ICELAND

- How did you get your first dubbing role? (as Kiara in The Lion King 2)

Well, my younger brother was best friend with Agnar Már, who was the son of the assistant dubbing director, Júlíus Agnarsson. So he asked me to try out for the female lead role in a new Icelandic dubbing he was making, and out of 4 girls I was selected by Disney USA as Kiara's both speaking and singing voice.

- How did you get the role of Cinderella?

Júlíus Agnarsson really liked the result of me as Kiara, so he asked me to audition for Cinderella as well, and I was selected by Disney USA again for both speaking and singing voice.

- Why are there two singers for Cinderella if you were selected for both speaking and singing?

Well, that is a long story. I recorded both the dialogues and the songs and everything was approved by both Disney USA and Júlíus Agnarsson, the Icelandic dubbing director, and the dubbing was done and everyone seemed to be happy with the result.
Then, a few days later, Júlíus called me and said there was a problem with my singing parts and I had to come over and remake them. So I came in again and re-recorded all the songs to make them sound more like the original American version.

Then about a week later, I was working at the city theater, Borgarleikhúsið, and there I met Þórunn Lárusdóttir, and we started talking. She told me that earlier that day she was at the dubbing studio recording the singing voice of Cinderella. I had no idea what she was talking about since I was the singing voice of Cinderella. So I called Júlíus and he told me that Disney didn't find my singing voice similar enough to the original so they had asked for another singer. I was quite cut up about it but when I heard the result I understoood what they meant. Þórunn has a singing quality that is very similar to the original voice, But I did find it strange that they mixed our voices in that way I would begin the song "A Dream is a Wish your Heart Makes" and then Þórunn's voice would take over. Very weird.

- Why did you not come back for the third movie in 2007? (Cinderella 3: A Twist in Time)

Well, I was selected for both Cinderella 3 and a Tinker Bell movie in 2007, and I was gonna dub both of them, but I couldn't do it in the end because I was moving to the UK. So I asked my good friend Álfrún Örnólfsdóttir if she could replace me and she was more than happy to do so.

- Eventually, how did you get the role of Snow White? How did it go?

Júlíus Agnarsson called me and said that he had gotten approval to dub the classic "Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs" for the 2001 re-release of the movie, and he wanted me to try out for Snow White. And out of 3 girls that tried out, I was selected for both speaking and singing parts.
It was amazing. I think Snow White is one of the most beautiful animated movies ever. And the dubbing went really well. Júlíus always had a very high standard of actors in his dubbings. He used classically trained actors and was very precise in his work. A wonderfully eccentric character and a good man. I wanted to change some of the lyrics and he let me which was very big of him I think. I also wanted to sing Snow White's vocalizes, but Júlíus said that Disney USA wouldn't approve it.

- Have you ever auditioned for roles you didn't get?

Haha yes, I auditioned for Fiona from Shrek, for Mulan, for Anna from Frozen, for Giselle from Enchanted and for Merida from Brave. I really really wanted the role of Merida. I really loved the character's strong and independant personality.

- What dubbing role was your favourite?

It was dubbing Snow White, I really loved it. And after that I would say dubbing Charlotte (LaBouff) in "The Princess and the Frog", she's such a wacky character.

- What is your favourite Icelandic dubbing?

"The Princess and the Frog"! I think it was incredibly well done and I loved every minute of it. Also, it was so much fun working with my good friend Selma Björnsdóttir, she's professional from head to toe.

Interview by Agust Ingi Aðalheiðarson
May 6, 2016