[雨宮天] Amamiya Sora Konosuba Movie Anime DaVinci Interview. Aqua, Comedy, and Nomikai (8-29-2019)
Published: 2020-06-18
Original Source: https://ddnavi.com/interview/560589/a/
This is the fourth in a series of interviews published to promote the Japanese theatrical screening of the movie KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! Legend of Crimson.
Amamiya Sora talks about Konosuba, the upcoming movie, her experiences portraying her role as Aqua, and how the character’s various quirks and the nature of comedy changed her acting approach. She also talks about the common qualities between her and Aqua and how post-recording drinking sessions can be an important part of the dubbing process.
Feel free to contact me (@jbtenmatay) for any corrections, clarifications, and edits.
JP Trailer of KonoSuba: God's Blessing on This Wonderful World! Legend of Crimson
Time passes but Konosuba never changes. It’s like home to me. (laughs)
-- What did you feel when you learned that Konosuba was getting a movie?
Amamiya Sora (AS): I was delighted but I was much happier with the fact that there was going to be more Konosuba. It meant that I get to be Aqua again and I get to continue working with that wonderful cast in making something new. She’s a role I want to portray for as long as I possibly can.
-- As long as you possibly can?!
AS: Voicing Aqua is physically demanding. (laughs)
-- In… what respect?
AS: You need to be physically fit and I mean that for your entire body! Having good lung capacity is essential to deliver her lines well; so far, I’ve done so many scenes of her shouting and her speaking long monologues that it’s tough to deliver them if I don’t breathe properly. (laughs)
It’s important to maintain the condition of my voice, as well as the rest of my body such as my abdomen and back muscles, because it really takes a lot out of me physically.
-- It also seems to be quite mentally demanding having to come up with adlibs and comedic deliveries on the spot.
AS: You’re right. The comedic tempo in Konosuba is especially quick because it makes everything much funnier. You only have moments to react appropriately to what’s being said to you, and the lines could be delivered in any number of ways, so you could say it challenges you both physically and mentally. (laughs) I mean, we could tone it down, but I feel like that would take away from it as Konosuba because it won’t be as funny.
-- Then it’s safe to assume that you were in peak condition when you recorded for the movie.
AS: That and… another important point is I never let myself go hungry on the day!
-- That’s unexpected!
AS: Voicing Aqua is a physical gauntlet from start to finish so it’s essential that I never run on empty because I start losing that spark once I feel hungry.
-- Did that principle also apply when you were voicing her for the anime series?
AS: Yes. I always made it a point to be somewhat full during recording. It’s key to voicing her.
-- I have an impression that you go into all the nitty-gritty details to prepare for a recording. I mean, on top of what you’ve mentioned (laughs), don’t you also make a detailed plan for acting out the script?
AS: Well, I half-plan for it. I used to completely plot it out but what would happen is I’d just replicate what I’ve already practiced without reacting to what others are doing and end up being unable to sync up with them. Now I just do a rough plan of how I’m supposed to deliver the lines so I can react and adjust accordingly to how the rest of the cast performs.
-- Is that because one can’t always predict how scenes get acted out?
AS: Exactly. How you act changes depending on what the rest of the cast is doing. I wouldn’t want to be upstaged by my counterpart doing a much better performance than what I expected. (laughs) So what tends to happen is we end up with something several times better than we prepared for as we interact with each other.
-- Now I’m curious as to who this person is that they make you really competitive.
AS: There’s an insane amount of interaction between Aqua and Kazuma. (Fukushima) Jun-san (voices Kazuma) is a very different actor between test recordings and actual recordings, so I have to know when to go along with his performance and when to do things my way, which is what Aqua would do. (laughs) Performing alongside Jun-san would get my mind running in all gears.
-- It sounds like you have to always be on your toes in that recording environment.
AS: It’s surreal. I kind of just let myself go with the flow.
-- Between the anime series and the movie, was there any development in the relationship between Kazuma and Aqua?
AS: I don’t think there was and I think that’s what makes Konosuba what it is. In other works, you see some sort of development as it progresses—whether it’s internal character growth or between characters—especially when it gets a movie.
But nothing changes in Konosuba, which makes it feel like home to me. (laughs) It’s like time would pass but it stays just the way it is: with characters you know and love and whose ties don’t really go anywhere.
I want to be part of Konosuba and be Aqua for as long as possible.
-- In your own words, how would you describe Aqua?
AS: She’s someone who wears her emotions on her sleeve. She doesn’t spare any energy in letting you know what’s on her mind, and even though she’s had her share of blunders, she’s hard to dislike. It sounds strange but I’d describe her as… a goddess that acts like a human. (laughs) That’s why I adore her.
-- Does she have a trait that you relate to?
AS: I tend to act very openly toward people I get along with so I guess we are quite similar.
-- She’s often referred to as a "useless goddess" so would that also apply to her less-than-ideal qualities like her hot-headed, headstrong demeanor, and the fact that she cries a lot and enjoys alcohol a little too much?
AS: As for those… I think I relate to those as well. I can be very demanding to people I’ve opened up to and there’s a part of me that’s kind of childish. Just like Aqua, I’ve often acted spoiled when things don’t go the way I want. (laughs) That and… I do enjoy alcohol.
