Today we’d like to introduce you to Reshel Mae.
Hi Reshel, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
Hey there! My name is Reshel Mae and I’m an actor for theater, film and voice over. You may know me best as the voice of Lishu from Apothecary Diaries or Typhoon Devil in the Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc Movie among many other popular anime titles. Currently, the Voice Over industry is definitely my main platform as an entertainer over the theater and film scenes, and many people in the community always ask “Reshel how did you get into voice over?” Well, my roots are grounded in theater.
In my early childhood, theater was always something that piqued my interest though I never entertained the idea of having a career as an actor until I got to high school. This is the event that started it all: During my sophomore year, auditions for the Fall Musical, Xanadu, were posted and at the time I had a friend who was super into theater convince me to audition. And so I did. It was NERVE-WRACKING. At this stage of my life I had no experience, no exposure whatsoever with this kind of thing so I was just stumbling my way through it. Lo and behold, I get a callback, and then a week later I’m cast in the ensemble and rehearsals begin. Absolutely mind-blowing. The process from start to finish, from rehearsals to tech week, to closing night was such an unforgettable experience. I still remember the feeling of being on-stage, the visuals of the stage lights against the dimmed audience, and the sound of the crowd cheering during the closing number, all of this is etched into my brain to this day. That moment instantly made me fall in love with theater and being a performer. From that point forward I signed up for all the theater courses as electives, I auditioned for every Spring and Fall production, and joined the Thespian Society Troupe. I owe it to my theater teacher, Kaila Schwartz, who gave me a chance, saw my potential and unlocked it, and continued to nurture my growth in this field throughout high school.
Nothing brings me as much joy and emotional satisfaction as being an entertainer does. That’s what pushed me to keep learning and growing. After I graduated high school, I moved to Texas from California to pursue a higher education in theater. First I went to Central Texas College to get an Associate’s Degree in Theater then I transferred to the University of North Texas to get a Bachelor’s in Theater. During my time at CTC, I got the opportunity to branch into film because my theater professor put on a final showcase for the class and invited an agent from Austin to observe. After my performance I received an email from Acclaim Talent asking me to audition for them, and I guess they liked what they saw because I signed with them and currently still am signed with them. Since then I have been in a handful of commercials as well as appeared on the CW for a couple episodes of Walker, thus further piquing my interest in the film industry more-so over theater.
Which brings me back to voice-over. It’s kind of full-circle how I made my way into VO actually. I grew up watching anime and playing video games after school, so the platforms of VO were prominent in my leisure activities -though it never occurred to me that voice acting is still a form of acting until high school. At the same time I got into theater in high school, I was into voice over as just a hobby. Casting calls were all over the inter-webs for fan-based projects, indie animations and indie video games, and I was all over that. My first ever microphone was my gaming headset. So essentially I plugged that into my computer, hit record, submitted my first VO audition and the rest is history. Again, the desire to learn and grow pushed me to further research the industry and take additional masterclasses and workshops to learn all the skills of the trade I needed in order to succeed. I already had the performance side down: acting, I just needed to master the tech side: audio engineering and equipment. Once I married the two together and slowly built up my own home-studio, I was able to produce my own first demo reel, accumulated a resume from all the indie projects I’ve been in, and used those as marketing materials to get into VO.
All that to say, if I didn’t have the courage to put myself out there and try, on top of, if someone had not even taken the chance on me, I would not be where I am today. So, to all my colleagues who inspired me and to all my mentors who helped me hone my craft, I am eternally grateful for all of you.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Every path certainly has its own fair share of challenges, so I can definitely say this was no easy walk in the park. Sure it’s easier now, but it certainly did not start that way. The journey to get here in the first place was a long process of learning and growing that occurred over the course of a few years, and will continue to be for many more years to come, and even a lifetime.
