by The first installment of the TV anime “X Anime (Cross Anime),” based on net creator, “Samishii Anata,” is being distributed on “LOCIPO” and X Anime’s official Youtube channel. With the theme of “scary stories that make your spine freeze,” the works of famous illustrator Sun Setuda have been adapted into anime.
In ORICON NEWS, Setuda and three voice actors, Hibiki Tanemura, Tsugumi Maho, and Saki Hanashiro, who won the voice actor audition, are acting as voice actors in this work. Interview people. We asked them to discuss their thoughts on creating their jobs, the behind-the-scenes of the unique post-recording called “home recording,” and their prospects. (Interview and text: Masaki Endo)
Sun Setuda’s illustration inspired all three voice actors and participate in the audition.
“X Anime” is Sony Music. A project jointly handled by the creator platform “MECRE” operated by Rebels and the CHET Group to create animations based on the works of illustrators, animators, painters, etc. Voice actor and theme song auditions were held, and the actors and artists were decided.
First, Mr. Setuda, how do you feel about the character you drew becoming an anime?
As a terrestrial animator, I was attracted to the system where the story and audition spread to the illustrations I created myself. I’m an anime otaku, so I was excited about doing this.
I’m sure you’ve had experience with commercials, but once again, please tell us how you felt when you saw your drawings moving as an animation.
I thought Sony’s technology was well-versed in music, and the idea of deriving the MV into a story was fresh. It’s a work that made me feel a new kind of animation.
For the voice actors, please tell us how you decided to participate in this audition.
After graduating from Takarazuka, I knew about the audition when I wanted to work as a voice actor and act. When I saw Mr. Setuda’s illustration posted then, I felt a sense of destiny and decided to participate.
Thankfully, I’m now affiliated with an agency, but when I thought it was a waste to wait for an audition, I found this audition. I applied, thinking, “I’ll grab it!” Settsuda-san’s illustrations are also fantastic; it would be cool to voice them.
Originally, I was going to a training school to become a voice actor, but I had yet to get through to an agency and could not fulfill my voice acting career—rice Field. At the same time that I was impressed by Mr. Setuda’s illustrations, I also found it fascinating that I could make my debut as an anime voice actor on terrestrial broadcasting. If I could participate, there would be a chance to connect to something ahead, so I took on the challenge.
What did you put into the creation of the work?
The voice actors praised Setuda-san’s illustrations very much.
I was chosen for my unique style: I imagined my style and expression for the anime. I drew the pendant with more emphasis and made the ghost-like thing sticking out of her back stand out from her clothes. During the production, I thought about a design that would make adding variations to the story accessible.
It draws you in with its unique atmosphere. It will be removed from the psychological viewpoint, but is there a point around that?
Some people tend to be attracted to negative things. For example, I’m more interested in anti-comments than compliments (laughs). If it’s just negative things, it will end with the feeling of seeing something unpleasant, so I create illustrations with a sense of putting a little cuteness and positive emotions into the pattern. That part led to the feeling of wanting to keep watching horror.
Please tell us what the three voice actors had in mind when creating this work.
Everyone who passed the exam felt the same, but I also felt grateful to those who supported me in my dream. I was also involved in a big project and was even more focused when I approached the first recording.
I’m thrilled that this is my debut work. Originally, I wanted to play a boy role, but suddenly a boy role came, and I felt pressure, but the people involved in the work said, “One team.” As someone interested in a big project, I am working hard every episode to reach out to my fans so that I can go out to sea as a crew member on a ship and keep my dreams alive.
Unlike the other two, I was among the four selected after the 1st and 2nd place winners with the right to perform. , I will be appearing this time. I am working with the feeling that I can do my best with the dreams I have grasped with the fans and the frustration of those selected.
Everyone, this is your first post-recording challenge. What are your thoughts on the recording?
It’s my first time voicing, and there are many scenes where I feel I need to improve, but thanks to the supportive voices and the friendly staff support, I’m not worried. I am very grateful for an environment where I can concentrate on what I need to do.
