Jodi Forrest a.k.a. Elisabeth "Sissi" Delmas

[Shi_Min_Xi offline]

*fans dragondasher till he revives* The Dragonball Z series was dubbed many times by tons of different voice artists. Here, have a glass of water.

Thanks much

Dragondasher (as opposed to dragonprancer or dragonblitzen?), hello!

My username (at the moment "Rage_of_the_Dragon") stems from Dash_of_the_Dragon (I'm obsessed with dragons...Can't blame me! Dragons are lucky in the Chinese culture ) But I've always wanted the speed of one so in writing I'm the "dragondasher"

Thank you so much for your wonderful compliment. I think we'd all change our feelings about Sissi if she was kinder. But heros need villains to fight, large and small, and while Sissi is not exactly what you'd call a worthy opponent at least she's a bug up their fill-in-the-blank.

You're very welcome. Sissi can be a worthy opponent of our favorite YumixUlrich realtionship But I don't blame her, you see where she's coming from and you can't help but feel pity for her *watches fans of YxU start chasing me....*...Well...I do at least.

No, I don't worry about her when there's danger. She's a survivor!

That she definitly is!

[bambi offline]

Is "someone" calling Achilles a queen? Is that someone calling Patroclus an ant?

Can't say for sure, but I doubt it. I'd presume he was just mixing pre- and post-transformation elements of the Myrmidons. Perhaps the guy was a fan of Grant Morrison's The Invisibles. That would make a bit more sense. Insofar as The Invisibles ever made sense, anyway....

I didn't realize the Myrmidons were originally ants. Who is Grant Morrison and what are his Invisibles?

Aha! No slapstick, slip on a banana peel pie in the face for you!

Of course not. I make a fool of myself easily enough with these posts, I don't need props.

HAHAHAHAHA !!!

If you don't mind me asking, how so? What is it about Pinter that makes it easy to err in directing? Perhaps the answer will be a bit too complex for a theatrical ignoramus such as myself, but I've suddenly got a nagging curiosity.

It's a question of rhythm. His many pauses are written into the text so you have to be very careful not to add any others, otherwise you'll kill the pace and put the audience to sleep.

Another question to Jodi: When are you guys going to start recording Season 3 episodes?

I have no idea! We were told March, but we haven't heard anything yet.

I'm obsessed with dragons...

Are you into sci-fi/fantasy?

[Skorpigeist offline]

Hello Jodi! it is good to see you stop back in . How have you been?

I have no idea! We were told March, but we haven't heard anything yet.

That is great if that happens, but I get the feeling delays are eminent in a cartoon show. at any rate, I rember you telling me about how you got your role as sissi, but I have a question in general about other voice roles. When you audition for them do you just do it dry read or do you get a little bit of info about how the character acts, thinks etc before you get to show the director what you can do?

[FormicaArchonis offline]

Can't say for sure, but I doubt it. I'd presume he was just mixing pre- and post-transformation elements of the Myrmidons. Perhaps the guy was a fan of Grant Morrison's The Invisibles. That would make a bit more sense. Insofar as The Invisibles ever made sense, anyway....

I didn't realize the Myrmidons were originally ants.

We make a good pair. That's all I can remember half the time. Aeacus is on an almost uninhabited island, beseeches the gods for help, dreams of ants turning into people, then wakes up and there's a city's worth of people calling him king. So, while no one saw it happen, it was either divinely-instigated transformation or mythology's only flash mob.

Who is Grant Morrison and what are his Invisibles?

Disclaimer: Most of this information is through the haze of a few years. 100% validity not guaranteed.

Morrison works on comic books. He's done some very well-received work, like the Arkham Asylum graphic novel from the early 90's. The Invisibles was the first big title he worked on where he got to start from scratch. (As compared to, say, Arkham Asylum, where he's obliged to stay within the Batman continuity.) The Invisibles was a surreal series, with aspects cribbed from conspiracy theories and whatnot. It's relevant to the discussion at hand because in that series the altered humans called Myrmidons served the extra-dimensional villains, the Archons. (Morrison's Archons draw heavily on the Gnostic Archons, as both are villains intent on keeping humanity enslaved and blind to the fact that their world is nothing but an artificial prison.)

