INTERVIEW WITH SAM RIEGEL
TMNT VOICE ACTOR: DONATELLO


June 06, 2010


RUTGER
Today, my fellow Turtle fans I have with me, Sam Riegel.
Hi Sam, welcome and thanks for taking the time for this interview. It seems you have a pretty busy schedule.

SAM RIEGEL
No problemo, dude. Any fan of the turtles is a friend of mine.

RUTGER
Thank you. Well you have been the voice of Donatello over the past 7 years, including the series, the video games and the recent animated movie Turtles Forever. What was it like being a Ninja Turtle, the experience, the fans, knowing you are part of something great?

SAM RIEGEL
Being on TMNT never felt like a job to me. It's so fun, so magical to play in the world of the turtles and to submerge myself in the nerdy awesomeness that is Donatello. It's been a dream-come-true experience. And now I feel like our show has entered the canon of TMNT history. There will certainly be more versions in the future -- maybe with a different cast, or different artists -- but it's nice to know that, to those who grew up with it, our show will always exist as THE Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles cartoon they remember most.

RUTGER
Your sister is an actress and your half sister an editor. It seems you are coming from quite a movie related family. When did you found you wanted to become a voice actor?

SAM RIEGEL
I never really set out to be a VOICE actor. I just really wanted to be an ACTOR. Period! From a very young age (did my first show at age 6) I've been drawn to the stage, to performing, to playing characters. I spent the better part of my childhood doing plays, TV shows and commercials. It was an amazing way to grow up. Voice acting came later, after college.

Don't get me wrong -- I love voice acting. And I feel like I'm pretty good at it too! But I feel as comfortable behind a microphone as I do on stage, or in front of a movie camera. It's all the same. They're just different ways of expressing myself. And yes, it certainly runs in the family. Between my sisters and myself (and now my wife -- she's a cinematographer) we're involved in a lot of show business.

RUTGER
You started at an early age voicing Japanese Animé cartoons before you began voicing Donatello. Are you a big Animé fan?

SAM RIEGEL
I enjoy anime, but I wouldn't consider myself an otaku. Just like any medium, some anime is really, really good. And some are just kinda "blah". I've had the opportunity to be involved in some really spectacular anime shows -- like Paranoia Agent, Lucky Star, Naruto, Haruhi, etc. I enjoy watching those shows, for sure.

RUTGER
When did you hear that there was going to be a new TMNT animated series? Where you approached to audition by the company, or did you went and try for it?

SAM RIEGEL
I was recommended to 4Kids by a few other actors I knew. I had been working with Rachel Lillis and Veronica Taylor on some books-on-tape, and they referred me to 4Kids. That led to a job on "Yu-Gi-Oh!" and eventually an audition for TMNT. It was a big audition -- they tried out lots of people before settling on the four turtles. I was very honoured to get the gig.

RUTGER
So did you originally auditioned for the character of Donatello?

SAM RIEGEL
I originally auditioned for ALL the turtles. We all did. Nobody knew who was right for which part. And oddly, I was cast in the role of Michelangelo. Wayne Grayson was tapped to play Donatello. But when we started recording episode 01, the director didn't like the way it sounded. She was right! We stopped, and tried again the next day with me playing Don and Wayne playing Mikey. And the rest is history.

RUTGER
Did you watch the original cartoon series as a kid? You where about 11 or 12 when it was on TV right? Barry Gordon voiced Donatello back then. Did you felt like you had to try and copy Barry's voice to get the right tone for Donatello?

SAM RIEGEL
I DID watch the old series growing up. I was a huge fan, and Donatello was definitely my favourite character. But I never tried to emulate Barry Gordon's voice in our series. In fact, I deliberately didn't listen to any of the old shows until after we were done recording season one. I wanted to put my own spin on the character, and I think I succeeded. That being said, the original cast were all amazing actors -- and still are.

RUTGER
You definitly succeeded! After all those years could you share your most fond memories during your TMNT period? Anything from either the recording in the studios or at the Comic conventions you attended?

SAM RIEGEL
Meeting fans at the conventions was great. And all the recording sessions were wildly funny. That Wayne Grayson is one funny man. But my absolute favourite moment of the whole experience was watching "Turtles Forever" at Comicon with a room-full of hardcore TMNT fans last year.

Sitting next to Michael Sinterniklaas, watching that epic movie and hearing the fans go nuts as they watched really made me realize what we had accomplished. Entertaining people is great... but when you can really connect with an audience, on a deeper level, it means something. I feel like that movie was a tribute to the fans -- a thank-you card for all their years of support and encouragement. And by the end of the screening, I was in tears.

RUTGER
Awesome, yes Turtles Forever really did feel like a big thank you! I was wondering something by the way, when voicing your lines for Donnie did it took you a few takes whenever you had lines with lots of geek talk? I was always amazed every time I heard you talking fluidly about 'subtronic partical system analyzers' and stuff like that!

SAM RIEGEL
I'm a nerd in real life, but that didn't make my dialogue any easier to say. You're right -- some of my lines were tongue twisters. Long, technical phrases definitely took 2 or 3 or even 10 takes to get right. But when it's all edited together, I sound like a genius!

RUTGER
Do you have a favourite classic TMNT movie, or maybe a favourite episode from the new toon?

SAM RIEGEL
My favourite is still "The King," the episode in season one dedicated to Jack Kirby. It was a terrific episode, but also a great nod to one of the masters of American comic books. I felt honoured to be such a big part of that episode.

RUTGER
By now I heard from your colleagues that 4Kids is almost shutting down. It is one of the few major cartoon studios. Will you now focus more on voicing videogames, or acting? I saw your latest project is "Freak Dance". Can you tell something about your part in this?

SAM RIEGEL
'Freak Dance' is a comedy/musical/break dancing movie I shot at the end of last year. It's a wildly funny film, based on a play I performed at the UCB Theater in Los Angeles for nearly two years. It was the first movie I've had a big part in -- on camera -- and I hope I get to do another one soon.

RUTGER
Would be great to see more of you in movies, So what do you like most in your work nowadays. Acting, writing, directing or producing?

SAM RIEGEL
As for new projects, I've been focusing a lot on video game work for the past year, and not only as an actor, but as a writer and director as well. In fact, I wrote all the cut-scenes in the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Arcade Attack game for the DS. In addition, I've done some directing for the next Naruto video game, as well as several other upcoming games which I can't discuss yet...
I enjoy all aspects of the business, as long as I'm being creative. By writing one day, directing another day, and acting the next day, my mind stays sharp and my creative juices are always flowing. Never a dull moment!

RUTGER
That's great, thank you for talking with me and for sharing a glimpse of your work. I hope you will continue to voice great characters. Donatello will always be your best achievement for me! Cowabunga!

SAM RIEGEL
Thanks for taking the time, sir. All of us realize that it doesn't matter what we do unless the fans dig it too. And turtles fans are some of the best around. Cowabunga right back atcha!