Caitlynn French is a voice actress who has been voicing characters for Sentai Filmworks such as Ai from Sunday Without God and Shiro from No Game No Life since 2012. Recently, I was able to do an interview with her via email where I ask about general information, how she got into voice acting, and what exactly her job entails. Caitlynn’s Twitter can be found here, and her roles can be found on her MyAnimeList page.
Organization ASG: First off, thanks for doing this interview! Tell us a little about yourself.
Caitlynn French: Greetings! It is my pleasure. As you all know, or maybe not, I’m still a rookie in my opinion, my name is Caitlynn French and I have been working as a voice actor going on four years now. I am a girl who enjoys far too many things in life and barely have enough time in the day for all of them. Anime, video games, MMOs, comic books, cartoons, professional wrestling, tabletop RPGs & games, ghost hunting, dressing up like various characters I voice so one and so forth. If HP Lovecraft ever drew his version of a unicorn, it would be my spirit animal.
OASG: Why/how did you get into voice acting?
Caitlynn: Why and how are going to get you two very different answers. Why? I have always been a fan of anime and video games as I have mentioned previously. I used to get caught up in the stories and became attached to the characters involved. When I would have a bad day, all I ever had to do was hear the voice of my favorite character, even if I heard the line a thousand times, it would perk me up. I wanted to do that for someone else. I wanted to bring a character in a story to life that viewers could lose themselves in and escape their worry. In any acting, to remove the viewer from reality for a little bit is always the goal, my favored medium just happens to be anime and games.
Now here is the how! Growing up a fan of anime, superhero, video game heroines, I found the only way I could ever replicate what they did in a small town in Kansas was by getting on the stage. I pursued theater for ten years, spending at least ten years, after school everyday with the drama club. I ended up with a performance group that went to conventions and from there, met with Chris Ayres. As I was going through college for theater and developed a love for improv, I used every opportunity to pick his brain about it. Chris has been a theater director for years and I didn’t waste any opportunity trying to learn how to better myself from him. I actually never mentioned voice acting to him. I pursued theater in hopes of eventually being a voice actor, yes, but I didn’t want to thrust it upon everyone I met. Most of the time I kept that side of me very quiet as I just wanted to learn from everyone else around me. I moved down to Texas after college as my husband is in the computer science field and it’s booming in Austin. When Chris learned I had come down, he asked me if I would like to audition, and I did! They haven’t kicked me out of the booth yet so I assume I’m not half bad.
OASG: How much knowledge do you have on the shows you plan to act for?
Caitlynn: When I am called for a show the first thing I do is google the character. I look at their design, read whatever wiki articles I can find, and then I go to Crunchyroll or the Anime Network and start watching the show. Most of the time I power through the series in an evening or if I can’t, I skip around, get the plot of the show, and my character’s purpose. I enjoy knowing what I am walking into.
OASG: Because you do acting for anime, you obviously like anime. Tell us some of your favorite shows.
Caitlynn: Okay this is a hard choice, because I love a lot of shows. I grew up watching Sailor Moon, Tenchi Muyo, Ronin Warriors, and DBZ like so many of us did. Outside of those I really loved Paranoia Agent as well from the Toonami blocks. Currently my favorite shows as of late are Gugure! Kokkuri-san and Monster Musume.
OASG: There are many anime fans who feel that the original Japanese version of shows are higher quality. Do you ever feel that some of what you do is lost in translation?
Caitlynn: Honestly, sometimes, but I think it’s largely because choices are made that fans don’t always agree with. Let us start with the fact that the English and Japanese languages are fundamentally different. English is a lazy language compared to the completely phonetic Japanese language, so already, you have Japanese being a language that when spoken has far more energy to it. Then in the process, as we’ve seen, English VA and ADR writers have the added process of making English words and phrases fit to the mouth flaps written for another language. It’s no small task and sometimes it may make lines seem a little strange. Then acting choices obviously that differ from the original Japanese tends to upset fans who already prefer the Japanese versions. I think some of it is getting lost mixed with fans just having their first impression being the Japanese and preferences are set.
Caitlynn: I am an independent contractor as all voice actors are. Anyone can pretty much hire me for their projects. Sentai is simply the company with directors that have employed me the most. This does not mean I am limited to only working with them; however they are an incredibly fun batch to work with.
OASG: Again, on your bio, it says that you have a degree in theater performance. How much of a role does that training play in voice acting?
Caitlynn: A key part of voice acting is the acting aspect. It plays a heavy part in my work. I use what I’ve learned in dissecting characters and how to subtly manipulate your voice to bring out different aspects, and how to sound monotone without being completely dead. Though I have to say the best thing I took from my theater degree would be the eight semesters of Improv classes I took as well as my years on the Improv troupe. I cannot stress enough how important being able to think on your feet is in the booth.
OASG: Out of all the roles you’ve done, which was your favorite? Are there any characters in particular that you really liked or had a fun time bringing to life?
Caitlynn: This is hard, it’s kind of like having to pick a favorite child, because there is something I love about each girl I have played. Shiro from No Game No Life is one of my favorites because she’s a gamer like myself, right down to being the party healer. Kureha Sakamachi from Mayo Chiki is the result of letting my inner wrestling fangirl out in the booth, which I was immensely thankful for Chris allowing me to do. Matsurika Shinouji was just so… she was monotone, but so spiteful, and I loved getting to play to that. I usually play pretty sweet characters so she was different that my usual. Artistic fulfillment wise it used to be Ai Astin, but recently, I got to voice a girl who rivals the range of emotions that I got to be carried through. Picking is too hard!
OASG: Why do you do dubs for anime? Do you ever want to break into a more “mainstream” form of voice acting?
Caitlynn: Most obvious reason I do dubs is that… they hire me! I would like to try other types of voice acting, yes, but far more for the experience than the fact of one being more “mainstream.” As an actor you only ever get better by experiencing new processes and working with new directors. So if I want to grow I need to expand my horizons, but I don’t think I could ever give up doing dubs, I love them far too much.
OASG: Do you ever watch any of your own work? If so, do you ever think “I could have done that differently”?
Caitlynn: ALL THE TIME. I will sit and watch myself, and think this to myself all the time. Usually it is in regard to delivery or certain sounds that I catch out of myself. I evaluate myself to continue growing and expanding as an actor. Also this was a process we did in my theater courses a lot so old habits really die hard.
OASG: What’s a project that you’d most like to do?
Caitlynn: I’d love to try and voice a video game… As a fan of the Mortal Kombat or Dynasty Warriors series both are those secret guilty ‘please cast me’ wishes.
OASG: Lastly, what’s some advice that you’d have to anybody looking to break into voice acting?
Caitlynn: I know most people say the most important thing to focus on is acting. Theatre is a great way, but let me add, do Improv. For me, Improv helped me so much not only develop confidence with my voice but taught me how to react fast. Also in pursuit of any acting career, make sure to have a good attitude, and be kind to everyone. Acting is a rough business. Being easy to work with, having a good attitude, are traits that make people want to hire you. You can have all the talent in the world, but if you’re a jerk, no one will want to work with you.
