Deciphering Ueda Kana

During the recent Comic Fiesta 2019, a panel was held featuring esteemed guest Seiyuu Ueda Kana.
For those that are not familiar with Ueda-san, she is a well known seiyuu that not only voiced a
number of popular anime characters, but has worked in the gaming industry as well, lending her
voice to a number of popular games. Her most well known recent work would be voicing Ishtar and
Ereshkigal in the Mobage Fate Grand Order. Both characters are different personifications of
Tohsaka Rin, of whom Ueda also voiced previously.

Question: Ueda-San, how was your day in Malaysia yesterday, and how do you think of Malaysia in
general?
Ueda Kana: I was taken to visit the Twin Towers. I was surprised at it being so tall. Not only that,
since it’s twin towers, you can see the other tower when you are taken in the other one. It’s a rare
sight that I won’t see in Japan. Also I had butter chicken for dinner, and I liked it a lot! Honestly I
really enjoyed Malaysia.

Q: So what was the reason that you chose to become a Seiyuu?

UK: Initially I wanted to join a performing troupe, the Takarazuka Revue (note: this is the troupe that
Sakura Wars are based upon). But upon trying to enrol, I found that I was too short to be admitted,
being the minimum required height was 158cm, and I was only 142cm at the time. Because of this I
told myself, I want to do something that I can perform as anybody or anything, but without having
people seeing my physical features. So being a voice actress is the most logical choice.

Q: What kind of a daily life that seiyuu goes through?

UK: A day of a Seiyuu is quite meticulously planned. Usually there are two recordings per day for me.
One is allocated for animation, usually from 10am to 3pm, and the other is for TV or commercial
voice overs, from 4pm to 8pm. And my day does not actually end there. After that I sometimes have
to do radio shows or voice for games! But whenever I have to go somewhere, like to Comic Fiesta for
example, I would tone down and minimise the amount of recording I have to do so I would have the
free time.

Q: How do you usually get into character?

UK: Usually I will get an idea of what I want to do in my head, but only around 70%. The other 30% is
a leeway that I give myself so that I can adapt and make changes accordingly. This is because a
character there might be a lot of variables, and there might be difference from what I have in mind
and what the director actually wants. If I get 100% into character before recording starts, then it
would be hard to do any changes!

Q: Which character was the hardest for you to voice?

UK: Tohsaka Rin (from the Fate series)! It was 15 years ago but I still remember it. I thought since she
was the daughter of a family that has a lot of assets, she would be very elegant and lady-like. I even
thought my voice would be too high for this kind of character. But when I went into recording, I
actually found out that Rin was actually a magician, and while she was hardworking, the events of
Fate was the first time that she was fighting with other people hence she can’t sound confident or a
pro. So my voice actually suited her well. That being said, in Fate GO Rin has now grown to be
confident, albeit reckless when she is possessed by Ishtar, so I can finally voice a grown up version of
Rin.

Q: What was the biggest thing that you have learnt since you’ve became a Seiyuu?
UK: Once I was recording for a Dragon Ball game. And I have to shout various versions of Kame Hame
Ha, sometimes hours at time. During that recording session, I realised on how to control the power
of my voice so that I and not fatigued by the long hours, and yet would still able to maintain the
sound of my voice so that it still sounds powerful.

Q: What was the toughest thing you have encountered as a Seiyuu?

UK: It was when I have to sing character songs for Kurumi, a character from the game Princess
Connect. Kurumi has a small, young’ish voice, and yet when singing, she has to give her all in her
songs. So, it was kinda hard to maintain and balance that voice when I have to sing as her.

Q: What was your most memorable memory as a Seiyuu?

UK: During a performance for Magical Lyrical Girl Nanoha, when my character (Hayate) was
performing, the whole stadium was filled with Hayate’s colour, which was white. It was an awesome
scene for me to see.

Q: Who is your favourite Fate: GO character?

UK: Overall it’s Archer, but currently it’s Genjo Sanzo.

Q: Do you have any character that you have voiced that have impacted you personally?
UK: I would say Sakura Mikan from Gakuen Alice, around 15 years ago. It was then that people
actually realised that I can do Kansai-ben (Kansai accent) really well. After that, I was offered more
roles that have the character speaking in Kansai-ben.

Q: How do you prepare your voice before a recording session?

UK: For me, there are not actually any warm up or preparation. It’s more important that I actually
wake up at the correct time. This is because the throat needs time, around 4 hours before it’s in
peak condition.

Q: How was your experience when you voiced your first character?
UK: I was surprised at how my voice didn’t actually enter the recording mic 100%. I was basically
nearly shouting, and yet the mic had a hard time picking my voice up. Meanwhile I realised that my
senior, Hayashibara Megumi-san was talking softly and yet the microphone has no problem picking
up her voice. It was then that she taught me that you need to project your voice, and not just
releasing it everywhere.

Q: How do you divide your time between your career and your love of games?
UK: I am in a great position where most of my work is for games. And in my free time I usually either
playing Mobage or going to arcades playing games. I can safely say that if I am not sleeping or eating,
I would usually be gaming.

Q: Do you prefer staying indoors or going outdoors?

UK: I usually stays indoor during the summer, and goes outdoor during the winter. This is because I
love skiing, so winter is my favourite month.

Q: What time of characters do you usually find challenging to voice?

UK: Characters that would usually use big, jargon filled words. For example a scientist that are
explaining scientific stuffs. When they do, the kanji are usually long, descriptive and difficult to read
smoothly and naturally in just one go.

Q: Are you still playing Gundam Extreme VS?

UK: Yes! I keep playing it all the time in the arcades. I usually play either Forbidden Gundam or
Narrative Gundam, but personally I prefer Narrative.
Q: If you can choose one free SSR from Fate GO, who would it be?
UK: The one I want the most is Abigail. I haven’t manage to get her yet. Sadly she’s a 5 star
character, so I can’t get her from those new year lucky bag that you can buy and choose a 4 star
character from.

Q: If you could be summoned as a servant, what class would you be and what is your catalyst for
summoning?
UK: I would be a rider! That way I can ride a gundam and also a horse. For the catalyst, I think a
game controller would be the perfect thing.