So that could be where the guy made some connection regarding the two halves of my username.

If you don't mind me asking, how so? What is it about Pinter that makes it easy to err in directing? Perhaps the answer will be a bit too complex for a theatrical ignoramus such as myself, but I've suddenly got a nagging curiosity.

It's a question of rhythm. His many pauses are written into the text so you have to be very careful not to add any others, otherwise you'll kill the pace and put the audience to sleep.

Fascinating. Also makes that Pet Shop Boys song make a bit more sense. Do you find something like that - where the script contains something not typically found in a script - a limitation? Annoyance, challenge, or both?

Another question to Jodi: When are you guys going to start recording Season 3 episodes?

I have no idea! We were told March, but we haven't heard anything yet.

Strange! Are they usually this slow on letting you know? It'd be terrible if you missed out on some other work while waiting for the person scheduling studio time to get back to you.

[MY85 offline]

Another question to Jodi: When are you guys going to start recording Season 3 episodes?

I have no idea! We were told March, but we haven't heard anything yet.

Strange! Are they usually this slow on letting you know? It'd be terrible if you missed out on some other work while waiting for the person scheduling studio time to get back to you.

Let's just say the VA's didn't knew about Season 3 and 4 until they read the link about it here.

[bambi offline]

Hello Jodi! it is good to see you stop back in . How have you been?

I've been fine, thanks!

That is great if that happens, but I get the feeling delays are eminent in a cartoon show. at any rate, I rember you telling me about how you got your role as sissi, but I have a question in general about other voice roles. When you audition for them do you just do it dry read or do you get a little bit of info about how the character acts, thinks etc before you get to show the director what you can do?

You generally get a bit of information about the character and the series in general before doing a voice test. Then you watch a scene and can take a few tries at it. At least that's how it works in France.

...So, while no one saw it happen, it was either divinely-instigated transformation or mythology's only flash mob.

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

Disclaimer: Most of this information is through the haze of a few years. 100% validity not guaranteed.

Hah! I'm gonna use that one!

If you don't mind me asking, how so? What is it about Pinter that makes it easy to err in directing? Perhaps the answer will be a bit too complex for a theatrical ignoramus such as myself, but I've suddenly got a nagging curiosity.

It's a question of rhythm. His many pauses are written into the text so you have to be very careful not to add any others, otherwise you'll kill the pace and put the audience to sleep.

Fascinating. Also makes that Pet Shop Boys song make a bit more sense. Do you find something like that - where the script contains something not typically found in a script - a limitation? Annoyance, challenge, or both?

What I find annoying in scripts are stage directions. She picks up a book, walks to the window and pretends to read. In my opinion, it's the director's and actor's job to decide what she does at that moment. I always ignore stage directions. Pauses are different. They're part of the script.

Are they usually this slow on letting you know? It'd be terrible if you missed out on some other work while waiting for the person scheduling studio time to get back to you.

Dates are very often decided at the last minute and are generally based on everyone's availability, so don't worry!

[Cassius335 offline]

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

I know I wouldn't. I'd just get laughed at...

[FormicaArchonis offline]

When you audition for them do you just do it dry read or do you get a little bit of info about how the character acts, thinks etc before you get to show the director what you can do?

You generally get a bit of information about the character and the series in general before doing a voice test. Then you watch a scene and can take a few tries at it. At least that's how it works in France.

Sounds fairly close to what I've heard about American stuff, though there there's no scene to watch, since the animation is (usually) done later. You get the sides and the character design sheet. The director offers direction (obviously ) between attempts and the Powers That Be sit there listening.

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

Can't say I have. I currently live too far in the boonies for such things. Does sound like fun, though. I sometimes enjoy such complete randomness.

Disclaimer: Most of this information is through the haze of a few years. 100% validity not guaranteed.

Hah! I'm gonna use that one!

You like it? It's yours.

