We Are Tomodachi Japan and Russia Edition 2018

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14Jenya DavidyukJenya is from Novosibirsk, Russia. She moved to Tokyo to work as Japan’s only Russian voice actress for anime. She also works as a TV personality and singer, and accompanies orchestra tours of Russia as a singer of anime and video game theme songs. She lives in Tokyo with her Japanese husband and one-year-old daughter.Being an anime voice actor is a dream job beyond the reach of all but the most dedicated Japanese people. These performers are known in Japanese as seiyu. Given the incredible popularity of anime in Japan, the vast majority will unfortunately never achieve success. So how did a young Russian woman from New Siberia beat the odds to become Japan’s first ever Russian seiyu?Jenya Davidyuk became fascinated with anime at an early age, at first unaware that it was made in Japan. One of her favorites was the internationally popular anime Sailor Moon. Underneath the dubbed Russian dialog, she heard some very foreign-sounding words. Eventually, she learned it was Japanese. She soon fell in love with the language, so much so that she started taking Japanese lessons. Back then, anime was not yet popular in Russia, making it tough for Jenya to buy anime goods. “I had to ask my friends in Moscow and the United States to get them for me,” she laments. In 2000, Jenya set up an anime fan site. As the page grew, she took the bold step of translating it into Japanese and English, posting audio files of anime songs that she performed in Japanese. Eventually, her site was noticed by a Japanese anime enthusiast, who posted a link to the site on a popular anime bulletin board.Her newfound Japanese audience was so impressed by her passion for anime that she was invited to take part in a TV show. Accompanied by her father, the then 21-year-old Jenya visited Akihabara, the world capital of anime culture. She was also thrilled to see seiyu using their voice talents in the studio.Returning to Russia after her trip, she became even more enamored with her dream of becoming a seiyu, although her Japanese friends warned her that it would be impossible. In 2005 she moved to Japan, at first making ends meet by working as a Russian teacher, freelance translator and Russian language advisor. In 2009, Jenya was overjoyed to Series: Friends of JapanRussian“Seiyu”Puts Heart into Spreading Love of Anime