So, what is the deal with Anime voiceover fandom and celebrities? How can someone be anime-famous? Doesn’t fame usually mean a huge following and a love and appreciation for one’s work accompanied by people stopping you in the streets for autographs? How can this behavior exist in the voiceover world and is it exclusive just to Anime?
Starting with the last question of the last paragraph, the fandom is not exclusive to just anime. Many video game voice actors and cartoon voice actors find mass levels of fandom too. But how can this be? Well, the voices one hears growing up become a sentimental and important part of the lives of many people. As they move into adulthood, begin working, having families, and developing a life the innocence of youth becomes something worth protecting. Of course, fandom comes at any age but particularly with cartoons this is where it begins.
Fandom for video games and anime differs somewhat. An older audience has embraced games and anime. The narrative and performances have made a deep emotional connection with the audience to the point where they want to show admiration for those who voiced the characters. The voice actor is as about as close as you can get to the actual character after all. Interestingly, game developers, writers and artists are rarely held on the same pedestals.
It is not uncommon for actors to find themselves taking photos with fans and signing autographs. But over the last 20 years, this has accelerated massively with the voiceover scene. The development and introduction of voiceover in video games has helped with this as has the expansion of Anime across the English-speaking world. It added an extra dynamic to the voiceover fandom scene which exists outside of those few epic childhood cartoon voices.
Typically (on average) Anime will pay no more than $100 per hour and video games $300 per hour (minus usage). If a voice actor only does 2 hours a month it really is not a lot of money. The anime expos and comic con-styled events have changed that. This is where the voice actor gets their reward. Conventions will book the celebrities to meet guests and do panels at an event. While their fans can get signed merchandise and photos. These can be charged anywhere from $5 to $100. Depending on the size of the event and the notoriety of the actor/voiceover artist they can earn anything from $1,000 to $100,000 in one weekend.
So, there you have it. What are your opinions? Should voice actors be taking selfies and signing autographs for free? If so, how do we deal with the terrible production rates? Should all voice actors have better access to this area? Or should it remain as it is? Many voice actors will voice multiple characters in this field and specific agents will work with a small collection of companies who dub the content into English. With that in mind, do anime, video games, and animations exist in an industry of their own? It certainly is a vast industry, and the voiceover world is forever changing. A final thought, one should get into the craft because of a deep desire to make art, not sign autographs. It is important to be paid well for one’s work, but our art as voice actors will outlive us and what we make will inspire the next generation.
Anime Voiceover Fandom by Alan Shires
Voice Actor