The star of Trainspotting, Rome and Grey’s Anatomy Kevin McKidd has come over all patriotic in the new Pixar film Brave. He tells Roe McDermott about voice-work, being a parent and honouring his Scottish roots through his music.
It’s hard to overstate just how damn charming Kevin McKidd is. Wandering around a grand Edinburgh manor like a Scottish – and therefore even more swoon-worthy – Jane Austen hero, the star of Trainspotting, Rome and Grey’s Anatomy is unerringly polite and friendly to everyone he meets. And as if the trail of star-struck women (and now sexually confused men) in his wake wasn’t enough to assure you that this actor has got something, let me tell you - the boy can dance. In celebration of the new Disney/Pixar film Brave, the kind folks at Disney threw an amazing shindig up in Scotland, complete with traditional music, traditional food (yes, I tried the haggis), and of course, a traditional Scottish ceili. Until you’ve been flung around a dancefloor by a skilled Kevin McKidd and a not-so-skilled John Lassiter, you haven’t lived, my friend.
And the bash wasn’t the only authentic thing about the film, as voice actors include Scotsmen Billy Connolly, Craig Ferguson and Robbie Coltrane. The actors recorded their pieces individually and never met – a decision, McKidd opines, that was probably deliberately made by the filmmakers.
“We probably wouldn’t have got much work done – a lot of laughing and a lot of telling stories, but not much efficiency of time! It’s a shame though, I met Billy Connolly years and years ago but still haven’t seen him yet [in relation to Brave]. It probably would have been hedonism embodied!”
Chris Rock made some enemies after the 2012 Oscars by somewhat lambasting the recent trend of celebrities doing under-skilled, over-paid voiceover work for animated features. For McKidd, who made a name for himself doing voice work for video games like Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty, it’s an underrated medium.
“I love it, love using my voice in that way. After drama school I did a lot of radio plays, both up in Scotland and down in London and I learned a lot of my craft that way. I think it’s a real shame that radio plays aren’t as popular as they once were, because I think actors learn a lot. Video games are a whole different ballgame. You have to say thousands and thousands of lines and scream at the top of your lungs til you’ve no voice left. This is a complete breeze compared to those.”
For rest of article click here
And the bash wasn’t the only authentic thing about the film, as voice actors include Scotsmen Billy Connolly, Craig Ferguson and Robbie Coltrane. The actors recorded their pieces individually and never met – a decision, McKidd opines, that was probably deliberately made by the filmmakers.
“We probably wouldn’t have got much work done – a lot of laughing and a lot of telling stories, but not much efficiency of time! It’s a shame though, I met Billy Connolly years and years ago but still haven’t seen him yet [in relation to Brave]. It probably would have been hedonism embodied!”
Chris Rock made some enemies after the 2012 Oscars by somewhat lambasting the recent trend of celebrities doing under-skilled, over-paid voiceover work for animated features. For McKidd, who made a name for himself doing voice work for video games like Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty, it’s an underrated medium.
“I love it, love using my voice in that way. After drama school I did a lot of radio plays, both up in Scotland and down in London and I learned a lot of my craft that way. I think it’s a real shame that radio plays aren’t as popular as they once were, because I think actors learn a lot. Video games are a whole different ballgame. You have to say thousands and thousands of lines and scream at the top of your lungs til you’ve no voice left. This is a complete breeze compared to those.”
For rest of article click here
