Bibliophile Princess, a misunderstood love fantasy about a book-loving young lady, is currently airing as a TV anime on AT-X, TOKYO MX, and other channels starting October 6, 2022 (Thursday). Based on Yui’s novel series, this popular work is also being developed as a comic book by Yui Kikuta (illustrations) and Sakizuki Shiina (original character design).
The heroine (Ely) is Eliana Bernstein, the “Bibliophile Princess,” a marquis daughter who has been obsessed with books since she was a child. She has been living a peaceful life as the formality fiancée of the Dauphin Christopher, but one day she happens to see the Dauphin Christopher being intimate with the Viscount’s daughter Irene. Sensing that the Dauphin has finally found the woman he truly loves, Ely decides to call off their engagement. How will their love story really develop? ……
Animate Times conducted interviews with the cast members prior to the broadcast. The first interview is with Rena Ueda, who plays Ely. Ms. Ueda delicately expresses the changes in Ely’s heart, but she also had her doubts. After the post-recording, we asked her what was important to her in playing Ely and the highlights of the first episode.
Quotes Anime Times
Trial-and-error in postrecording because the character is so appealing
-I watched the first episode of “Bibliophile Princess” and your voice is so beautiful and lovely.
Rena Ueda as Eileen: Really? I am glad to hear you say so. I was really worried about the recording. Yui san, the author of the original story, came to the recording studio, and I was relieved to hear such a comment from her too.
-What kind of things were you worried about?
Ueda: Early on, Ely was more emotionless about various things than I had imagined. I had imagined for her that she would be a bit more sociable and have a lot of passion for books, but she was cooler than I expected.In the first episode, I felt that “she’s the kind of girl who feels more at ease if she doesn’t move her heart. It was difficult to adjust that trajectory “in my mind” and it required a delicate adjustment.
-In an interview with the people involved, you said that the postrecording is currently in the second half of the production, but how is the response?
Ueda: Actually, I didn’t get a good response at all (laugh). ……I wonder if this way of acting is really the right way? I am always wondering if I am doing it right. I myself am basically negative and lacking in confidence, so I often go home from other productions in tears, saying, “I can’t get it right. Especially in “Bibliophile Princess,” I feel the pain of giving birth every time. The fact that Elie’s feelings keep changing is one of the charms of the work, but I also feel the difficulty of delivering the changes each time.
-I can’t believe that Ms Ueda is leaving with tears in her eyes. …… I’m sure you must be thinking about the feelings of the fans of the original work as you face the role.
Ueda: I wanted to make Ely a character that fans of the original would feel comfortable with when they saw it. Before the announcement of the anime adaptation, I had voiced the character in the PV for the book (the PV commemorating the release of the new comic book volume 4), so I had been thinking since then, “How can I make her more like the character I envisioned?” This uneasy palpitations are likely to continue until the start of the broadcast (laugh).
Click on the image to go to youtube. ↓
-How was the PV recording at that time?
Ueda: The original work was very wonderful, so I wanted to be as close as possible to the image of Elly that everyone had in mind. The recording of the PV was quite a while ago, so I didn’t think at the time that I would be able to color” Ely’s growth so much through her voice (in the main anime version). That’s why you may get the impression that the nuances are a little different from those in the full-length anime.
How did you feel when you were chosen to play the role of Ely in the full-length anime? Was it an offer that came from the PV?
Ueda: I received the offer for the PV, but for the anime, there was a new audition. I think the intention behind holding another audition was to hear other people’s voices for the role of Ely, and to be honest, I couldn’t foresee a future in which I would be accepted. I thought I would definitely fail (laugh).So when I heard that I had been accepted, I couldn’t believe it. I thought, Are you sure you want me? I thought. I was so happy.
-How was the audition?
Ueda: I was really nervous. The script was very detailed and easy to understand, and I performed various scenes. I felt the production people’s commitment to Ely’s voice.
-You mentioned earlier that everyone’s idea of Ely. What kind of character is Ely for you?
Ueda: She is an ordinary girl, but the point at which her emotions move is a little different from other people. I think one of them is her unbelievable passion for books. Also, due to her low self-esteem, she gets depressed because she doesn’t understand what the people around her say at a moment’s notice, and conversely, she understands what other people say very well.
If I were to make a pie chart of her, the image would be that she is sharp rather than well-balanced. But that imbalance is normal for Ely. It is not something she does consciously, but it is natural.
-You’re right, the pie chart doesn’t have to be round for her to be happy.
Ueda: That’s right. That is the original normal girl who is not being deliberate.
-I think it’s wonderful to see Ely honestly reflecting on how sorry she is and growing up even when people around her warn her about it.
Ueda: She absorbs things because she is pure. She is honest, healthy, and really wonderful. As the story progresses, political issues come up. I think her in-built knowledge will be a weapon, but I am sure that with Elly’s core strength, she will be able to overcome them.
Because Ely is so wonderful, that’s why the people around her want to help and be with her. Actually I think Ely is pulling everyone around her.
I’m too embarrassed to do a good voice act
-Because she is such a wonderful Ely, did you have a lot of trouble as a voice actor playing her? You’d be in the position of making her stand out more, and in terms of acting, you’d have to express the strength of her core in her soft voice.
