Sumi Shimamoto

Sumi Shimamoto (島本 須美, Shimamoto Sumi, born December 8, 1954 in Kochi) is a freelance Japanese voice actor and narrator. Formerly associated with Seinenza Theater Company, Aoni Production, and Office Osawa. Her married name is Sumi Koshikawa (越川 須美, Koshikawa Sumi). She married Daisuke Koshikawa, a comedian who used to be a junior member in her old theater group, and had a child with him. Her daughter Shiori Koshikawa also works as a voice actor.

Shimamoto was an active girl during her childhood, being generally good at exercising and even practicing rhythmic gymnastics in junior high. But upon reaching high school, she decided to join the drama club simply because there was no club for gymnastics at the time. Much to her surprise, she found herself enjoying both directing and performing especially in theater competitions where the judges praised her efforts. This motivated her to pursue acting as a profession.

To realize her goal, Shimamoto moved to Tokyo and attended Toho Gakuen College of Drama and Music. Although her aim was to join the Haiyuza Theater Company at some point, she settled for Seinenza instead after graduating from college. She soon started appearing in various TV dramas, later making her voice over debut in 1979. Although Shimamoto was more interested in working in musicals than inside a studio, the woman ended up taking on more voice acting roles which boosted her fame.

1986 saw Shimamoto begin a singing career with the release of her first single Premonition which served as an insert song for the anime show Maison Ikkoku. She was ranked high in Animage's ranking for female voice actors, placing first in their 7th, 10th, and 11th annual issues. At the 11th Seiyu Awards, she won the Kazue Takahashi Award. She also works as a full-time lecturer for people interested in becoming voice actors themselves, having offered courses in training schools owned by Pro-Fit and S&S Entertainment Studio.

When she was still at her prime, Shimamoto mainly covered heroine roles, especially in titles produced by Hayao Miyazaki. In her later years, she helped popularize the motherly archetype in anime that would soon be perfected by other voice actors such as Kikuko Inoue and Sayaka Ōhara. Some of the roles she has done include Shokupanman in the Anpanman series, Miss Clavel in Madeline: Lost in Paris, and Ishizu Ishtar in ''Yu-Gi-Oh! Duel Monsters''.

Works

 * Xiaoqiao - Romance of the Three Kingdoms drama CDs
 * Xun Yu - Kessen II
 * Flora - BERSERK and the Band of the Hawk
 * Narrator - Dissidia Final Fantasy NT