WITH Chiaroscuro: Expedition 33 Following the game's release, there was a lot of discussion about the game's characteristics. Although everyone is exemplary and has seen similar ones Jennifer English and Ben Starr are nominated for Best Performer at this year's The Game Awards.Since then, there has been debate about what exactly it means to be nominated in this category.
You see, another Clair Obscur actor who received a nomination at The Game Awards was Charlie Cox, known for films like Daredevil and Stardust, who voiced the game's protagonist Gustave. However, the character was animated by French actor Maxence Cazorla.
Back in November, Cox said he was certainly pleased to see his contributions to Clair Obscur recognized: Cazorla received as much applause as needed Also. “Any nomination or any award I get, I really have to give it to him because I really believe the performance of this character is up to him, and my vote was just part of that process,” Cox said. I recently had the opportunity to sit down and talk with Cazorla about all things Claire Obscura, and of course, our conversation soon turned to Cox's comments.
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“First of all, I was incredibly honored to have Charlie come out publicly and acknowledge my work. I was deeply touched by his humility and generosity,” Cazorla told me, before he shed more light on the process of bringing Gustave to life.
“We started by recording the play without any particular restrictions, approaching it like a film, learning lines, acting out scenes and following Guillaume’s directions,” Cazorla said. “Once filming was completed and the cinematography team integrated the scenes into the game engine, the voice actors stepped in and recorded their performances.”
He added that his role in the overall character of Gustave and Cox “happened at different points in the process”, which is “very common in game production”. Cazorla explained that once the physicality of the performance was locked in, Cox went into the studio to record Gustave's lines. “I only found out the final result a few months later, right in the game,” Cazorla said.
“In the end, it was the combination of these two roles, as well as incredible writing and research, that gave birth to this character.”
But how did Carsola feel about not receiving a nomination for his role in developing the character of Gustave? Does he think awards ceremonies should change the way performances are judged in general?
“When it comes to the potential category of motion capture, I think it's a sensitive topic because every game is created differently,” Carzola responded. “In this case, Clair Obscur is a game where many of the characters are created through collaboration between two actors. For example, Mael with Charlotte Hepffner and Jennifer English, Leung with Estelle Darnaud and Kirsty Ryder, Verso with Ben Starr and me. Other games may have one actor doing full performance capture, and some projects even have stuntmen, motion capture actors, and voice actors all contributing to the same character.”
Thus, Carzola believes that “the fairest way to celebrate performers” is to “celebrate character” instead.
“This is what the DICE Awards already does and I think it's a very smart approach. If you reward Gustave as a character and his impact on players, you are thanking Charlie Cox for his voice, me for capturing the game, and the writers who shaped him, the character artists, and everyone else who contributed to his life.”
Carzola concluded by saying, “Video games are by their nature a collaborative art form, and characters resonate because so many artists pour their soul into them. It makes more sense to me to have a 'Best Character' category than to isolate one performer and potentially leave others invisible.”
If you'd like to hear more from Carzola, my full chat with him will air in the coming days. Here, the actor talks about how he found out about Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, his audition and meeting the team for Sandfall, doing motion capture for several of the game's characters, and more. Stay tuned!