Ueda: That’s right. Elly has purity and strength. There were a lot of directions like, “Don’t make her look like a weak woman in your performance. I think the staff members were conscious of the image of an independent woman with a strong core, and they directed me accordingly.
-She is a very attractive woman.
Ueda: Yes! (laugh) So I can understand why Chris-sama (Christopher) falls in love with her.
-He is seriously in love with her (laugh).
Ueda: He is so seriously in love with her that it’s unbelievable (laugh).
-As those who have read the original story will know, there are also a lot of sweet scenes that make you feel love. I think those are one of the highlights of the future. What kind of feelings did you have when you played the role?
Ueda: When I stand in front of the microphone to perform such scenes, I feel very embarrassed (laugh). I get embarrassed.
I see that you also feel Like that !
Ueda: Yes (laugh). I once asked Ryohei Kimura-san (who played Chris) about it, saying, “I’m too Very embarrassed to express myself well in my acting. He said, “Normally, the heartbeat of love is something that doesn’t come out in the voice, so it’s difficult. I was convinced that it is true that there are times when we gasp for breath and feel excited, but it is not something that comes out in our daily lives. After receiving that advice, I began to think that this difficulty was normal.
-Great advice! But there is the difficulty of having to voice what is not voiced, isn’t there?
Ueda: That’s right. You have to express those emotions in your voice. While I was trying my best to create a voice full of love that is unique to anime, I was still going through trial and error, wondering if I was doing it right.
-Is it also a big part of Ms. Ueda’s performance that is brought out by the other party (Mr. Kimura), the voice actor?
Ueda: He plays the role quite lovingly, so I think a large part of my ability to express myself is drawn out by his performance.
-I have been talking to Mr. Kimura and Mr. Uchiyama earlier, and they told me that they felt a sense of security in the work site. What is your impression of the cast members?
Ueda: It is a place full of people whom I can respect. I have the impression that they are a group of all-rounders and perfect human beings.
-That includes you, Ms. Ueda.
Ueda: No, I am supported by everyone around me, and I feel like I am somehow able to stand on my feet as a voice actor. When I’m rehearsing at home, I can’t do it at all. …… When I record with everyone’s dialogue, the voice I want to express comes out naturally.
Did you get any advice from anyone other than Kimura-san?
Ueda: Whenever I was worried, the sound director, Tetsu Motoyama, would come running to me. He would explain to me in great detail the changes in Elie’s feelings and the development of the piece, saying, “I think you’re probably having trouble with this, but this is the image I want to express here. Thanks to him, I am able to understand more and more, and he supports me a lot.
The elegant worldview of “Bibliophile Princess” is also expressed in the music.
-Elie is called “Bibliophile Princess” because of her love of books. Do you like books too?
Ueda: I grew up on manga rather than printed novels, so I am more familiar with shoujo manga.
-In that case, you must really love the world of “Bibliophile Princess, don’t you?
Ueda: Yes, that’s exactly right! I really like shoujo manga, so I got into the world of “Bibliophile Princess. I also really like Yui Kikuta sensei’s drawings. When I read the script, if I am not sure what kind of expression I should use here, I read the manga. I read the manga to prepare myself.
I mentioned earlier that I am more familiar with shoujo manga, but when I read the novel “Bibliophile Princess” by Ms. Yui, I was able to easily get into it. The language was easy to visualize and gave me an elegant impression. I was impressed by how the manga carefully reflected that impression, and now that it has been made into an anime, I feel again that everyone’s thoughts and feelings are connected.
-This interview will be posted before the broadcast, but could you tell us about the highlights of the first episode?
Ueda: I was given a special opportunity to watch the first episode, and there was very gentle royal music playing. I had the impression that it enhanced the elegance of the animation. It is a work that you can enjoy listening to by ear, and the cute pictures and the dialogue between the characters are very soothing. The scenes in which you feel the frustration that is unique to this work are one of the highlights, so I hope you enjoy it.
What does Ueda-san like more than three meals?
-By the way, Ely is a character who “loves books more than three meals a day. What does Ueda san like more than three meals?
Ueda: My family cats! They are so cute that I can’t help it (laugh).
(Laugh) — “Kotaro” and “Shina-chan,” right? I have cats myself, and they really make my life worth living.
Ueda: Wow, we are cat friends! (laugh) Until recently, I didn’t even have a refrigerator, and I didn’t like living with …… mechanical products. That’s why I used to live without any stuff at all, but now I am overflowing with cat goods (laugh). The center of my world is now cats.
There will always be an overflow of cat goods, won’t there? (laugh).
Ueda: Yes. Their fallen hair is cute, and I collect their whiskers, too (laugh).
-I know what you mean! (laugh) Everything is so cute!
Ueda: That’s right!
-(After a lively cat talk) Once again, could you tell us about your future highlights?
Ueda: There is the thrill of love in every episode, which tickles my maidenly heart as a lover of shoujo manga. I think one of the highlights of this work is to be able to savor that.
As I talked about earlier, it is also interesting to see how Ely changes little by little. At first, I think the distance between her and Chris was distant, but she gradually changes by coming closer to Each other.
I believe that we can feel the love with Ely, support Ely, and on the contrary, we ourselves can be “encouraged” by this work, so I hope you will pay attention to it.
Thank you very much for watching. See you soon. (*´ω｀)ｂ
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