Do you find something like that - where the script contains something not typically found in a script - a limitation? Annoyance, challenge, or both?

What I find annoying in scripts are stage directions. She picks up a book, walks to the window and pretends to read. In my opinion, it's the director's and actor's job to decide what she does at that moment. I always ignore stage directions. Pauses are different. They're part of the script.

I didn't know that - my neophyte status is showing. Thanks for the response.

It'd be terrible if you missed out on some other work while waiting for the person scheduling studio time to get back to you.

Dates are very often decided at the last minute and are generally based on everyone's availability, so don't worry!

Well, that's good to hear. I'm currently living contract-to-contract (computer repair) while looking for a 9-to-5, so I have a great deal of respect for anyone who loves something so much that they choose to live that kind of random-employment life.

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

I know I wouldn't. I'd just get laughed at...

My dear Cassius, that's part of the reason people do it.

[SamBlob offline]

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

I know I wouldn't. I'd just get laughed at...

My dear Cassius, that's part of the reason people do it.

This thread was the first place I had ever heard of a flash mob.

I have been hanging out at BKO for two long. When I heard of a flash mob, I thought it was a crowd of people who got together and flashed!

I went to Wikipedia and looked it up. Now I know it's not a mob of flashers, although it *could* be... Has anyone ever summoned a flash mob to flash?

[bambi offline]

Sounds fairly close to what I've heard about American stuff, though there there's no scene to watch, since the animation is (usually) done later. You get the sides and the character design sheet. The director offers direction (obviously ) between attempts and the Powers That Be sit there listening.

We generally dub cartoons that exist in French so the animation is already done. And we don't get sides, since the dubbing technique here is completely different. The text is written "in place" on a band of film which is projected under the image. It moves across the screen from right to left and when each word hits the "bar" (a black vertical line on the left side of the screen) you say it. And yes, we also get direction between takes during a voice test as well as on the job. On the other hand, the Powers That Be are almost never present. They get a recording of all the tests. I think it's a more equitable system since they aren't swayed by what the actor looks like or what their personality is like.

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

Can't say I have. I currently live too far in the boonies for such things. Does sound like fun, though. I sometimes enjoy such complete randomness.

Yes, the unexpected is one of the pillars of comedy.

I'm currently living contract-to-contract (computer repair) while looking for a 9-to-5, so I have a great deal of respect for anyone who loves something so much that they choose to live that kind of random-employment life.

Thank you. It IS a bit nerve wracking at times, but so, so worth it. And to be perfectly honest, the French have a system of unemployment benefits for actors who work a certain number of hours a year. That is a BIG help.

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

I know I wouldn't. I'd just get laughed at...

My dear Cassius, that's part of the reason people do it.

And it's a talent to make people laugh! Audiences will pay good money for it.

I went to Wikipedia and looked it up. Now I know it's not a mob of flashers, although it *could* be... Has anyone ever summoned a flash mob to flash?

Not that I know of. Why? You interested?

[SamBlob offline]

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

Can't say I have. I currently live too far in the boonies for such things. Does sound like fun, though. I sometimes enjoy such complete randomness.

Yes, the unexpected is one of the pillars of comedy.

And of horror...

I'm currently living contract-to-contract (computer repair) while looking for a 9-to-5, so I have a great deal of respect for anyone who loves something so much that they choose to live that kind of random-employment life.

Thank you. It IS a bit nerve wracking at times, but so, so worth it. And to be perfectly honest, the French have a system of unemployment benefits for actors who work a certain number of hours a year. That is a BIG help.

Good to know that resident aliens have access to that.

I went to Wikipedia and looked it up. Now I know it's not a mob of flashers, although it *could* be... Has anyone ever summoned a flash mob to flash?

Not that I know of. Why? You interested?

*looks down at self* Nope. Not sure if the sight of me all-natural would be filed under "comedy" or "horror".

Then again... a huge mob of big, fat, bearded men descending on a public locale, flashing, and then dispersing again would probably be the height of comedy. Especially if there were a few big, fat, bearded women among them...