I played two roles in the first episode, but many of the fans who watched it commented, “I didn’t understand (two roles).” smile). I was happy because I could express the difference as a voice actor.
In every episode, I worked hard. There are some bad points but also good points, so it feels like 120 points.
Benefits of home recording and screaming practice.
I heard that the place where you were selected and the post-recording is being “recorded at home” remotely. How is it progressing?
I’ve never met him face-to-face (bitter smile). They send me the equipment and record it at home. I can retake it as many times as I want, so I can spend hours until I’m satisfied with it, and I can take some time off and calmly listen to it and re-record it. It’s fun to imagine how Saki-san and Hibiki-chan will interact with each other. Recording at home is a great environment.
It was my first time recording at home, but if there were a lot of screaming scenes like in episode 2, I would be worried about the people around me if I did it over and over again. I was carrying such a desperate feeling.
I also live at home, so finding time to record it was pretty daunting. I was often cast as a monster, and I practiced my suspicious laughter when I didn’t have a family. I can record until I’m satisfied, and it’s good to try voice acting for the first time.
Since the theme is a “chilling” story, the screaming scene is also a point, but it seems complicated to record at home. How did you go about rehearsing and preparing for the role?
I feared someone would come if I did it often (laughs). I’m sorry to those around me. I practiced a lot to find out how to convey my fear. Because I didn’t have eyes around me, I could concentrate on the play without worrying about my scary face, so it was easy to do in that respect.
I was conscious of not just screaming in the screaming scene. This time, I realized that there are various emotions in shouting, and I learned a lot by making different shouting patterns. Not only the expression but also the body. There were times when I dubbed with movements like Beat Takeshi-san. I’m glad we were able to record without everyone (laughs).
Every time I challenged myself with the feeling of concentrating on the shout. When I wasn’t sure what to make of a role, I read the original work, and this time I checked which role it was and how it came to be, and I dug deeper to see if I should have done more.
Setsuna “MECRE is like Momotaro” Rookie voice actors talk about their prospects.
How did you feel after hearing the three voices?
I also wanted to kneel on my knees. I am grateful to have been in charge of boy voices, but everyone has cute and beautiful voices. It would have been better if I had used that. But everyone had good male voices, and it felt good to watch. I felt the power of technology.
I was surprised by the word “Dogeza,” but that’s what it means. This time, the exhibition centered around Setuda’s work. How did you feel about MECRE?
Overall, I thought it was Momotaro. When an older woman is washing clothes in the river, peaches float down the river. Some people choose not to pick up. The old lady who first brought the peach home was terrific, right? In this case, the river is MECRE, and the situation where peaches are flowing is a chance to appear in a terrestrial animation as a voice actor, and those who picked it up without missing it are doing well. It was a platform with such opportunities and dreams.
It’s strange to say so. Lastly, Mr. Setsuda, what anime genre would you like to challenge in the future?
Honestly, I didn’t think I would be involved in animation, and I was surprised, but it was a good experience. I’m confident in my character design, and considering the genre, something satirical like Yonimo Bizarre Story would be good. I drew an office worker whose neck is a screw that looks like a light bulb connector and expressed it as a gear in society, and I drew a work called a smartphone brain whose brain is filled with SNS icons. It is my original style to drop it into a picture. Would an anime with some irony about society fit?
It was a great experience to be in charge of the male and elderly voices this time. I have yet to think much about the future, but I want to make the most of the many experiences I’ve had, and for now, I want to put everything I have into this work. That’s what happens in the future.
I didn’t think I could do a boy’s voice even if I wanted to. At the office workshop, I was asked, “Can Tanemura come out with a voice like this?” I want to reflect on the encounters, miracles, and opportunities I have been given, and I will do my best to deliver what I have gained to everyone who supports me.
It’s always been my dream to voice a boy or play a boy, but I kept getting told, “It’s impossible” because of the quality of my voice. My dream came true with my first voice acting challenge, and I’m thinking about what I’ll do in the future (bitter smile). I plan to join the agency and become a voice actor who can actively participate in various works.
