Timber wood
“Video games are, by nature, a collaborative art form,” says Maxence Cazorla.
Image credit: Eurogamer
Since Clair Obscur: Expedition 33 released, there has been much discussion about the game’s performances. While all are exemplary, and saw the likes of Jennifer English and Ben Starr receive nominations for Best Performer at this year’s The Game Awards, there has since been debate over what exactly it means to be nominated in this category.
You see, another Clair Obscur actor to receive a nomination at The Game Awards was Charlie Cox, known for the likes of Daredevil and Stardust, who provided the voice of the game’s protagonist Gustave. However, the character’s motion performance was done by French actor Maxence Cazorla.
Back in November, Cox said while he was of course delighted to see his contribution to Clair Obscur recognised, as much of the applaud needed to go to Cazorla as well. “Any nomination or any credit I get, I really have to give to him, because I really believe that the performance of that character is down to him, and my voice was just part of that process,” Cox said. I recently had the oppertunity to sit down and chat with Cazorla about all things Clair Obscur, and of course our conversation soon turned to Cox’s comments.
“First of all, it was an incredible honour for me that Charlie spoke publicly and acknowledged my work. I was deeply moved by his humility and generosity,” Cazorla told me, before he shed more light on the process of bringing Gustave to life.
“We started by doing the performance capture without any particular constraints, approaching it like a film, learning the lines, playing the scenes, and following Guillaume’s direction,” Cazorla said. “Once the shoot was done and the scenes were integrated into the game engine by the cinematic team, that’s when the voice actors stepped in and recorded their performances.”
He added that his part in Gustave’s overall character and Cox’s “happened at different stages of the process”, something that “is very common in game production”. Cazorla explained once the physical side of the performance was locked in, Cox then went into the studio to record Gustave’s lines. “I only discovered the final result months later, directly in the game,” Cazorla shared.
“In the end, it’s really the combination of these two performances, along with the incredible writing and development work, that gave birth to the character.”
But, how did Cazorla feel to not receive a nomination for his part in Gustave’s character development? Does he feel awards shows should change how they recognise performances generally?
“When it comes to a potential motion capture category, I think it’s a delicate subject, because every game is built differently,” Cazorla replied. “In this case, Clair Obscur is a game where many of the characters are created through collaboration between two actors. For example, Maelle with Charlotte Hoepffner and Jennifer English, Lune with Estelle Darnault and Kirsty Rider, Verso with Ben Starr and myself. Other games might have a single actor doing full performance capture, and some projects even involve stunt performers, motion capture actors, and voice actors all contributing to the same character.”
As such, Cazorla believes “the fairest way to celebrate performers” is to “celebrate the character” instead.
“That’s something the DICE Awards already do, and I think it’s a very intelligent approach. If you reward Gustave as a character and his impact on players, you acknowledge Charlie Cox for the voice, myself for the performance capture, but also the writers who shaped his personality, the character artists, and everyone who contributed to bringing him to life.”
Closing, Cazorla said: “Video games are, by nature, a collaborative art form, and characters resonate because many artists give them their soul. Celebrating a Best Character category feels more logical to me than isolating a single performer and potentially leaving others invisible.”
Image credit: Sandfall Interactive
If you want to hear more from Cazorla , my full chat with him is going live in the coming days. Here, the actor discusses how he found out about Clair Obscur: Expedition 33, his audition and meeting the team at Sandfall, performing the motion capture for several of the game’s characters, and much, much more. Stay tuned!