May 1st, 2009 | Itoi, Uncommon Knowledge, Videos
As many probably know by now, EarthBound/MOTHER series creator Shigesato Itoi voiced a character in one of the most classic animes of all time, My Neighbor Totoro / Tonari no Totoro.
I’d never seen a Youtube clip isolating just him, at least until now. So here you go, Itoi the voice actor!
As we already looked at before, Itoi and Studio Ghibli (the super-famous studio that made Totoro) go way back, and this voice acting thing is just one example.

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34 Comments to Shigesato Itoi in Totoro
![]() | Mato said on May. 1, 2009 |
I translate anime for a living and have to listen to Japanese voice acting every day, and I’ll be absolutely honest… Itoi’s not a very good actor, at least from what I’ve seen in this clip. Of course, I wouldn’t expect him to be, since that’s not his normal job.
BTW Mato , why was the banner for EB Central changed? o.o
Wasn’t it supposed to change according to the seasons or something?
![]() | Poe said on May. 1, 2009 |
Yeah, his voice doesn’t seem to fit the look of the character at all.
I dunno , Itoi’s voice sounds really weird. I’m so used to his voice and then hearing on a character makes it sound… wrong lol
![]() | Mato said on May. 1, 2009 |
santiagoff: It changes every month. Looks like this month’s is Saturn Valley, but I’m not really digging it for some reason. I guess I got spoiled by Onett 😛
![]() | Covarr said on May. 1, 2009 |
Itoi should stick to game design. His characterization was mediocre, and his enunciation sloppy.
If i recall, Miyazaki didn’t WANT the father’s voice to match him, which is why he cast Itoi.
It also may have been a cool celebrity tie in. Itoi is a big celebrity over there, right?
I agree his voice doesn’t fit too well. And it also seems to work the other way around with people doing his voice. Here’s a clip of when he was on Iron Chef as a judge, and got dubbed for the US version.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSHpQXDC2wo
hahah i love this movie! unfortunately i don’t own it, but my friend does, so i went over to her house one day and made her watch it in Japanese with me just so i could hear Shigesato’s voice XD
idk about u guys, but i like how the voice doesn’t match what we would typically think the father’s voice should sound like.
but i do agree, he should stick to gaming and not really do voice acting >.>
Man, watching that without subtitles made me think of when I had to watch that for a Japanese class… I didn’t even realize that it was him (not like I would know what he sounds like anyway).
The tagline (生きろ) that they used seemed a little strange. “To be?”
Wikipedia translated the tagline as “Live!” Which is more appropriate, or if neither, what would be a good translation of the tagline?
I love all the Ghibli films. I’ve seen every one, except for Ponyo. I can’t wait to see it in theaters this summer!
![]() | DrGlove said on May. 1, 2009 |
I love how if you haven’t seen this movie, it kinda seems normal until you see the giant cat in the tree, with his creepy smile.
I know exactly what I’m getting for my mom on the tenth.
An ear of corn with “Mother” carved into it.
for a second I thought this post was titled “Shigesato Itoi in Toronto”
I was gunna say.. YAY he’s finally decided to come and visit me 🙂 but then I read it correctly… still cool to see a clip from that movie though
SmaMan, I wouldn’t say he is a big celebrity,especially back when Totoro was made.
We were watching Totoro in Japanese last year, first in the English dubbed version and after some begging on my part Japanese. Nobody knew why I squealed when I saw that particular character onscreen.
But all we need to hear of him is “Okay desu ka”, really >.>
I have this movie on DVD, and now I lost it. 🙁 But I never knew Mr. Itoi was a voice actor in Totoro. 🙂
Seems Shigesato Itoi referenced his work on Totoro in MOTHER 3. In an original Japanese trailer (which is on the Totoro Disney DVD), the tagline is shown as something like, “Creatures like this exist in Japan. Maybe.” The word used for maybe is “tabun”, and that same exact word is used in Tanehineri Island to mark an uncertainty about the items you’ve found.
Maybe. lol
It may be a coincidence, but since Itoi already referenced his tagline for “Kiki’s Delivery Service” in Aeolia’s last scene in MOTHER 3… yeah.
kratosauron0: 生きろ。is the tagline for もののけ姫, or Princess Mononoke. It’s the command form of the verb “to live”, so “Live!” is an accurate (perhaps the most accurate) translation.
Professional game translator here, loving this site. Thanks!
Considering I love Totoro, this can only make it a little bit more enjoyable to me if I ever can see it again.
![]() | darkzzii said on Jul. 15, 2010 |
wow that movie brings me back… that was the first anime movie i ever saw.
![]() | BigDream said on Aug. 26, 2011 |
Wish Itoi spoke english…
Video blocked… Oh well, at least I have the series on DVD and a Panasonic Q
Nope. Never seen it. But I should.
Interesting voice acting. Is it me , or those 2 voices just don’t match the characters at all? XD