Sound Bites - Ellen Kennedy

A veteran actor on the stage, Ellen Kennedy has appeared in many a commercial voice-over and a children's show, but in the animated love story Maison Ikkoku she takes on the demanding role of the occasionally melancholy manager, Kyoko Otonashi. Interview by Toshifumi Yoshida. ^[1]

Previous roles: (animation): Little Island (theater) A Christmas Carol, A Phoenix Too Frequent, The Beggar's Opera, The Insect Play, Nunsense, Something's Afoot, Leader of the Pack, Gimme That Prime Time Religion, Cricket on the Hearth, The Comedy of Errors, Citadel on Wheels

Vital Statistics: Born: January 2 Star Sign: Capricorn Height: 5'3" Weight: "Less than 150 lbs... much less!" Hair color: Reddish-brown Eye color: Blue

How did you get started in voice-acting?

Well, I guess I've been doing it for about five years now, but I started out doing commercials and I gradually wanted to get into doing more animation so I took my tape around to a lot of people and eventually just started getting some work.

Do you do anything special to prepare yourself for a role? Research of any kind?

Well, sometimes... I like to really read the script and get a good idea of what the character's like. I have a theater background, so I know how to really research a character.

In our case, since we're doing a series translated from the Japanese, do you want to hear the Japanese, to see how that voice-actor handled it, or do you just like to go it on your own?

Sometimes it's helpful to hear the Japanese, just to hear the kind of tone in the voice, and the emotion... but for the most part, I like to figure it out just from what the line is.

In the series Maison Ikkoku, you play Kyoko Otonashi, the main female character. What's your impression of this character you play?

I think she's great, because she comes across as quite sweet and naive, but underneath she's quite tough-- she's got a bit of an edge to her, and she can take control.

Was the impression you had when you first auditioned different from that? Or how much has your original impression changed after recording a few episodes?

It's changed a bit, because in the original audition we didn't see so much of the side of her that could get so feisty, although there was a bit of that in the audition. So originally, I thought she was much more sweet, but now it's nice to see that she's much more dimensional than that.

Have you ever played a character like this before, theater or live-action?

All the time. (LAUGHS) Yes, I tend to get really "nice" kind of characters.

Do you ever watch the animation you are in?

Yes, sometimes. I try to.

Did you watch a lot of animation before you got into voice-acting?

Yes, I guess I've always really loved animation- as a kid I loved Bugs Bunny, and I've been trying to keep up on what's new, too.

Do you have a "type" of character that you normally go out for?

Usually I get younger kind of characters. The one major character I did in a cartoon series was a young, six-year-old dinosaur. In terms of the more human kind of things, I guess it's the "sweet young thing" who I usually go out for- but I love getting the evil characters, as well.

Didn't you do that one "evil young thing" in the English pilot for Rayearth?

Yes, I did. I did the evil sorceress... "Alcyone," that was it.

Do you have a favorite character that you've ever played?

Well, I like Kyoko... I'm looking forward to doing more of her, and I really liked "Ermel," which was the dinosaur character that I played in Little Island.

And what do you consider to be teh strangest role you've ever had to play- even if it's not animation, or like a commercial or whatever. What do you think is the strangest thing you've done?

Well I'm about to do a CD-ROM where I'm going to do two kinds of makeup- one's an eyeshadow and one's a cheek blusher or something like that, so Ih ave ot figure out "How does an eyeshadow talk?" (LAUGHS)

Now, you do a lot of theater... how do you think voice-acting compares to theater or TV work?

Well, I think it's closer to theater than TV work; TV work's very contained. Animation is- because you have to get so much across in your voice alone, it's very much like theater, because there's that distance in the audience, so I think you have to be bigger with everything.

Which do you prefer? I love theater and animation, as opposed to film, which I don't like that much.

Have you ever done a film?

I've done some industrial films and small TV... children's shows, actually- which again are BIG stuff; I like doing big stuff.

What's your favorite movie or movies of all time?

Oooh, that's a tough one, I love Gone With the Wind, and I love All About Eve. Those are classic ones, I guess.

What's your favorite color?

Green.

What was your favorite cartoon when you were growing up?

Bugs Bunny.

Who was your childhood hero?

Carol Burnett.

What did you want to be when you grew up?

An actor. I knew when I was seven years old.

When did you start?

Well, I started doing amateur theater when I was about twelve, but professionally I went to university and everything.

What are your hobbies?

I like to read. I like to work out and do aerobics, and work in the gym. I like to sing, but that's part of my profession too, so not really a hobby.

Do you believe in love at first sight?

No, I believe in lust at first sight. (LAUGHS)

Do you ever watch soap operas?

Not really, no. Once in awhile, but I don't have a favorite one- I don't keep track of them anymore.

What do you most remember about your first love?

That it was unrequited, I'm afraid. (LAUGHS) I used to write songs for him, but of course I never sang them to him, I just wrote them in private.

Did he ever get these songs?

I hope not. (LAUGHS) No, he didn't.

How long ago was that?

That would be about the seventh or eighth grade.

What kind of person would you say is your ideal "dream date"?

Someone with a good sense of humor, someone who likes to take the initiative, to do, you know, who can make decisions about where to go, because sometimes I hate making those decisions.

So... if you were to put in terms of a favorite male actor?

I really like- this is gonna sound stupid, 'cause he's kind of old- but I really like Malcolm McDowell. You know, the guy from Clockwork Orange. (LAUGHS)

Do you have any words of advice for aspiring voice-actors?

Yeah, actually I get this question all the time from my friends who want to get into the industry, and I just tell them that you really need to have a great voice-tape to begin with, but most of all you need to be really persistent and stick at it, because I think a lot of it is just being in the right place at the right time and meeting the right people- if you've got the talent, I mean, obviously... you have to have that in place.

Fan mail for Ellen Kennedy can be sent care of:
King Talent
Suit 300, 1525 Robson Street
Vancouver, B.C., Canada V6G 1C3

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Footnotes

• [1]This interview appeared alongside an interview with Ellen Kennedy's co-star in Maison Ikkoku, Jason Gray-Stanford.

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