[Cassius335 offline]

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

I know I wouldn't. I'd just get laughed at...

My dear Cassius, that's part of the reason people do it.

This thread was the first place I had ever heard of a flash mob.

I have been hanging out at BKO for two long. When I heard of a flash mob, I thought it was a crowd of people who got together and flashed!

I went to Wikipedia and looked it up. Now I know it's not a mob of flashers, although it *could* be... Has anyone ever summoned a flash mob to flash?

I was trying to avoid mentioning that possibility, in case it went over the forum rating (though that is the one I was thinking of)!

[MY85 offline]

Flash Mob article on Wikipedia.

Sounds wicked.

[Stonecreek]

I'm glad to see at least one VA has posted recently. I have a question, believe it or not. Sissi seemed to have laid off the gang a bit in season two, almost to the point of being nice to them at times. Do you prefer paying her this way - catty but with a nice side, or did you like it better when you got to have a lot of insult-laced squablles and be the bossy type?

[Shi_Min_Xi offline]

I'm obsessed with dragons...

Are you into sci-fi/fantasy?

Yes I am. Fantasy has always amazed me, especially mythology and the Greek Gods fighting the Titans, people blessed by the gods with extraordinary powers, people that control the super-natural elements. These things have always amused me.

What's your favorite genre of books Mrs. Forrest?

[FormicaArchonis offline]

I have been hanging out at BKO for two long. When I heard of a flash mob, I thought it was a crowd of people who got together and flashed!

So you thought I, within three weeks and eight posts of first showing up here, had the fair Jodi talking about removing her clothes? (Would that I had a tongue that silver...!)

And we don't get sides, since the dubbing technique here is completely different. The text is written "in place" on a band of film which is projected under the image. It moves across the screen from right to left and when each word hits the "bar" (a black vertical line on the left side of the screen) you say it.

I had heard the basic idea but I'm so used to closed captioning ("What do you mean, 'Let's get this over!'? She said 'The Scyphozoa!'") that I had a completely different idea of how the words popped up.

So it's like a CNN bottom-of-the-screen scrollertext, but faster and less depressing.

And yes, we also get direction between takes during a voice test as well as on the job. On the other hand, the Powers That Be are almost never present. They get a recording of all the tests. I think it's a more equitable system since they aren't swayed by what the actor looks like or what their personality is like.

Probably is. And if an actor's known for one type of voice, being recognized the instant they enter the studio could be a detriment. No matter how good you are, it's hard to get over a first impression.

I'm currently living contract-to-contract (computer repair) while looking for a 9-to-5, so I have a great deal of respect for anyone who loves something so much that they choose to live that kind of random-employment life.

Thank you. It IS a bit nerve wracking at times, but so, so worth it. And to be perfectly honest, the French have a system of unemployment benefits for actors who work a certain number of hours a year. That is a BIG help.

Hmmm. I wonder if Canadian voice actors can earn stamps. (Pardon, that's probably an Atlantic Canadian term - a person who's made their stamps has enough eligible working hours to make a claim on unemployment insurance.)

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

I know I wouldn't. I'd just get laughed at...

My dear Cassius, that's part of the reason people do it.

And it's a talent to make people laugh! Audiences will pay good money for it.

I don't mean to sound mocking or anything, but now that we know he was thinking of the undressed kind of flashing, that line is really funny.
(Edit: Of course, mine's no better....)

Yes, the unexpected is one of the pillars of comedy.

And of horror...

Horror being in some ways related to tragedy, which, in turn, isn't far removed from comedy. All entertainment has some basic things in common.

[Cassius335 offline]

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

I know I wouldn't. I'd just get laughed at...

My dear Cassius, that's part of the reason people do it.

And it's a talent to make people laugh! Audiences will pay good money for it.

I don't mean to sound mocking or anything, but now that we know he was thinking of the undressed kind of flashing, that line is really funny.
(Edit: Of course, mine's no better....)

No offence taken...

[bambi offline]

Flash mob, what a cool idea! I'd love to participate in one. Have you ever?

