Mariko Shinoda Shares Her Thought On Her First Voice Acting Role

  May 17, 2012
AKB48 member Mariko Shinoda, who has widened her appeal from idol to model and TV personality, shared her impression on her first time work as a voice actress in Anime Kamiusagi Rope tsuka Natsuyasumi Lasichitte Majisuka?.

This Anime had been originally screened in intermissions before other major movies’ screening in theatres. The Anime describes funny skit between two main characters, Kamiusagi (paper rabbit) and Kamirisu (paper squirrel), which revolves around on their way to a movie theater, and this is the first long movie of this series.

Mariko plays a voice of Kamirisu’s elder sister, who in Mariko’s words is ultra sadistic. Mariko’s character pushes around her brother and his friends in the Anime, but Mariko explained “I think she is a natural airhead i can picture that she pretends to be a cute girl when she is with her boyfriend…”

Though she doesn’t have many lines in this Anime, she said the director provided a lot of advices for her. “Because most lines if the movie are simple, I thought its alright to do the voice casually. But I figured out intonation is very important for this Anime. It looks flat, monotonous conversation, but it actually has dramatic transition of mood, and this transition makes this Anime surreal. This is something that I’ve never thought of, and was a great discovery.” Mariko talked.

The director of the Anime is positive about making 2nd episode of this Anime, and of course Mariko aspires to join it. “Next time, I hope this Anime welcomes new characters such as the sister’s boyfriend. And I want to show the gap between when the sister is at home and is with her boyfriend.” When asked which animal she wants for a boyfriend of the character she plays in the Anime to be, she have a rapid reply, “Tiger!!!”

She concluded the interview with a message to audiences, saying “I hope both the fans of the Anime and people who’ve never seen it will visit theaters to watch the Anime, and roll in laughter!”

Mariko greets to audience at the theatre on the first screening day of the Anime