- Voice Director of Silver and Blood, Stéphane Conicard shared some interesting insights and tips.
- We discussed about challenges, behind the scenes highlights, creative process, and more.
Vizta Games, a subsidiary of MOONTON Games has globally launched its highly anticipated Gothic-style 2D RPG, Silver and Blood, on both Android and iOS. We at GamingonPhone had the opportunity to interview Stéphane Conicard, the voice director of Silver and Blood and VC for Theophane and Yggdrasill. In our discussion, he shared his creative process when preparing for a role, his experience with this title compared to past work, and various other topics.
On voicing both Theophane and Yggdrasill with distinct emotion and identity
We began the interview by asking how he approached performing two vastly different characters. Mr. Stéphane noted, “They are both very different, and I tend not to overthink the approach.“
“I guess you could say I ‘become them’, ie, I embrace their emotional processes, their identity, their cognition, and then I let that take over… Does it make sense?” he further explained.
Getting into the character through time and instinct
When I asked about his creative process, he revealed that it’s not a very immediate process. “I tend to read the script and then let it ferment for a while,” he explained. According to him, “usually, all the questions are resolved after two or three days of mulling over it.”
Balancing voice acting and direction in one project
Stéphane Conicard has voiced many legendary roles before, including Liquid Snake from the Metal Gear franchise, a personal favorite of mine. I was curious to know about his experience with this title compared to the others. To my surprise, he also served as the voice director for this project.
This was unique and he loved it, and shared, “The developer was always very willing to answer questions with regards to storyline and situations.” This greatly helped him, as he mentioned, “it made my work as a director much easier.“
Plus, it was nice to know that this project will be one of his favourites, with him stating, “because the script is so good and the level of acting was just brilliant.” And I could feel that with his statement, ” As a director, what more can you want? A great storyline and great actors to play with.“
Behind the scenes with standout performances and memorable moments
When I asked him about any behind-the-scenes highlights, he shared a few standout moments from the recording process. “I think directing Maya Graydon in Piera’s beautiful monologue, and Kate Nieland’s Character. Just great fun,” he recalled.
Why game acting feels like opera to him
Talking about what sets video game acting apart, he made a very striking comparison. “Acting for video games is to acting what opera is to the stage, heightened drama,” he said. He also shared his appreciation, adding, “I love every bit of subtext that is written in the scenes. Just Magic.“
Preparation made the process smooth and challenge-free for the team
We then had a short discussion about the challenges and surprises he faced. Thanks to his solid preparation, he said there were no major challenges during production. “We had time to prepare and be ready,” he added with confidence.
Capturing the tone of a manga-inspired world in English
He shared that the real challenge was figuring out” where do you place the manga world in the English language. How do you hit the right notes, without becoming too cartoony?” Fortunately, the team found their rhythm. He said with a smile, “I think we got it right.”
A complex script drew him into the game
When asked what drew him to the project, he pointed to the complexity of the script. “The story is complex and video games are not written like stories,” he noted.
He also gave good advice while answering, “It took some rereads to get to understand the circumstances. But you get more into the story as you study it.”
His advice for aspiring voice actors on mastering emotion and listening deeply
To aspiring voice actors, he offered some thoughtful advice. He pointed out, “Intelligence and talent are a prerequisite, but people talk a lot about talent, but not enough about intelligence.”
He stressed the need to understand emotional shifts, adding “the subtle switches are very important.” His biggest tip is to “listen to the director, really listen.“
Letting the characters shine while staying behind the scenes
Looking back on his performance, Mr. Stéphane doesn’t seek the spotlight. “I’d like them to fade into the overall story,” he said. He ended the discussion stating, “Then I’ll have done my job, as an actor, and as a director.“
I’ve followed this title since its beta, so I was very excited to interview Stéphane Conicard, the voice director of Silver and Blood. Now that the game has launched globally, I’m even more excited to play as Theophane and Yggdrasill, especially after this interview.
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