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 Unedited Feed from the Aya Hirano panel at Otakon 2012. Transcription: bayoab
Note: ( ) is usually commenting on the panel and was not said.

12:53:53 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Who are you here to see, welcome to the stage, Miss Aya Hirano?
12:54:08 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Thank you everyone for coming
12:54:27 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Let's start with a quick self introduction, and we'll set up a mic stand out there and we'll go right into Q&A
12:55:51 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Hello, everybody, I'm Aya HIrano, i'm a voice actor and singer, and the last time i was at a convention in the US was AX 3 years back, so i'm looking forward to being back in the states and meeting you all
12:57:38 <bay|Ota|Hirano> (I'm going to be dropping any stupid questions in this panel)
12:58:51 <bay|Ota|Hirano> (First question was a fairy tail shipping question)
13:00:30 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: Who of the characters you have voiced do you feel empathy for or do you relate to?
13:02:02 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: Of course as you know, I play the lead Haruhi, and that character I feel a strong attachment to, and it was a very hard character to portray, and because of that, i find a deep attachment to the character, but when it comes to my personal life, i think my deeper connection is konata
13:03:09 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: How do you deal with fan criticism that you may have received?
13:03:40 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: Well, as a voice actor, you are constantly working on your current series, but as an actor, you are always looking forward to your next role
13:04:06 <bay|Ota|Hirano> So from the fans and the other people around me, i get words of encouragement, words of advice, and sometimes criticisms
13:04:46 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Everything i received from the fans that support me, i take in, and i try to do my best for the fans of the show by performing well
13:04:54 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: What was it like working with Mizuki Nana on White Album?
13:05:15 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: She's a wonderful person, and many years my senior in the industry and it was wonderful working with her.
13:07:01 <bay|Ota|Hirano> She's someone I really admire and I'd like (lost), live performances, and take as many roles as she has
13:07:50 <bay|Ota|Hirano> I was able to perform with her at animelo live
13:07:50 <bay|Ota|Hirano> I had such a wonderful time performing with her on that album, id like to do it again
13:07:50 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: Who is your favorite musical act in general? Who is your favorite person to work with as far as VA work goes?
13:08:13 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: I try to listen to as many genres as I can. So I love artists in Japan and overseas... I like Ringo Shina's(?) song in Japan
13:09:07 <bay|Ota|Hirano> When I was in highschool, I liked aviril, one of the first people guitar songs i performed as aviril....
13:09:48 <bay|Ota|Hirano> (gaga and pink were named...and actually got to voice over taylor swift in the CSI episode she was in)
13:11:02 <bay|Ota|Hirano> To answer the second question, one person is one i work with who is here at otakon.... (lost)...and I really like nozomi sasaki in lucky star
13:11:26 <bay|Ota|Hirano> And Konata and patty sing together in lucky star, do you know it? we sing that song together at karaoke
13:17:26 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: Is your Konata (Lucky Star) voice natural or did you have to develop it?
13:17:26 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: (translator tries to make her answer in that voice) (line said)
13:17:26 <bay|Ota|Hirano> So it was really difficult to come up with a voice for her as it was the same creative voice for haruhi, so i was told that i was a big figure in haruhi, they wanted a voice that didn't give a haruhi image
13:17:27 <bay|Ota|Hirano> so it's a voice that's scratch the back of my throat and produce that voice for her
13:17:27 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: About video game voice acting, you play Polka in Trusty Bell, what do you think about video game voice acting vs anime voice acting?
13:17:27 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: I don't know if you know this, but unlike tv series in japan, but video game voice work is done individually
13:17:27 <bay|Ota|Hirano> So you sit in a little studio at a desk, with a big script, and read for hours
13:17:27 <bay|Ota|Hirano> it's a very lonely, big studio
13:18:51 <bay|Ota|Hirano> it's a lot more relaxing and fun to record a tv show in a room full of other actors
13:18:52 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Do you feel you get a better performance playing as a group?
13:18:52 <bay|Ota|Hirano> It's hard to grap a sense of distance or closeness without reacting to other actors lines, I mean, there are cases where we have to record line where the actor isn't available, but recording lines with the actor there versus hearing it in the headphones is different
13:18:52 <bay|Ota|Hirano> when you aren't in the same one, you get people speaking at different sound levels
13:18:52 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: Are there any experiences you had living as women in japan which affected (lost)
13:18:52 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: I think your image of me through my voices might have me as a healthy energetic person, but I'm more of the person who stays home and reads a book.
