What is this? (please read 'Final Notes" at the bottom of this description)
A fandub of the early 2000s coming-of-age/fantasy classic by Yoshitoshi Abe, Haibane Renmei! This project aims to give new English-speaking VA talent a chance to bring all 13 episodes of this amazing series to life again for others to enjoy!
For those of you unfamiliar with the premise: Haibane Renmei (also called Charcoal/Grey Feather Federation) follows Rakka, a newly hatched Haibane (a being resembling an angel), and other characters in the city of Glie, a walled town with a single gate through which only a mysterious group, the Toga, are allowed to enter or exit.
Named "Rakka" for the dream of falling she had while inside the cocoon, she soon becomes accustomed to life in the strange town. However, there are strict rules for the Haibane, such as being forbidden to leave the village or go near the walls surrounding it. These, along with mysterious disappearances of their kind on their "Day of Flight," begin to unsettle Rakka and the others since they know almost nothing about their own kind.
Requirements: XLR mics preferred (USB may be alright, but it depends), and please ensure there are minimal echoes and background noise for any auditions you submit, also, have fun! Lastly, Discord will be required for this project to coordinate things -hopefully- better, as we will use my own server for the project. That being said, and in closing, I will require everyone's mutual support and respect to make this project as polished as possible. Thanks so much for your consideration and interest in my project!
A few final notes:
1.) I absolutely adore this series and hope you can too if you are cast for this project!
2.) The role of Reki will be played by me. :)
3.) Due to some of the themes this series deals with, I'm only going to accept auditions from VAs that are at least 16+ yo.
4.) In your audition notes please provide your Discord information, thanks!
I'm opening the video editor role to help take some stress off the current editor, and to hopefully expedite episode production in the future! I really appreciate all of my fandub team I currently have, because you've all done an awesome job, and I hope we can make 2025 a productive and creative year of expression for all of us! Thanks!! <3
Female Protagonist
"A new arrival at Old Home, Rakka struggles throughout the series to "find herself," and has trouble escaping from curiosity about her past. She forms many friendships, but her closest is with Reki. Rakka is very quiet and a bit on the withdrawn side. She spends a lot of time pondering her previous existence and the mysteries of what lies beyond the Walls, as well as the origin of the haibane."
Note: you don't need to be a voice match for Carrie Savage, though a soft-spoken tone would be nice.
Sorry, but I can't congratulate you like everybody else. I wanted to be with you much longer. I wanted to go shopping with you... and eat with you... and talk about a lot of things with you! There were a lot more things that I wanted you to teach me!
She's been blaming herself all this time. Why is it only Reki that can't be forgiven?
STOP that! There's no way I can believe that! You've always been so kind!
"Reki is a mother figure to the other haibane of Old Home. Reki cannot remember her "cocoon dream," is troubled by her past at Old Home and by vivid and horrible nightmares, which she then paints as a way of trying to figure them out. She has been a haibane for seven years, longer than the others except for Nemu. She spends her time taking care of the precocious pack of Young Feathers who clearly drive her crazy but whom she seems to love unconditionally."
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"The youngest of the older haibane and the first to take her Day of Flight. Kuu overcame her initial awkwardness to achieve a sense of peace. She develops a close friendship with Rakka and has been a haibane for two years. Outgoing and a bit hyper, Kuu demonstrates surprising knowledge of the town and serves as a good role model for Rakka."
...Inside my mind, there’s a beautiful cup. A very beautiful, clear cup. And tiny drops kept falling into it, ‘drip, drip, drip’, slowly but steadily, everyday. And today, I felt the cup had finally become completely full.
"The haibane who has lived longest at Old Home. Her friends tease Nemu because she is always sleeping. In fact, her cocoon dream was of herself, sleeping, which is a bit of an inside gag at Old Home. She is an old friend of Reki, works at the library, and has been a haibane for nine years. Nemu is often the voice of reason and calm during times of trouble and, like Reki, holds back the secret of a troubled past. She seems to have an almost mother/daughter relationship with Sumika, the former senior librarian."
Nemu doesn't have a lot of lines, but not because she sleeps a lot, rather most of the story is focused on Reki and Rakka.
Just do what you can. As for the rest, we just have to believe in Reki.
"A mechanically inclined "tomboy," Kana works at the clock tower in the center of town. Kana has been a haibane for three years. Kana has a bit of a whimsical side to her as she reveals to Rakka that she wonders about the world outside the walls as well. More often than not though, Kana is hyper and obnoxious, which helps her to coexist with her grouchy master at the clock tower. Despite her confident attitude, Kana is actually very sensitive deep down and cares deeply for her friends, showing almost as much sadness as Rakka for Kuu's loss before grudgingly accepting it."
Say something you think would fit...
"A serious haibane who is also occasionally mischievous and funny. She works in a bakery in town and has been a haibane for four years. Hikari has a tendency to be a bit forgetful, such as forgetting to tell Rakka to practice moving her wings before her trip to the Haibane Renmei Temple. She's highly innovative, experimenting at the bakery with the halo mold presumably a short time after Rakka was born."
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"Prominent member of the second, co-ed group of haibane in Glie who live at the Abandoned Factory "nest" on the opposite side of town from Old Home. Was a friend of Reki in the past. Upon first meeting Rakka, he accidentally upsets her with a remark about Kuu's recent Day of Flight. Despite his tough exterior, he's shown to be very kind, such as sending Rakka pastries and an apology note for the incident."
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"A haibane from Abandoned Factory and a close friend of Hyōko. Has an ongoing grudge against Reki for her past endangerment of Hyōko but is willing to talk with Rakka and others."
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"A presiding official of the Haibane Renmei who gives spiritual advice and worldly assistance and, occasionally, imposes punishments on haibane who break the rules. The Communicator is the only person who can speak with the Toga on their visits to the town and it's speculated that he himself was a failed haibane. He wishes for the Day of Flight to come to all the haibane successfully and feels concerned that Reki refuses to heed his advice and attempts to help her."
"...Perhaps this is what it means to be bound by sin. To spin in the same circle, looking for where the sin lies, and at some point losing sight of the way out."
"A haibane who cared for the young Nemu and Reki. Despite her delicate health, she was kind and helpful to them, especially to Reki in dealing with her black wings. Kuramori took her Day of Flight five years before the start of the series but remains vivid in the memories of Reki and Nemu, the only ones remaining to remember her. She's the only full-grown adult Haibane to be shown, as all the others are teens and mid-adolescents."
Note: you don't need to be a Wendee Lee voicematch, just sound very caring!
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"The Watchmaker (親方) is an unnamed elderly man who works in Glie's clock tower. Kana works as his apprentice and while he seems bitter and uncaring on the outside seems to genuinely care for her. "
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Someone to help me format the script of the show for the VAs. :)
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