Minami Hinata

2.1. Birthplace and Upbringing

Born on January 24, Minami Hinata hails from Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. Her aspiration to become a voice actress emerged during her childhood after watching the anime series Romeo's Blue Skies. She developed a deep admiration for the boy character in the show and harbored a desire to always retain a boy's heart and thoughts, even as a female. This unique ambition ultimately led her to pursue a career in voice acting.

2.2. Education and Training

After completing her vocational school education, Hinata enrolled in Axl Zero, the training school affiliated with the voice acting agency Axl One. Axl One is notably headed by veteran voice actor Toshiyuki Morikawa. Hinata's decision to join Axl Zero was driven by her admiration for three specific voice actors: Toshiyuki Morikawa, Ai Orikasa, and Yuko Sanpei, all of whom were affiliated with Axl One.

During her audition for Axl Zero, Hinata expressed a strong desire to impress Morikawa and showcased her singing talent by performing a song a cappella. Morikawa, recognizing her talent and passion, felt compelled to mentor her directly. At Axl Zero, she received comprehensive guidance from Morikawa and other instructors, with a particular focus on cultivating the ability to think critically while acting as a voice actor. She officially joined Axl One in 2019. In her debut year, she set a personal goal to specialize in portraying "characters who stick to their own will."

3.1. Debut and Early Activities

Minami Hinata made her professional debut as a voice actress in 2020. Following her debut, she spent a year gaining valuable experience by consistently performing various minor or "mob" roles as a regular in different anime programs. During this foundational period, she aimed to portray characters who demonstrated strong willpower.

3.2. Major Roles and Turning Points

A significant turning point in Hinata's career came in April 2021 when it was announced that she would voice Bojji, the protagonist of the television anime series Ranking of Kings, which premiered on Fuji TV in October of the same year. This marked her first starring role. Hinata's connection to Ranking of Kings began serendipitously when she picked up the first volume of the manga at a bookstore. She was immediately drawn in by its intricate human relationships and profound narrative. The character of Bojji, a deaf prince striving to become a great king, perfectly embodied her personal goal of portraying characters who "stick to their own will."

The audition process for Bojji was highly competitive, with numerous applicants. The character's dialogue was minimal, primarily consisting of sounds like "au," and the co-protagonist, Kage, was designed to drive much of the story. Ayumu Murase had already been cast as Kage. Producer Maiko Okada noted the difficulty in selecting an actor for Bojji due to the limited dialogue. The first round of the audition required candidates to convey a range of emotions-joy, anger, sorrow, and pleasure-solely through "auau" sounds. The second round involved a dialogue session with Ayumu Murase. This was Hinata's second studio audition ever, and she recalled feeling extremely nervous, believing she had not performed well. Murase also sensed her nervousness during their session. Despite her apprehension, she passed the audition, partly due to the strong compatibility observed between her and Murase during their dialogue. Upon learning of her success, as a devoted reader of the original manga, Hinata experienced a mix of joy, immense pressure, and fear. She admitted that it took approximately three months for the reality of her new role to fully sink in. In the same year, she was also cast as Luminaria in the anime adaptation of She Professed Herself Pupil of the Wise Man. In 2023, Hinata's rising prominence was recognized with the Best New Actor Award at the 17th Seiyu Awards.

3.3. Acting Style and Approach

Minami Hinata possesses a naturally lower vocal range, and she has expressed a personal preference for portraying boy characters in anime.

When approaching her starring role as Bojji in Ranking of Kings in 2021, Hinata immersed herself in the original manga while simultaneously adopting the mindset that she was responsible for "creating the anime's Bojji." In her portrayal, she prioritized capturing both the character's inherent cuteness and his underlying coolness. A crucial aspect of her performance was meticulously ensuring that she did not react immediately to sounds, accurately reflecting Bojji's deafness. This was her first time playing a character with a disability, and to prepare, she diligently studied the vocalization methods of hearing-impaired individuals by watching sign language programs. She found it particularly challenging to convey complex emotions through Bojji's limited "au" lines, as the character struggles with clear speech. To overcome this, she revealed that she consciously adjusted the tension and nuance of her dialogue depending on her scene partner: she would speak differently when interacting with Kage, who could instinctively understand her intentions, compared to other characters who could not.

Maiko Okada, the anime producer for Ranking of Kings, explained her decision to cast Hinata as Bojji, highlighting Hinata's memorable voice and her exceptional compatibility with co-star Ayumu Murase. Okada specifically noted that Hinata's lower voice harmonized well with Murase's and perfectly embodied the essence of Bojji. Taku Kishimoto, the series composer, further endorsed Okada's assessment, remarking that Hinata "fit the role from the very first episode." Murase, who worked closely with Hinata, recognized her potential even during the audition phase. He commended her dedication to portraying the character's straightforwardness. Murase also observed Hinata's significant growth throughout the recording process, noting that in the final episodes, her spontaneous vocalizations expressed Bojji's emotions with remarkable naturalness, which he attributed to her diligent efforts. The web media outlet Real Sound Eigabu, specializing in film reviews, lauded Hinata's performance in Ranking of Kings, stating that "Bojji's emotional changes and purity are clearly conveyed despite hardly any words being spoken," and praised it as "masterful acting."

4.1. Television Anime

4.2. Theatrical Animation

4.3. Web Animation

4.4. Video Games

4.5. Drama CDs and Audio Dramas

4.6. Voice Dubbing

Minami Hinata has also lent her voice to dubbing foreign media.

5.1. Character Songs