CATDOLL: Japan's famous female voice actor Park Lumei talks about her experience of guiding foreigners in dubbing

Park Romi, a popular voice actress who has appeared in animated works including "Fullmetal Alchemist", recently held a "dubbing experience session" for anime fans from countries such as Canada and Mexico, and Japanese media also interviewed her about this.

Q: How do you feel about providing dubbing guidance to ordinary people from abroad this time?

A: I was a little confused at first, but seeing how much they liked this work (Sushi Ninja) and how hard they worked on the dubbing, I was still a little moved. Although I have also guided students in school, this is my first experience, and I feel like I will never forget it until I die (laughs).

Q: I noticed that Ms. Park Romi would pat the nervous Canadian guests on the back, which made them relax and perform smoothly. This scene surprised me.

A: New voice actors who voice children's roles don't know when to match the sound with the picture, so I give them some tips. This way, they won't be confused about "when to make a sound", so they can make sounds with confidence, which may be the reason for their excellent acting skills.

Q: This time, the dubbing was done in three languages: English, Spanish, and Japanese. Do you feel that Japanese animation is loved by the whole world?

A: I am fully focused on "how to perform", so I don't have any idea of ​​promoting it to the world. But recently, I participated in an event called OTAKON in the United States, and held a signing event and Q&A session. At that time, I really felt that my work has spread to the world, and the audience is actually all over the world. And fans in Japan and other countries in the world have the same views, which makes people feel that the world has become one.

Q: The guest from Mexico is also a fan of "NANA" (Park Romi played Ozaki Nana in the work), and he was very grateful to be able to meet you in person.

A: Even though they are from abroad, they brought posters and dolls of "NANA" and "Digimon Adventure" and asked me to sign them - I should be grateful for that.

Q: Foreign animations are usually recorded first and then drawn, so this time the guests were also confused at first.

A: There may indeed be problems in this regard. The production of "Sushi Ninja" was done in a similar way to overseas recordings from the beginning, and as a result, we Japanese voice actors felt confused. So I understand their feelings. "Sushi Ninja" was dubbed by Mr. Mamoru Miyano, Mr. Yuki Kaji and others, and I also let the guests who participated in the dubbing attempt today experience what kind of feeling professional voice actors perform with.

Q: "Voice acting" is probably a characteristic of Japanese animation. When you suggested to everyone, "Try to improvise!", they were all stunned at first (laughs).

A: I see, that's why... If we record first and then draw, we can naturally add improvisation when recording. When we record again, we will use improvisation to connect the existing lines, so this aspect is very important. Yeah, I learned it (laughs).

Q: This time, you used a unique animation like "Sushi Ninja" to let some unique faces do the dubbing. Do you have any works worth recommending?

A: I am currently dubbing for a work called "Adventure Time". The work is set in the world after a nuclear war. In fact, the theme is very profound, and director Masaaki Yuasa is also involved in the Japanese side, so it has caused a lot of discussion. Please enjoy it together with "Sushi Ninja". In addition, I will perform in the stage play "GS Chikamatsu Shoten" from September. This is a work that explores the "meaning of life" and is very vivid. Those who like animation may also wish to experience the charm of stage plays on site.

Q: It's really exciting. Thank you very much for accepting our interview today.