Can't say I have. I currently live too far in the boonies for such things. Does sound like fun, though. I sometimes enjoy such complete randomness.

Yes, the unexpected is one of the pillars of comedy.

And of horror...

And of life.

Has anyone ever summoned a flash mob to flash?

Not that I know of. Why? You interested?

*looks down at self* Nope. Not sure if the sight of me all-natural would be filed under "comedy" or "horror".

Probably "human" (and hopefully in a tropical paradise as opposed to an arctic circle)...

Then again... a huge mob of big, fat, bearded men descending on a public locale, flashing, and then dispersing again would probably be the height of comedy. Especially if there were a few big, fat, bearded women among them...

Actually, I think a few very tall very skinny, mustachioed women sprinkled about would even be better.

I'm glad to see at least one VA has posted recently. I have a question, believe it or not. Sissi seemed to have laid off the gang a bit in season two, almost to the point of being nice to them at times. Do you prefer paying her this way - catty but with a nice side, or did you like it better when you got to have a lot of insult-laced squablles and be the bossy type?

Hi Stonecreek, nice name! Reminds me of home. *sigh* I really like playing her in Season 2, but I think it's precisely because her character has developed since Season 1. Although it's hard to account for why she's so nice all of a sudden... any ideas?

Fantasy has always amazed me, especially mythology and the Greek Gods fighting the Titans, people blessed by the gods with extraordinary powers, people that control the super-natural elements. These things have always amused me.

What's your favorite genre of books Mrs. Forrest?

Hello, Shi_Min_Xi, cool name. I'm very into Fantasy and some Sci-fi as well. They're always the first section I check in a bookstore. Ouside of that I like alot of different stuff, including fairy tales and folk tales. I guess I generally stick to the same authors, though.

I have been hanging out at BKO for two long. When I heard of a flash mob, I thought it was a crowd of people who got together and flashed!

So you thought I, within three weeks and eight posts of first showing up here, had the fair Jodi talking about removing her clothes? (Would that I had a tongue that silver...!)

Wow. You people move fast here!

So it's like a CNN bottom-of-the-screen scrollertext, but faster and less depressing.

I've never watched CNN, but I presume the main difference is that the words on our "band" can be stretched out or squeezed together tightly depending on how slow or fast the character is speaking. And generally the band is hand written.

No matter how good you are, it's hard to get over a first impression.

So true.

[TB3]

Hand written - that must be difficult to read! Has it ever led to mistakes?

[Stonecreek]

I'm glad to see at least one VA has posted recently. I have a question, believe it or not. Sissi seemed to have laid off the gang a bit in season two, almost to the point of being nice to them at times. Do you prefer paying her this way - catty but with a nice side, or did you like it better when you got to have a lot of insult-laced squablles and be the bossy type?

Hi Stonecreek, nice name! Reminds me of home. *sigh* I really like playing her in Season 2, but I think it's precisely because her character has developed since Season 1. Although it's hard to account for why she's so nice all of a sudden... any ideas?

I think we may not fully know the answer to that unbtil the new season is out. I think (and this is shared by some around here more fanatical than I), that Sissi and Odd have been getting chummy, which may have softened her view on the gang. Or, she could just be growing up and realizing being a priss isn't the onyl way to get something out of life. Either way, it's very fun to watch and listen to.

[FormicaArchonis offline]

I really like playing her in Season 2, but I think it's precisely because her character has developed since Season 1. Although it's hard to account for why she's so nice all of a sudden... any ideas?

( Is that a question to the group? Well, too late, I'm gonna answer. Of course, I'm neither writer, nor director, nor (obviously) actor, so all this is entirely conjecture....)

Maybe it's dawning on her that vinegar hasn't been catching many flies, especially not ones named Ulrich. Or, it could be a more subtle attempt to get into the group. If she's more accessible, they're more likely to come to her for help, which means they'll have to trust her more. And the fundamental motivation behind that could be any one of a dozen different things (or a mix of a several motivations), intentions either pure or corrupt. For instance:

- Lack of friends. I've never seen the girl with actual friends. Her spoiled-princess routine can't earn her a lot of friends among girls, and I don't count Nicholas and Herb; they're accessories, like a pair of shoes or earrings. They even tend to follow her with one on her left and one on her right. Maybe, deep down, she's just lonely.
- - Could she have formed that little entourage of hers to somehow mimic Yumi, who's always in the company of three boys? Maybe once Aelita was around for a while, Sissi figured out that the boys weren't a collection, but a circle of friends.

