Hi Dana , welcome to VENTS ! How have you been ? I ' ve been doing well ! I ' m happy that I ' m on summer break . Very busy , but everything that ' s been happening in the past few months has been super exciting !
I understand you are currently studying sociology and communication - so I am guessing acting wasn ' t always your first interest ? If so , how did that come about ? Acting actually always WAS my first interest . I decided that I wanted to go to school for something other than acting because I want to use this opportunity to learn about other things . I take acting class outside of UCLA , but I ' m really focused on school academics .
How do you intend to apply those non-artistic knowledge to your acting or are they two different facets of who you are ? I think sociology and communications can definitely apply to acting . When you ' re telling a story , you need to depict characters and situations truthfully . Studying the sociology of our world and communications amongst people gives me a really good understanding as to why people might act a certain way in any given context . It ' s really exciting to look at acting in this way because I look at it personally and take into account what I would do , but then I also get to analyze why .
Many actresses usually start doing some live action work - what was it like to start off doing voice-over ? It was VERY unexpected . When you ' re young you don ' t really think about who does the voices in your favorite cartoons , so when my agent told me she was going to send me out for voiceover auditions , I was really intrigued by it . I love voiceover and I think people have the tendency to think that it ' s easy , but it ' s actually really challenging . You ' re acting out scenes , but you ' re the only person who ' s in the room--at least that ' s the way we worked for the Despicable Me franchise . It can be difficult sometimes when you don ' t have anyone to interact with or anybody ' s energy to feed off of , but it ' s a lot of fun and the directors and creative team are really helpful .
When you started voicing Edith - did it ever cross your mind that this would become such a successful franchise ? I knew that it could be amazing because of the cast , the script , and the creative team , but I would have never imagined how big it has become . Minions are actually taking over the world , which is so great . I see them everywhere and it makes me feel so proud to be a part of this incredible franchise .
In the film series , Edith and the girls all seem to remain the same age or so though in real life all the actors have matured - as a young adult , do you try to sneak in some of that maturity into this character ? Does your view on this character change ? I like to keep Edith young . She ' s still a kid , but I think now that I ' m older I definitely am more comfortable and confident when I ' m recording . Also , since it ' s my third movie now I really have a good sense of who Edith is and it helps me decide how to say certain lines .
Edith is sort of a tomboy , or very adventurous to say the least - do you and Edith share any personality traits ? We do share personalities because we both poke fun at our older sisters . When I was younger I was always trying to intrude on my sister and her friends . I also think that we ' re both very protective of our family . I wouldn ' t call myself a tomboy , but I wouldn ' t say that I ' m necessarily a girly-girl either . I ' m somewhere in between . The one thing I wish we had in common is her fearlessness . Sometimes I let my fear get the best of me , so I wish I was more like Edith in that way . She ' s so brave .
When voicing , do you and the other sisters ( Miranda Cosgrove , Elsie Fisher ) and / or Gru ( Steve Carrell ) get the chance to be in the same room or does all the voice-over work get done separately ? All of the work is done separately , so it ' s really nice when we get to see each other in between sessions or at the premieres .
With the addition of a new character , Dru , how would that change the dynamic of the family moving on ( or at least you hope to )? What ' s great about this family is that they ' re so adaptable . Every movie there has been a new addition to their family . In the first movie , Gru welcomed the girls into his home and after some resistance fell in love with them . In the second , Lucy was brought into the family and now Dru ! I think they love their big and odd family . It makes them really special .
You are also featured in your first live action flick , The Ice Cream Truck - what was the transition like ? It was really awesome because it was my first onscreen project . It was definitely different getting to interact with other people in scenes , but I loved it a lot . I want to continue voiceover , but I want to do more onscreen work as well !
How did your normal approach to acting change for this new role ? My approach to acting didn ' t change . I think it ' s a common misconception that voice acting isn ' t acting because it is . I still put myself into my roles the same way and I think that ' s what makes any actor good at his or her craft .
What can you tell us about Brie ? What role does she play in the film ? Brie is a teenager who lives in Mary ' s ( the protagonist ) neighborhood . She ' s not the nicest of girls and I would definitely categorize her as a moody teenager . I don ' t want to reveal too much about my role because it ' ll ruin the surprise !
When and where can we catch your new flick ? It ' ll be in select theaters and VOD on August 1 8th !
What else is happening next in Dana Gaier ' s world ? I just worked on an episodic role that should air in the fall , can ' t say too much but it ' s a comedy-- so that was lots of fun . I also just performed at a Cabaret-- I sing too , and I ' ve been writing music on my guitar . Hoping I ' ll get to share some of that as well in the future .