so they get whats easiest available.

tokusatsufan 06-11-2011 11:40 PM

;) You think Japanese people can't tell a Japanese person?

tazzy 06-12-2011 12:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tokusatsufan (Post 867802)
;) You think Japanese people can't tell a Japanese person?

Yes.
If its just their voice a Japanese can well play a foreigner and be convincing to monolingual Japanese.

tokusatsufan 06-12-2011 10:01 AM

The point I am making is,just because it happens in American stuff[and to a lesser extent usually] does not mean it should carry on. I highly doubt they don't know the difference.

And don't make some noob comment like "HEY MAN THEIR JUST CARTOONS"! There are even western cartoons with an ongoing plot,there just aren't as much.

evanny 06-12-2011 11:09 AM

well. it shouldn't be a problem to get someone who speaks english to do a small part. some probably would do it for free in an OVA or something like that.
if i was offered i would do it - well couple of lines for believability. for those small parts all you need is a decent voice. a full time character is another story.

i will be honest and say that some of the english voice work by japanese can take me out of the movie like in rainbow six (the boxer guy). still it is nothing to make a big fuss about. best one so far was in black lagoon where that kind translated from Japanese to Russian and vice versa, but the episode was dubbed by americans. on the other hand my russian isn't so good so it might have simply seemed like it.

but it certainly isn't the case of "foreigners can't". most of the americans don't speak any other languages much less japanese. and if they do they are probably among more educated crowd where plenty of other options are available.

Ryzorian 07-07-2011 01:23 AM

It probably will depend on how popular anime becomes in other countries...If it becomes a huge section of thier market they will probably look for more "local" voice actors to portray anglo types in the series. Though it's problomatice because there is a set of voice actors who do the dubbing allready.


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