-- Aqua’s prone to presenting herself as the life of the party when she’s drunk, though.
AS: Well, I don’t go that far but I’d do things I normally wouldn’t when the right mood strikes me. (laughs) So I guess we do have a lot of things in common.
-- It seems to me that Aqua’s opened up a lot to Kazuma.
AS: Their relationship is akin to what you see in middle-aged couples, though. I think she’d still be as openly expressive to others, especially in taverns, so I don’t think she gives him any special treatment.
-- Since this movie has the party go to Megumin’s home, what can you say about the relationship between Aqua and Megumin?
AS: You know, I’ve never really thought about it so all I can probably say is… they’re comrades? Aqua probably trusts her because Kazuma does. And between Megumin and even Darkness, I don’t believe they share that peculiar chemistry I’ve mentioned before with her and Kazuma.
You don’t really often see the three of them interact in a significant way, so I’d love to do some scenes with just them if the series continues.
-- How is it working with Takahashi Rie-san (voices Megumin) and Kayano Ai-san (voices Darkness)?
AS: They’re really kind. (laughs) I’m intensely shy by nature so during the first three anime seasons, I was never really able to converse with them, especially with Aqua having so many lines that I just focus on the script instead. Rie-chan was the one who approached me and that led to us eating out together and eventually exchanging contact info. Lately, we’ve started hanging out even on days that we’re not recording and I really enjoy talking to her.
On days when we do record, we’ve been having more drinking parties after wrapping up for the day; the cast usually attends and through that, I’ve gradually gotten closer with everyone.
-- Does work come up during those get-togethers?
AS: It does. We’d reflect on scenes that were done really well that day, as well as receive pointers from the staff on what could be done better. There’s actually so much we could talk about Konosuba.
Personally, it’s important for me to get along with the cast and staff through these gatherings. I get to know them so I gain an idea of how they’ll act out scenes, which allows me to loosen up as we record. That’s why it’s a good idea to establish a good rapport with everyone early on.
-- How would you describe the experience of voicing a lead character in a comedy franchise such as Konosuba?
AS: Konosuba made me realize how much I love performing gags. I mean, I usually tend to overthink things; worrying over how the day’s recording went, if I could have done this or that... it would really eat me up inside.
But I’m not allowed that luxury to think with Aqua. It’s like a battle of wits and that’s a good thing. I get to focus and give it my all, which is really fun, especially when you deliver something that lands really well. It makes it all worth it.
-- That’s good to hear.
AS: When I was little, I used to enjoy making my little brother laugh. This reminded me that I’ve always enjoyed making people smile, and doing silly things; that comedy actually suits me.
-- You mentioned a battle of wits and it made me think how your intensity also works for comedy.
AS: That makes sense. I get very competitive during recording sessions. What’s enjoyable about doing comedy is that when someone pulls off a funny delivery, you’d want to top that and that continually builds into something much greater as a result.
-- I guess that means we’ll be seeing you in more comedy series aside from Konosuba.
AS: I’ve heard more surprise from my friends and acquaintances that I took a liking to comedy since I’ve been in a lot of serious anime as either the lead or an otherwise standard role. A lot of them would be initially shocked that I worked on such a silly genre that they would rarely find me in, then say they’re glad that I did.
-- Can you tell me your highlights for this movie.
AS: The “guest characters” are, put simply… pretty hilarious. That’s something everyone shouldn’t miss. I remember feeling so overwhelmed when we were recording so I’m dying to see how it comes out on screen.
-- What about Aqua since Megumin’s taking the lead role this time?
AS: I did feel a little down in that regard. When I read the script, it immediately jumped out to me that she didn’t have much to do since there were only about ten pages of lines. (laughs) However, I was glad she got to cry at some point, which was something I’ve been wanting to do as her. (laughs)
During recording, it made me really happy to receive praise from Jun-san that I was able to bring out a new side to Aqua. The director also liked it and even asked me to go the extra mile and really pour all my soul into crying. And then at our post-recording drinking session, the other staff members also told me that they liked what I did and it was so relieving knowing that I did a good job.
-- It sounds very fitting for a comedian to feel glad when told that they’ve discovered a new angle to something.
AS: Well, isn’t that always the case? (laughs) A certain kind of joy comes to you when your acting makes the people around you happy, and it feels much more enjoyable if it’s a style they wouldn’t expect out of you. That’s the fun of doing comedy.
-- Now, I keep hearing from the others that they’ve been feeling a sense of loss now that recording has wrapped up. Has that come down on you as well?
AS: Right now, I feel ecstatic with the movie coming out any day, but I did feel a sense of sadness coming the closer we got to finish recording for it; I worried if I’d ever get another chance to be involved in this series again, to voice her again and in what capacity.
I felt the same way when the first season ended and us cast members would actually meet up and drink from time to time. I even feel it nagging at me at times like these when I do interviews and whenever we record for the ending theme. (laughs) I’ll probably feel all this sink in once the screening ends and just thinking about it scares me.
-- And I assume you’re going to remedy that by….
AS: Meeting up and dri—no, with more Konosuba, of course. I’d love to keep working on this series and being Aqua for as long as possible. As a voice actress, I keep discovering something new whenever we record and I want that to keep going. It’s a labor of love between the cast and the staff so I sincerely hope this series continues.