- Feelings of insecurity or weakness. Again, all she's got are her two yes-men. The blind support is a cheap substitute for approval you've earned. There is her father, but most of their family moments seem to be either Sissi pulling the wool over Mr. Delmas' eyes or Mr. Delmas commenting on Sissi's poor academic performance. He spends his entire life immersed in academe, and she's not great on that front. A child sometimes assumes that because his/her parents are deeply involved in one thing, that's the only yardstick they use to measure value.
- - Speaking of that, I've often wondered why Sissi stays in the dorm. Surely the headmaster's residence is large enough to house a family of at least three, and has its own bathroom to boot. Does she want to be 'independent', or to be near the other students, or something else entirely?

- Attempt to mimic Aelita, a paragon of sweetness and light. Here's a girl who shows up with only the most tenuous of connections to the group (Odd's cousin) and immediately fits in. And gets a boyfriend. You can see why Sissi would like the same thing to happen to her!;)

- Desire to get the group dependent on her and her connections with Daddy. To steal a quote from Strife, a video game from years back, "We have the sharpest scientific minds and many able bodies, but we lack that one real... uh... problem solver who will give us the edge we need." Maybe she just wants to be the group's official fixer.

So you thought I, within three weeks and eight posts of first showing up here, had the fair Jodi talking about removing her clothes? (Would that I had a tongue that silver...!)

Wow. You people move fast here!

Not really. I'm a guy; I talk a good game, but that's it.

(One of my flaws is that I'm an unrepentant flirt, even when it's not necessarily a good idea. If I'm going over the top, feel free to point it out or hit me with a brick or something, and I'll lay off. No offense is meant. )

So it's like a CNN bottom-of-the-screen scrollertext, but faster and less depressing.

I've never watched CNN,

Lucky you. CNN has a little scroller at the very bottom of the screen, right under the caption describing who's talking or what's happening. It's used for generic news bits that are generally more interesting than the news item taking up the other 90% of the screen. (Example. The yellow type is on the move constantly, independent of the text above it.)

but I presume the main difference is that the words on our "band" can be stretched out or squeezed together tightly depending on how slow or fast the character is speaking. And generally the band is hand written.

Hand written? Holy! I never realized that. I just assumed it was computerized. Someone writes out the whole script over again just for that? Man, I can't rewrite a grocery shopping list properly.

[bambi offline]

Hand written - that must be difficult to read! Has it ever led to mistakes?

Oh yes indeed. The calligraphers are French and it's easy for them to mess up in English. Also, French handwriting is very different than American (can't speak for English or Canadian), and it takes a while to get used to it. And then there's always the occasional sloppy writer.

Hand written? Holy! I never realized that. I just assumed it was computerized. Someone writes out the whole script over again just for that? Man, I can't rewrite a grocery shopping list properly.

We are beginning to see more and more computerized bands, but believe it or not, they're more difficult to read.

So you thought I, within three weeks and eight posts of first showing up here, had the fair Jodi talking about removing her clothes? (Would that I had a tongue that silver...!)

Wow. You people move fast here!

Not really. I'm a guy; I talk a good game, but that's it.

(One of my flaws is that I'm an unrepentant flirt, even when it's not necessarily a good idea. If I'm going over the top, feel free to point it out or hit me with a brick or something, and I'll lay off. No offense is meant. )

No offense taken! Flirting is so much fun, innocent and tempting at the same time. And, as one of my friends sez, "No juice, no life".