The creative industry as a whole can be brutal, it is competitive and it is unrelenting. To survive the industry you have to have the drive to keep pushing yourself to be better, and to keep trying even when faced with failure and rejection -and believe me you’ll hear a lot of “no’s” before you get one “yes.” Rejection is a challenge, especially when competing against many other talented actors who want the same role you do. And bouncing back after failing an attempt is important in order for one to grow. I remember when I first got into VO dubbing and just the process of cold-reading a script while matching lip-flaps is such a skill, such a feat in and of itself. I failed many times when I first started just to get the timing right, and I still flub from time to time, but it happens. The experience and exposure from all my previous work helps me grow each time, so even though in that moment I failed an attempt and its embarrassing, I’m still gonna try again and aim to get it right the second time. Or even third time if need be.
Another challenge I would say many entertainers face is stability. There’s definitely an ebb and flow with this industry, sometimes you’ll be booked back to back for a season or a two which is ideal, and other seasons won’t be as good, but that’s part of the job. That’s a challenge you have to deal with in day to day life, that I don’t think many people openly talk about. Some seasons you may need to get a part-time or a day job to keep yourself afloat for the time being, essentially the focus changes every now and then. Sometimes you’ll put your focus on a day job, sometimes you’ll put your focus on acting work, it just depends on the season and you have to adapt and account for that.
Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I am an actor! I’ve branched in many aspects of the industry such as theater, tv, film, commercials and modeling, but I specialize in voice over. I am most known for being an English-Dub voice actor in anime, with many titles that can be seen on the Crunchyroll platform as well as Netflix. Many people recognize me as the voice of Lishu in The Apothecary Diaries, or the voice of Yuki Suou in Alya Sometimes Hides Her Feelings in Russian.
I am most proud and excited to share my most recent work as Typhoon Devil in the Chainsaw Man: Reze Arc Movie that just came out this month. This is my first theatrical release, so it’s very surreal to go to a theater and hear myself on the “big screen,” as we like to say.
As an actor, I think what sets one apart from others is not only vocal and emotional range, but also being authentically yourself. Living life, experiencing it and bringing that depth to a character. As actors we breathe life into the characters we play. No one else can do me like I do me. When I step into a role, I leave a piece of myself with each performance that drew from every moment from my past, from each aspect of life I’ve experienced to vicariously live in the world my characters do.
Can you talk to us about how you think about risk?
Taking a leap of faith and putting yourself out there is the name of the game for this industry. You miss 100% of the shots you don’t take. Every audition is an opportunity, and deciding whether to audition or not, is the risk. You either risk not trying and don’t get it at all, or you risk trying and maybe, just maybe, book it. The latter is definitely better than not trying at all.
The risk I took, was moving. Many actors move to LA to pursue film, or NYC for broadway, but I moved to DFW for voice over: specifically, for Funimation (which is now Crunchyroll). I was born and raised in a small town in Northern California, and while many of my colleagues planned to move to LA after they graduated, my family wanted to move to Texas and left me with the choice to either go with them, or stay in California. As someone who grew up watching anime, I looked up where Funimation was located and found that it was based in North Texas. So when the opportunity to move closer to the studio presented itself, I was fully on-board. Of course when I first moved to Texas, I didn’t live in Dallas right away. I lived in Central Texas in the military base with my uncle for a couple of years, which is where I went to community college. After I graduated, I decided myself that I would move out on my own and go to UNT because 1). I liked the theater program and 2). it would be closer to the studio. Once I settled in DFW, I took the chance and submitted my materials to Funimation. Now here I am fulfilling my childhood dream of working for Funimation, got to see Crunchyroll take over and have been with the company for almost 4 years now. It’s absolutely insane how things worked out like I hoped and imagined.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.reshelmae.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/reshelmae.wav/
- Twitter: https://x.com/reshelmae_wav
- Other: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm11613327/
Image Credits
1). Reshel as Puck in “A Midsummer Night’s Dream” – High School Theater Production by Kaila Schwartz
2). Home page of Squishpillows website – Commercial for Squishmallows
3). Special Guest Poster – FestM Convention for Anime Fiesta in Canada
4). Modeling Photoshoot – Edward Pizana
5). Still Frame from Walker on the CW
6). Photo from a Q&A Panel at the AnimeFest convention 2024
