“A Day in the Life” with Vancouver Actor Victor Hunter

July 19, 2023 Demian Vernieri Arts, Performing Arts

Victor Hunter is a Métis actor based in East Van with a love of old video games, weird theatre, and especially the place where those two meet. He has performed on stages across Western Canada, performed on a digital stage inside a video game, voiced the main character in a wildly successful Nintendo game, and his favourite thing in the world is the moon. If he’s not napping serenely in his chair with his beloved cat Nongman on his lap he’s writing a podcast episode about liminality or the unexplored joys of the forgotten genre of videogame known as the Sound Novel or explaining why the Y2K vibes in Sonic Adventure are immaculate.

His passion for voice-acting means he’s always coming up with projects to make use of his home studio and he dreams of contributing his voice-over talents not to major studios and massive-budget projects (not that he’d say no), but to dubbing historically important anime and video games for the sake of preservation.

Victor is an award-winning actor, an award-deserving podcaster, and a loving human being who believes strongly in land stewardship, climate justice, and the dismantling of the capitalist machine. He loves his cat so much.

-Written by Maddi Bisset, Partner

Victor Hunter
This is the guy that usually makes sure I get up on time. He acts like a dog but we’ve checked and we’re 87% sure he’s a cat.
Victor Hunter
Oh, I didn’t see you there! You’ve caught me lounging on my deck while I read the foundational Game Studies text Hamlet on the Holodeck by Janet H Murray (1997); an exploration of the narrative potential in cyberspace and the capacity for video games and hypertext to tell unique and compelling non-linear stories. How embarrassing for me!
After I’ve read a book that makes me an interesting person I like to walk through the neighbourhood and pick up fresh bread at the local bakery and appreciate just how stunning this city can be at every time of year. You’ll notice that this photo was obviously not taken the same day as the one before it. Non-linear storytelling in digital space. Janet H. Murray would be proud.
I’ve been slowly Ship of Theseus-ing my workstation over the years into something a little more deluxe but here’s where I write, edit, and produce my podcast as well as record voice-over auditions. I have a sound treatment rig that I hang around the desk for recording professional studio-quality sound from home. If I’m lucky the cat will hang out in his tower and look at me lovingly.
And sometimes I get to spend my summer here at Theatre Under the Stars. Come see me and the rest of our incredible cast in Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical!
Of course, when the show is done for the night and I get to relax in my cosy East Van apartment I’m usually pulling a video game off the shelf and playing it on any of these consoles spanning 40 years of interactive narrative history, including a rare Japanese Sega Saturn manufactured by RCA with “Victor” branding all over it.
Victor Hunter
And speaking of video games and digital space and narrative and improvisation and just about everything else I’ve talked about so far; most evenings I can be found with my friends in our favourite online game, Final Fantasy XIV, where we always make sure to take a group photo after a particularly strenuous adventure.
Victor Hunter
And then it’s time to snuggle my weird dog again.

***

Which ‘hood are you in?

I’m just off Commercial Drive with my beautiful and incredibly talented girlfriend. It’s the perfect neighbourhood for us; bikeable to anywhere we need to go for work, and walkable for all our daily needs.

What do you do?

I’m an actor with a focus on theatre and voice-over. I also spend most of my free time reading about, writing about, and waxing poetic about video games, digital spaces, and their intersection with theatre and improvisation.

What are you currently working on?

It’s the kind of Summer a theatre actor dreams of with back-to-back shows; Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical with Theatre Under the Stars and then straight into Little Shop of Horrors with the Arts Club Theatre Company. On top of that, I’m producing my podcast Sharlayan Dropouts – a deep dive into the Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Game, Final Fantasy XIV.

Where can we find your work?

This Summer you can see me in Roald Dahl’s Matilda The Musical at the Malkin Bowl from July 8th to August 26th and this Fall in Little Shop of Horrors at The Stanley from September 7th – October 8th. I recently narrated the Season of the Hunter story arc in the app Zombies, Run! Also, my podcast Sharlayan Dropouts can be found on your podcast service of choice or on Patreon. Voice-over demos and contact details are available on my website.

 

 

About Demian Vernieri 524 Articles
Demian is an Argentinian retired musician, avid gamer and editor for the Montréal Guardian, Toronto Guardian, Calgary Guardian and Vancouver Guardian websites.
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