Banzaicon is a convention dedicated to Japanese animation, pop culture and video games in Columbia. The convention began in 2012 and is held annually during the first weekend of November. This year, one of the guests was prolific voice actor Natalie Hoover.
Hoover grew up in the state of Oregon, surrounded by the beautiful landscapes of the state. Besides having a passion for sweets, like strawberry shortcake, she grew up with animated shows that would eventually lead to her current job.
“I’ve loved cartoons ever since I was little, and it was always part of my daily routine. I didn’t find out until much later in my college years that voice acting was a profession,” Hoover said.
Hoover received acting training during her childhood. She now hopes to do stage plays in her spare time as an addition to voice acting.
“I’ve been a theatre and stage actor since the age of seven and continued throughout high school and college. I’m wanting to audition for more stage productions, since it’s a passion of mine,” Hoover said.
She began her career within the Los Angeles voice actor community, eventually working in Dallas, Texas with the company Funimation. Funimation is an American company that specializes in dubbing and distributing foreign media. Hoover got her first voice acting role through Funimation in the anime series “Sword Art Online.” There are voice acting communities all over the country, and Hoover fondly recalled how inviting the other actors are.
“Everyone is very kind and supportive. I really enjoy each state and what they bring to the table,” Hoover said.
Beyond anime series, Hoover has worked on several video game series while in California, one of which was the mystery adventure series “Danganronpa.” She was cast in the second game of the series, “Danganronpa 2: Goodbye Despair,” as the character Sonia Nevermind. Hoover got the role without an audition and considers it one of her more recognizable roles.
“For Danganronpa 2, there weren’t auditions for Sonia. I was autocast, meaning that the casting director sent over samples to the clients where they chose which actor they wanted. I was honored to be chosen to voice Sonia,” Hoover said.
In Hoover’s time at Funimation, the company employed a new production model called Simuldubs, which allows them to dub anime series in English just weeks after the initial run of a show. The Simuldubs model features voice actors working as directors and scriptwriters, as well as casting voice actors into roles before the first episode. Hoover is currently in three Simuldubs this fall season.
“Simuldubs are a great way to get the anime you love faster. I find Simuldubs fascinating in the sense that Funimation releases the content faster than any other company,” Hoover said.
One of the successful Funimation Simuldub was the anime series “Akiba’s Trip: The Animation,” which had the English language episodes recorded immediately after the original broadcast in Japan. Hoover was cast in the English production as Arisa Ahoukainen, an energetic cosplayer from Finland that assists the protagonist in fighting against vampires.
“Arisa Ahoukainen required so much energy and extra-large lungs. During that season I was very much practicing tongue twisters, yoga meditation, and lung exercises,” Hoover said.
One of the enjoyable parts of working at Funimation for Hoover is being a part of different series and challenging herself with different characters in big and small roles.
“I love the different characters I can voice due to my range and talent. I’m not limited to my physical appearance and I love the diversity in characters. I could be a monster in one show, but a sweet school girl in the next. It’s endless hours of fun,” Hoover said.
One of Hoover’s recent roles was “Cardcaptor Sakura: Clear Card,” the sequel series to the hit anime franchise “Cardcaptor Sakura.” She plays the title character’s best friend Tomoyo Daidouji, who prides herself in designing adorable costumes for Sakura and recording her adventures on videotape.
“I grew up watching CCS,” Hoover said. “I’ve been a fan of the franchise since I was a young girl, so to hear about the continuation made me very excited.”
A major part of the job that Hoover and other voice actors partake in is attending conventions all around the United States, where they can attend panels of shows or games they worked on and meet with fans.
“I’ve always been excited to meet my fans and to get to know them better. I love having panels that interact with them and let them know more about myself,” said Hoover.
This was how she found herself at Banzaicon earlier this month where she fondly remembers interacting with fans. She was previously a guest at Triad Anime Con in Greensboro, North Carolina. She enjoyed attending both conventions, as well as exploring the cities of Greensboro and Columbia.
“I think it’s a great area, everyone should check out both events and states,” Hoover said.
Even after the end of the convention, Hoover would be willing to attend more conventions in the Carolinas, but like all voice actors, would have to be requested by the convention and fans.
“I’d just have to be requested to attend by multiple attendees. I’d be excited to attend an event out in the Carolinas,” Hoover said.
Despite all the challenges, Hoover is proud to work at Funimation and offer advice to attendees and college students in following their passion.
“Don’t skip class, do you best, do your homework, stay hydrated and be sure to get enough rest,” Hoover encouraged.
