Speaking with Dory’s Dad Charlie AKA Eugene Levy! #FindingDoryEvent

This might sound silly but as a younger version of my current self I absolutely loved the American Pie movies, to be honest I still enjoy watching them when they’re aired on TV.  

Therefore, when I saw Eugene Levy on the red carpet for the Finding Dory World Premiere I couldn’t resist, I just HAD to get a photo with him, and I said to my good friend Donna Hup; “Ohhhhhh, American Pie Dad!”  (Luckily Eugene Levy didn’t hear me.)

I did get that photo and I love it.  The following day, at the press junket, we got to interview Eugene Levy about his role as the voice behind Charlie, Dory’s dad. 

Sitting down with Eugene Levy! 

Seeing as he was new to the cast in Finding Dory we asked how he got to be a part of this great, long awaited sequel.  

Well I got a phone call. I got a phone call and it was a lovely call, asking me if I wanted to be a part of it.  Of course I said yes, kind of jumped at it.  Didn’t take too much thinking to be involved in the sequel to Finding Nemo so it was lovely.

In previous interviews I have been lucky enough to do with voice talent behind animated characters, there is a general consensus that they record their parts one their own, they aren’t with the others when they do this.  For Eugene this was largely the same, except;

I had a lovely session. It was actually a bit of a privilege because this doesn’t really happen that often. I did have one session that I worked with Diane and we were in two different cities. I was in Toronto. She was in Los Angeles and they hooked up cameras so that I could see her on a monitor in my studio and she could see me on a monitor in her studio and we were able to do the scene together which doesn’t happen a lot when you’re doing these things because mostly you’re working by yourself, you know. It’s, uh, quite lonely actually.

But that was fun and the great thing too was when I was working with Diane was that I was kind of mesmerized by just watching her on the monitor working even though I was doing a scene with her. I was very aware that it was Diane Keaton behind the mic and I’m just fascinated, watching the way she was working behind the microphone and then I’d have to go oh, yeah, I’ve got a line here.

Ellen said that she was able to ad-lib? Did you get the chance to ad-lib any lines?

Ellen’s the star of the movie. She can do whatever she wants. There was some kind of adlib-ing. You do have to take a bit of a cue from the director.  It’s not like you can just go in there and start playing around with the script.  They work very hard on putting together a great script so there’s nothing you necessarily need to be improvising but if, in the course of doing the voice work the director will let you know, you know, just go crazy with this or just do whatever you want.

Eugene continued that he didn’t feel comfortable just going off script, he respects the work that Andrew had put into it.  When he was given a little freedom he would enjoy it and he really loves Andrew’s laughter, which he feels is very encouraging.  

Besides your own character which is your favorite character?

Boy, it’s hard to pinpoint one. I have to say the little Dory is I think my favorite character because when I first heard that voice I honestly I got so emotional and this is one of the recording sessions.  They actually showed a little section of the animation which hadn’t been fully fleshed out yet but that’s the first time I heard the the voice and I mean I almost burst out crying.  I’ve never heard anything so sweet in all my life. I said where did you get this voice?

As it turns out the voice of Baby Dory is the voice of a member of the production crews daughter.  She came in to do a guide track for the animators and they just heard her voice and loved it so much they went with her voice for the movie.  I think everyone we interviewed made special mention of Baby Dory and her impact on the movie.  

Let’s enjoy this recently released clip to show you just exactly why everyone is in love with the a-Dory-ble Baby Dory! 

Asked if he thought that the parenting they used with Dory as a child would be a way to get extra hope or support to parents who have children with disabilities Eugene had a mixed reaction in his response. 

While he hoped that it would he also really thinks that parents who have kids with disabilities they already know what they have to do and exactly how to do it.  It takes an incredible amount of patience and perseverance to parents children with disabilities.  Eugene has a couple friend with kids who have autism an he has witnessed how much energy it takes to get through even part of a day.

Eugene continues that if parents do pick up anything from this movie that would be great, but he feels that these parents are already doing an amazing job and they will ‘just keep swimming.’

In conclusion,  what’s been your favorite part about this whole experience?

Well it’s a great story!  I’ve done a few of them [animated movies] and it is a different way of working than doing a normal movie. You have to get used to that process of going in, not having a lot of time. I mean these sessions usually are like three hours and you get five sessions maybe over two and a half, three years whenever this started and it’s just going over every line and giving the director as many options as you can on every line so that when he’s putting it all together he’s got the gamut of delivery on a line from A to Z.

So it’s, it’s odd, and exciting in a way especially when you’re working with somebody like Andrew Stanton who is so great at doing this. I mean he’s like a genius. I mean, you know, wrote the story and directed it and when you’re directing actors in the studio working like this when you’re just pounding away at lines and giving different options, you’ve gotta be a great director, you’ve gotta be a good psychiatrist, to keep the morale up and, he just laughs a lot. He laughs at a lot. He laughs at lot which makes you feel good and kind of gives you the confidence to go on and, and give him more things.

Now that it’s the weekend again, IF you didn’t head to the theater last weekend, you should most definitely go this weekend!!  Trust me – your entire family will absolutely LOVE this movie!!

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