Strange Animals

In a world in which there exists a fish with human teeth, it is astounding to me that most humans still insist on there being one way to be.

As an actor I’ve done a LOT of animal work. Drawing inspiration from the natural world is a great way to make your physicality, your mode of speech, your view of the world, more specific when you create a character. Allow me to stand on my soapbox for a moment and argue that, while most people in the world can feel like a domesticated house pet, most STORIES are told about much stranger beasts.

Consider an echidna, and how he would approach shopping for groceries. How would a blobfish behave at night school? Does a pacu get strange looks when he’s at the YMCA?

The world is wide. People are always more interesting and complex than they first appear. Fictional people, doubly so.

Recent Gigs

Since my last update, I have performed additional voices for the following shows:

• Goblin Slayer, Season 2 Episode 11 & 12

• Spy x Family, Season 2 Episode 37

• The Apothecary Diaries, Episode 13

• The Witch & The Beast, Episode 1

And also some bits! You can hear me as…

Featured Role: Demon Tree Ayakashi

I had the honor of voicing the episodic villain of The Demon Prince of Momochi House, episode 2 — Demon Tree Ayakashi.

“Villain” is a bit of a stretch when describing the Ayakashi, though — the word implies motives that the spirits aren’t capable of forming. The Demon Tree is more like a hoary venus flytrap than a woman with agency, and it hasn’t eaten in centuries. Any glimpse of humanity is like a sweet scent attracting its victims.

Maybe the previous owners had struck a deal with the Demon Tree, and that’s what’s kept her going strong despite her evident, bone-deep hunger. That deal is off. The guttural cry she lets out after being bound and banished is her last.

Thanks to Jonathan Rigg for letting that cry be mine.

Consume!

If this newsletter seems scattered it’s because I’ve been thinking about “The Legend of Zelda: Breath of the Wild” the entire time.

I do not like sandbox games on principle. Mostly because 90% of the time, the open world is not interesting enough to sustain my attention. Breath of the Wild’s Hyrule is not only a feast for the eyes, it’s filled to the brim with offerings for almost any kind of gamer. You like puzzles? There’s dozens of them. You spend your time in Majora’s Mask following characters around to see how they spent their days? You can do that here. You want to skip past all the chaff and just focus on the plot? Don’t see why you’d do that, but you absolutely can.

And you all are telling me there’s a SECOND GAME that’s even better?

Incredible. Bravo, Nintendo. I’m back on board.

Performance of the Week

It is really weird to see fully-voiced cutscenes in a Zelda game!

Weird, but not unwelcome. The performances in this game are just as dreamy as the scenery. I want to give a special shoutout to Sean Chiplock, Elizabeth Maxwell, and Joe Hernandez for not only portraying three of Hyrule’s four champions but also their descendants. Love seeing great performers get the chance to act across generations!

The Trick is To Live

When the pen won’t write, and the hand can’t hold it to begin with

When the well dries and its stones crack with thirst and age

When every story feels the same

When days feel short and unending all at once

When you feel out of breath as others begin their next lap

When the world tells you “slow down” and “hurry up” and “calm down” and “get mad” and “don’t take things so seriously” and “focus up”

When you’ve committed yourself to telling stories but you don’t know the words to use

The trick is to live

Not just to survive.