Shopping Guide
We recently had the pleasure of interviewing the popular voice actress Mai Kadowaki, whose characters include Illya from Fate/stay night and Sanya from Strike Witches. Kadowaki talked candidly about her otaku roots, how she became a voice actress, her dream role, and more.
TOM: When did you know you wanted to become a voice actress. Can you tell us about the time when you decided this?
Kadowaki: From a young age, I was a manga otaku who was influenced by games and loved to draw. I had a great fascination with creating work in which the story could be depicted through pictures. I studied fine arts in college and I challenged myself with auditioning for things like voice acting and screen acting. Due to meeting people from all kinds of businesses, I knew that I wanted to make a living as a voice actress.
TOM: How did your family respond when you decided to go into the voice acting business?
Kadowaki: When I was a college student, I also attended a voice acting school without telling my parents. After I passed production auditions, I told them that I was going to be a voice actress. When I first told them, they were in disbelief, but they soon after consented. I think they understood because I conveyed that for the four years up until that point I had thought about my life and acted on my beliefs.
TOM: Are there any works, roles, or characters you would like to challenge yourself with in the future?
Kadowaki: Personally, I’m crazy about characters with blonde hair and pale skin, so I’d like to play that kind of character. It would also be exciting to play a naive boy.
As for works, I have a strong longing to narrate a documentary film, so I hope that I will have the chance someday.
TOM: Your illustrations are cute and are popular even on the internet. When did you start drawing such illustrations? Also, what was your motivation for starting this?
Kadowaki: I have four older brothers, so I have been surrounded by manga and games for as long as I can remember. When I was in elementary school, I was the manga assistant for my brother who was a member in the Manga Club, and I drew every day.
TOM: Are there any manga artists or illustrators you use as a reference in your work?
Kadowaki: I have been a fan of Nitroplus since I was in college, and there are many digital illustrations from Nitroplus’ works that I have used as references to practice from.
TOM: What is the story behind your current work?
Kadowaki: I had previously tried drawing it with the idea of using the Bamboo Fun pen tablet. At the time, I spent around two hours drawing an image character, which I later redrew on my day off. I didn’t really draw it with any particular goal in mind...I thought it would just remain tucked away in a folder on my PC. However, I’m overjoyed that I was able to show it off. :)
TOM: Currently, people who are interested in voice stars from anime and games are increasing overseas. Do you have anything you would like to say to them?
Kadowaki: I was once invited to attend an overseas comics event. At the time, there were people all over who had my doujinshi...I was extremely surprised and honored. It was my first time going overseas, and I was happy that many people spoke Japanese. They even taught me many new words in their language.
Nowadays, I can greatly feel the joy spreading forth through the world of people meeting through works. I look forward to meeting all of you through my voice, and I will put my all into my performances.
Mai Kadowaki’s Kaleidoscope Inc. Profile:
http://klsp.jp/member/maii_kadowaki/ (Japanese)
Mai Kadowaki’s Blog:
http://ameblo.jp/maitablog/ (Japanese)
Mai Kadowaki’s Twitter:
https://twitter.com/kadomaita (Japanese)
This is an original article from TokyoOtakuMode.
