Bill Nighy Speaks

... on the art of voice acting:

How does using your voice for animated characters deepen your understanding of acting?

Well, it accustomed me to the discipline of focusing entirely on my voice. And knowing that’s all you have. When I come to do voices for animation, I do feel kind of prepared in a way that I wouldn’t without that experience. It’s very enjoyable, and then I get to go away for a few years while the work is done. Animation artists are heroic. It’s an enormous investment in terms of time before they see the thing let lose in the world.

Did you record with the other actors in Norm of the North?

No, there were multiple sessions but for this particular film I did my scenes alone. I heard the other voices and I had the pictures to act along with. But I did it in isolation. ...

What a talented voice actor brings to the animation process s often immense. The good ones give animators and story artists something palpable to work with. And they bring lots of solid ideas that add to the whole, along with their vocal chops.