In reference to the "why is Sissi getting nicer" question I would like to thank Stonecreek and FormicaArchonis for their helpful and thought provoking insights. I tell you, when you're up at the bar dubbing, you don't think about these things. You just play the scene, especially if you have a character that is not very present (or pleasant). It's very different for the big roles since you have alot of time with your character and can really get into his or her skin.

I've also wondered why Sissi sleeps in the dorm. Perhaps her father lives at the school. And then, of course, there's the question of her mother. Someone brought that up quite a while ago. What happened to her?

[Agent_Marquez offline]

I've also wondered why Sissi sleeps in the dorm. Perhaps her father lives at the school. And then, of course, there's the question of her mother. Someone brought that up quite a while ago. What happened to her?

I thought you could answer such question. Some of my ideas about it involve restriction orders from Sissi's mother to get close to Sissi. As for living in Kadic, maybe it could be for a reason of house mortage. Sissi doesn't seem that loaded to me, though. Or her father's with problems managing the money.

[SamBlob offline]

I've also wondered why Sissi sleeps in the dorm. Perhaps her father lives at the school. And then, of course, there's the question of her mother. Someone brought that up quite a while ago. What happened to her?

I thought you could answer such question. Some of my ideas about it involve restriction orders from Sissi's mother to get close to Sissi. As for living in Kadic, maybe it could be for a reason of house mortage. Sissi doesn't seem that loaded to me, though. Or her father's with problems managing the money.

I don't know why, but I thought a boarding school principal would have an official residence on the school grounds. A room on the dormitory would be an extra expense, as would the bank of light bulbs around her mirror.

As for Sissi's change in attitude, I am wondering exactly how she discovered subtelty, because that seems to be her current strategy. The Sissi from Season One (and from "Uncharted Territory" and "A Great Day") wouldn't know subtlety from a hole in the ground. She probably reached the point where she'd try anything, so she tried helpfulness without any request for reward in "Missing Link" and it paid off, so she tried it again...

[TB3]

Hand written - that must be difficult to read! Has it ever led to mistakes?

Oh yes indeed. The calligraphers are French and it's easy for them to mess up in English. Also, French handwriting is very different than American (can't speak for English or Canadian), and it takes a while to get used to it. And then there's always the occasional sloppy writer.

Hand written? Holy! I never realized that. I just assumed it was computerized. Someone writes out the whole script over again just for that? Man, I can't rewrite a grocery shopping list properly.

We are beginning to see more and more computerized bands, but believe it or not, they're more difficult to read.

*winces* Ouch! Is this the same for all the shows you record? It sounds like a really tough means of knowing WHAT to say - do you get any scripts or whatever to reference in advance for an episode?

In reference to the "why is Sissi getting nicer" question I would like to thank Stonecreek and FormicaArchonis for their helpful and thought provoking insights. I tell you, when you're up at the bar dubbing, you don't think about these things. You just play the scene, especially if you have a character that is not very present (or pleasant). It's very different for the big roles since you have alot of time with your character and can really get into his or her skin.

From our perspective Sissi's one of the best characterised kids on the show, so you do a great job at the bar!

As for her character - I'm wondering if Sissi's niceness is partly character evolution, and partly tiny fragments of her repressed memories from all the Returns to the Past - after all, she's the character who's been most involved with the group's escapades, and proved many times that she can be helpedful, courageous and even a great fighter (c'mon, she saved Ulrich's @$$ in Ultimatum, and finally got her kiss!)!

I've also wondered why Sissi sleeps in the dorm. Perhaps her father lives at the school. And then, of course, there's the question of her mother. Someone brought that up quite a while ago. What happened to her?

I've always assumed Sissi lived on campus and that the same went for her father - 'Exploration' did show him at Kadic in the middle of the night in Pyjamas and a Dressing-Gown - we also know that Jim sleeps there and that Lycee Lakanal, Kadic's real life prototype, hires staff to live there 24/7 to supervise and safeguard the student population (click here for a plan of Kadic and here for one of Lakanal as comparison.)

As for Sissi's mother - I always assumed she was dead for one reason or another and that her brattiness can be attributed to a distant but spoiling father figure, and no solid parental base to bounce off - do you have a different take on it?