Rei Sakuma

Biography

Sakuma was born on January 5, 1965 in Setagaya District, Tokyo, Japan. Her mother was a shamisen teacher, and at a young age she grew up surrounded by the sounds of traditional Japanese instruments. Having chosen ballet, piano, and the like, she learned them, and enjoyed performing acting, singing, and dancing with them.

At the time, the view from the wings, the cluttered backstage, the scent of the dressing rooms, and the lined-up costumes made her get so excited that her blood felt like it was rushing backward. Ballet recitals were also frequently held at the Setagaya Public Hall.

As a high school student at Tokyo Bunka High School, she was a member of the school's softball club where they would play softball. During practice one day however, she ended up breaking a bone and ended up having to watch everybody else practice without her every day. She thought of her other dream then at the time, "I will go to the world of acting" and "When I grow up, I will live true to that exciting heart." But since she didn't know anyone in the industry, the only "entrance" that she thought even an amateur could get into was an audition program for young people, so applied for the Nippon Television talent show Star Tanjō! and passed the audition. She learned for the first time that the show was meant for aspiring singers, which is why it included her supposed feelings written as, "it seems Mr. Sakuma just wanted to be an idol singer." She never had aimed to become a singer, so struggled, feeling like she had "jumped onto a train heading in the wrong direction", and since it was never going to fit her, she thought, "I got in through the wrong door!" The future she had vaguely dreamed of was "loving the stage, and wanting to express oneself in every possible form, such as words, song, acting, and writing."

At the 36th Grand Championship of Star Tanjō!, Sakuma did not receive any scout offers from talent agencies or record companies, but won the Judges' Encouragement Award, giving her the rights to challenge the Grand Championship again, with Japanese singer Yukie Kawakami ultimately winning the Grand Prix that round. At the time, she couldn't bring herself to say, 'I took the wrong ride!" She was given a second chance by the judges and competed in the 38th Grand Championship of Star Tanjō!, but lost again to Akina Nakamori. She reflected on these events, saying, "In my teens, I took the wrong train in life and made a massive, humiliating failure with my name and face exposed to all of Japan on television." However thanks to having a connection to Akira Saiga, someone who was a benefactor of hers and who had lived in the neighborhood, she was set to start her acting career. Things took a turn when she was scouted by a talent agency, and after doing training, she officially made her entertainment industry debut in October 1982 in the NHK music program Let's Go Young.

Initially, during her days as an idol singer, she was with Saiga Kikaku, but ended up transferring to Bond later on in 1983. Following this transition, she changed her stage name from "Rei Sakuma" (佐久間レイ) to "Rei Sakuma" (佐久間 麗), with her nickname around that time being "Gako" (ガー子).

In February 1983, she made her record debut with "Hamidashi Tenshi" with Tokuma Japan Communications and appeared on NHK's Let's Go Young as a member of the "Sundays" group. She wound up feeling overwhelmed from pushing herself hard, and couldn't enjoy or fit in at all, making her think, "My heart is screaming that this is wrong, I'm going to quit."

After taking a brief hiatus from entertainment activities, someone recommended Sakuma to try her hand at being a voice actress upon her return. She casually took the suggestion and made her voice acting debut in 1985 as the voice of Pierce in the television anime Button Nose. At the time, she had no experience as a voice actress and learned various things while on the job. Her efforts were sustained by her observing and gathering experiences from senior voice actors and people she had passed by on the street.

She famously has appeared in every episode of the long running television anime Let's Go! Anpanman as the voice of Batako. Due to the sudden death of Hiromi Tsuru on November 16, 2017, Sakuma temporarily stepped in to voice the role of Dokin-chan for the show's Christmas special that year, as Tsuru hadn't recorded the character's dialogue at the time of her death. It was the only time she served as Tsuru's replacement, as Miina Tominaga, who also regularly voices the character of Rollpanna in the series, was officially cast as the character's new voice actress starting in January 2018.

Around the time she voiced the role of Jiji in Kiki's Delivery Service, the title of "voice actor" began to be attached to her name, which she thought, "it sounds like a cool artisan title." She added, "Playing Jiji felt like I was somewhat accepted as a voice actor."

Although she had been previously affiliated with 81 Produce, as of August 2018 she is affiliated with her own agency Ōkina.

Personality

Sakuma often portrays the role of a "precocious, slightly eccentric" girl.

She has listed playing the piano and shamisen as her special skills. She also has an older brother and older sister.

For the role of Shampoo in Ranma ½, she developed a unique intonation for her vocal performance of the character after being instructed to remove "aruyo" and similar catchphrases from her speech that were present in the original manga.

Filmography

Dubbing

The Exploits of Moominpappa: Adventures of a Young Moomin, Little My and Mymble Daughter

Moomins on the Riviera, Little My

Other

Sanrio character ("Cinnamoroll") (Cappuccino)