Interview: Actress Anna Rust Talks Industry Trends, Working on Cyberpunk 2077, and More
Game Rant recently had a chat with Anna Rust, an actress who finds roles not just in traditional film media but also as a voice actor in video games. As for games, Anna has had roles in Star Wars Battlefront 2, Nioh 2, Battlefield 5, Final Fantasy 14, and Cyberpunk 2077, but she also recently played Fleury in Amazon's Carnival Row series and has been cast in several other movies and short films.
Rust discussed her favorite games, dream roles, predictions for the future of the industry, and much more. Voice actors often share some of the most interesting anecdotes about the process of making video games, but Rust's breadth of experience lends an especially interesting perspective on both video games and more traditional forms of media. The following interview has been edited for clarity and brevity.
GR: It's rare to mix video game and traditional acting, but you've done so- what are the major differences between the mediums?
AR: I think there are more differences than similarities, at least for me as an actor. For me, when I'm working on a game, I'm in a booth somewhere, and and nine times out of ten you’re gonna be alone in that booth. In film acting you have the luxury of being able to bounce off of someone else’s energy and tone. But, when you’re alone, you get more individual feedback on what you’re doing.
It is rare, but it’s becoming more common for people to do video game work. I think you’ll agree that the quality of video games is becoming really astounding these days, and I personally will always gravitate towards quality material. People are finally waking up to how great games can be, and actors can get really fully fleshed out characters in games now. Just because you’re not physically on screen doesn’t mean you can’t get one of the most captivating performances out there.... and hopefully it helps take away the stigma from video games that it’s just a time killer. It will help show people that it really can be art.
GR: With face tracking technology these days, players can really see an actor's face too. Is that helping to bridge that gap?
AR: It really is. And the more we get things like The Last of Us 2, or even The Last of Us 1, we’re going to see that gap between film or TV and video games narrow massively. If you play more recent games, even down to Spider-Man Miles Morales, it’s basically an interactive film in a way.... you get the same sense of immersion.
Recently, I played Alien: Isolation and it really gripped me. It was such a captivating experience. Obviously, it is based on a series of films, so it’s easy to draw the parallel to motion picture, but I felt like I was playing a horror film. It became cinematic in a terrifying way.... I think the best horror games out right now is the Outlast series. They are so f***ed up, they will leave you borderline traumatized afterwards. To think of all the work that went into making that, I have the utmost respect for that kind of creativity.
GR: It’s clear you’ve got some serious gaming chops. What are your favorite games?
AR: If I had to say 'gun to my head' favorite, I would probably say Marvel's Spider-Man. The two that I find myself always going back to are Skyrim and GTA 5. I know it’s ridiculous because I just want the next ones to come out, and I feel like the longer I support the old ones the longer it will take them to come out with the new ones.... But it’s those two games that when I’m down or lonely or sad, they’re what I will always go back to. They’re there for me and they’re endlessly replayable.
GR: How often do you play games that you’ve worked on?
AR: I play them almost every time. Not because I'm in them, but just because I’ve been lucky enough to be a part of some really cool games that I wanted to play anyway. Also, having some insight a few months or years in advance really makes me want to see how they turn out. I love playing games I’m a part of, but I try to ignore that I’m in them.
GR: It must be interesting to be playing something and then hear your own voice.
AR: It is bizarre! There’s this game on Oculus called Arktika 1, it’s from the developers of Metro. I was so excited to play it because I had never done VR before, but then I realized that I play the character who guides you through the whole game. I was like ‘I don’t know if I can do this.’ It was just me talking to me the entire game.
GR: You worked on Cyberpunk 2077, and we'd love to hear more about what it was like. Can you describe what you did in Cyberpunk? What was your role?
AR: I don’t want to spoil anything, but there’s a really great scene somewhere in the game with my character, who is a sex worker. I have yet to find it myself, so I will probably leave it at that.
GR: What was it like working on that game?
AR: I thought it was brilliant. I loved the scripts to death. I know that there’s been some controversy about the game coming out, but I’m really confident that once the bugs are ironed out people will see how impressive the game really is. From the story to the gameplay to the visuals to the characters, every part of this game is in my opinion absolutely brilliant.... We’re going to see the other end of it and be really impressed with the game.... I remember people talking about how buggy Skyrim was, but now it’s universally beloved.
GR: Right. And Cyberpunk really does seem to get its worldbuilding across very well.
AR: For Cyberpunk, it’s almost like, and I mean this in a positive way, an assault on the senses. There is just so much going on. It’s incredible… and every little corner is like that.
GR: What’s been your favorite role on film or in a game?
AR: I really love Fleury [from Carnival Row]. I love everything about her. As far as video games, I’ve got to say Gaia in Final Fantasy 14. I'm actually a really big fan of her from an external perspective. She’s really cool and she has so many different forms that make her a joy to play as an actor. To be honest, I really ship her and Ryne. I’m really hoping for something there so fingers crossed.
GR: What would your dream role be?
AR: My dream for film and TV is a bit far fetched, but it’s always been Marvel’s Black Cat. I loved that character from an unreasonably young age and I’ve always thought she was just brilliant. Every iteration of her I’ve loved, and if I played her, I could die the next day. In terms of video games, I’d love to work on an Elder Scrolls game. Who knows, maybe there will be another one soon, maybe we’ll be lucky.
GR: Would you prefer a character role, a bunch of smaller NPCs, or a main player protagonist role?
AR: I will always be drawn to interesting characters. Whether that’s the protagonist or a relatively small role in either film or video games, I will always be drawn to characters that excite me. In video games, you can play multiple characters as well, unlike film and TV, so when it comes to games, I really love doing multiple characters. Of course, I enjoy doing a single character that has a really good story or interesting relationships, but I love doing those jobs where you get to do 30 characters and they’re all different so you get to do a lot of various things. There’s never too much weight on it because you’ll be done with the character in 40 lines. You can try anything.
GR: Like all those wacky one-off NPCs in Elder Scrolls with weird lines?
AR: Yes! And often those characters become fan favorites.
GR: So what do you think makes a good character?
AR: ...It doesn’t necessarily have to be someone you align with at all. As long as it's well defined and interesting, you’ll love spending time with them.... It’s literally any character that compels in any way. I’m more interested in characters that aren’t an archetype that does things that just fit the character. Often when you work on something the instinct is to do something you think the character would do. It’s much more interesting to do the opposite, because none of us are one dimensional in real life. What makes characters interesting is when they are unpredictable, different, unique, and haven’t been seen 50 times already in other games or shows. it’s someone who stands out as an individual.
GR: What are you most proud of?
AR: I really loved working on Carnival Row. The things I got to do on that show were really bucket list worthy. There’s...I don’t know if I can talk about it. But there’s an element of the show that isn’t public yet that I got to work on, and I got to record a song. It was something I always wanted to do at some point. On top of already having gotten to do so many things, like stunts, prosthetics, like having wings… I really loved working on that show.
GR: What’s your favorite game that you’ve worked on?
AR: I loved working on Final Fantasy 14. I loved the character. I also really enjoyed Battlefield 5 because I usually don’t get to play a physically strong soldier who barks orders and is very head in the game, front footed, doesn’t give a f***, has a singular goal and is going for it. That’s really fun as an actor.
GR: To the extent you can talk about future projects, what are you looking forward to most?
AR: The future in general, just because I don’t know what it holds.
[End.]
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