Modern animations and voice over actors.
- Thread starter HAL.9000
- Start date
Three main reasons for seeking out 'name' talent. First, they've usually made a name for themselves because they are particularly good or interesting actors. They can add more to the performance than simply reading the words, they can contribute ideas and provide their talents to the part. This isn't to say that there isn't an unknown who can do the same thing, but they are 'name' talent for certain reasons, usually talent or popularity.
Second, the popularity angle will translate well onto a poster or trailer. The presence of a star brings interest to a project that otherwise may have been overlooked. How many got interested in Shrek because they saw Mike Myers' name, or at least thought he was funny, so maybe Shrek would be funny, too. Not necessary, but once you've cast one star, another just rounds out the marketing. Shrek starring Mike Myers AND Cameron Diaz may be more appealing that MM and Someone the Public Has Never Heard Of.
Third, more publicity will arrive via the media. Entertainment shows will promote the project simply by announcing the star's involvement. This goes even more-so for commercials. I never knew that was David Spade's voice, but I'm sure it's been mentioned on Entertainment Tonight or some such, possibly even playing the ad, which then increases the visibility of whatever is being marketed, or causing people to seek out the ad just to hear the voice of a performer they're interested in.
Reminds me of those stories about Jennifer Lien (Kes) who was still able to do great voice work after being sacked from VOY and 'losing her looks'...
as for wider point about star voices and CGI animation, presumably this applies mainly to Hollywood/US product? There's lot of foreign cel/CGI anim I like (e.g., Final Fantasy: Advent Children, the Studio Ghibli films) which don't use big names and doubt would be anymore successful if did. Even 'Spirits Within' didn't use Sandra Bullock as Aki Ross (though maybe with hindsight they should have
)
as for wider point about star voices and CGI animation, presumably this applies mainly to Hollywood/US product? There's lot of foreign cel/CGI anim I like (e.g., Final Fantasy: Advent Children, the Studio Ghibli films) which don't use big names and doubt would be anymore successful if did. Even 'Spirits Within' didn't use Sandra Bullock as Aki Ross (though maybe with hindsight they should have
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Awesome, awesome voice. It's a shame she gave it up. Her sultry delivery as Agent L in Men in Black: The Series was one of the sexiest vocal performances I've ever heard. (And ironically, in the episode where she played an intentionally seductive dream version of her character, her delivery was less sexy than it was normally.)
Well, the John Lassetter-produced dubs of Miyazaki films do tend to cast name actors.
As far as Japan goes, their film/TV industry differs from Hollywood in that animation is a much bigger piece of the pie for them. So yes, Japanese animation definitely uses big names; it's just that the seiyu, the voice actors, become celebrities through their voice work itself, as opposed to the American pattern where you need to work in live action to become a celebrity (outside of animation fandom).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_acting_in_Japan
Always thought she had great voice in VOY too, that belied her 'little girl lost' image. And reminds who they get to voice Jessica Rabbit
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