13:19:32 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Until I played Haruhi, I wasn't a person who expressed her own opinions, but after playing haruhi, i felt more confident and could express my opinions better
13:19:49 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: Which do you find easier or harder, singing or voice acting?
13:19:57 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: Both jobs have their share of hardships
13:20:23 <bay|Ota|Hirano> So when you do a creative voice for a character, you have to create the character, so it's important
13:20:42 <bay|Ota|Hirano> But when it comes to singing, i want everyone who hears the song to know who i am, so it's the opposite
13:20:48 <bay|Ota|Hirano> I find that both jobs are important and i have to have both
13:22:31 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: Can you say something about involvement in Kizumonogatari and your opinion about Bakemonogatari?
13:22:32 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: For bakemonogatari, i was only involved in the drama cds, i don't know anything about the anime
13:22:32 <bay|Ota|Hirano> But I am a big fan of the original series, so I look forward to (Kizu)
13:28:25 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: How do you feel about the controversy that was created when fans posted pictures -----? (translator shoots him down)
13:24:10 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: You have a huge range in voice acting and singing, how do you keep your voice in shape?
13:24:32 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: I try to take extreme care of my voice, so i'm wearing a mask often
13:25:12 <bay|Ota|Hirano> And I have a lot of vaporizers to keep the air clean, and i try to use every product out there that claims to take care of your voice
13:25:26 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Even though actual voice work doesn't have a lot of physical motion, I try to take care of myself physically
13:29:12 <bay|Ota|Hirano> I do try to do workouts in my house
13:29:13 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: Any advice for an american who would be fluent in japanese to go over to japan and do voice work?
13:29:12 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: (missed)
13:29:12 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: (missed)
13:29:13 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: Thank you for remembering Momo (one of early works)
13:29:13 <bay|Ota|Hirano> so one of the first things i get when i have to come up with a voice is the character sheet which shows all their expressions
13:29:28 <bay|Ota|Hirano> (missed) and so a lot of the time after seeing all this, is the voice that i end up going with
13:30:03 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Of course, the director will ask it to be changed slightly, but most of the time, the voice we start out with is the one i got from an impression of the character
13:30:58 <bay|Ota|Hirano> (talking about the voice for role in kiddy grade)
13:31:12 <bay|Ota|Hirano> it's a character that, even though they look young, they aren't that young, so creating the voice was hard
13:31:41 <bay|Ota|Hirano> but since i was young myself, doing the voice, trying to act like a grownup was what got me that role, and i think it was a great experience
13:32:40 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: What do you think of Maaya's performance as shinobu in Nise and if you had also had the role in the anime, what you would have done?
13:33:50 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: I really like her, I even have some of her CDs, I couldn't possibly compare myself to her... I only did her for a little bit, so i don't think there is enough to compare, so i'm a big fan of the original work, and i'm a big of maaya, so i'd like to enjoy it as a viewer
13:34:21 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: (advice for a voice actor question)
13:35:10 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: focus on coming up with a voice you liek that you create that you have confidence in it when you perform with it
13:35:27 <bay|Ota|Hirano> you don't need to produce several voices, you just need one that's really good
13:35:35 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: Favorite part of voice acting?
13:36:02 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: I've been acting since I was 10, I never expected to be a voice actor
13:36:26 <bay|Ota|Hirano> The voice acting work was something that got rid of my complexs
13:37:09 <bay|Ota|Hirano> (one of the hangups was that she always got younger roles)
13:37:15 <bay|Ota|Hirano> being a voice actor, your face isn't shown, so you can voice any age or gender
13:37:21 <bay|Ota|Hirano> i think that's my favorite part of being a voice actor
13:38:41 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: What's your favorite designers and brand?
13:45:20 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: I pretty much wear anything
13:45:20 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: (voice request)
13:45:20 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: (Favorite project question)
13:45:20 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: (haruhi leads to noting that when they did live a live, they actually filmed her face and then animated that)
13:45:20 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: (question about what she wanted to do)
13:45:20 <bay|Ota|Hirano> A: (wants to play with her cats)
13:46:24 <bay|Ota|Hirano> Q: (Seikon no qwaser line request)
13:52:09 <bay|Ota|Hirano> (end)
Notes: None