The ability to mimic accents

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#1 Post by **Shoyru_Lover** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 11:51 am

Especially for those who act, the ability to mimic accents is very important. I actually think some languages or accents make it easier to mimic other accents.

Are you able to mimic any pretty well? Which ones?

Rachel · #2 Post by **Rachel** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 1:11 pm

i'm hopeless at mimicing accents - i can do one or two words of some accents, but even then its not very good

and before you even try and claim it kym, your english accent is shocking!

btjaus · #3 Post by **btjaus** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 1:36 pm

I can do some... such as the American. That one can be quite convincing, but only if I settle into it. My English one is ok... but there are so many different variations of the English accent.

The best actor, in terms of variable accents, is Hugh Laurie. I.E. Dr House.

#4 Post by **shapu** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 1:48 pm

Russian
German (thick, "just off the boat")
German (thin, like he's been in the US/England for a while)
Several southern US dialects
Indian
Scot, but not great
Irish

And I'm working on my Creole American accent to irritate a friend from Louisiana, and a french accent for the heck of it.

Oddly enough, my English (the country, not the language) accents all mottle together. It's very irritating - one minute it's bad cockney, the next it's bad Liverpudlian, and I'll add a smidgen of craptacular royal pronunciations to top it off.

werepup · #5 Post by **werepup** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 1:56 pm

I'm pretty good at mimicing other Scots accents...
Other than that, I can do a couple English accents and Irish accents.

I learned phonetics at college... look into that if you want to learn accents.

Uncle Xyzzy · #6 Post by **Uncle Xyzzy** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 2:22 pm

btjaus wrote:I can do some... such as the American. That one can be quite convincing, but only if I settle into it. My English one is ok... but there are so many different variations of the English accent.

The best actor, in terms of variable accents, is Hugh Laurie. I.E. Dr House.

I must disagree- Robin Williams is the best. Ever.

I can sort of do English ccents, and Australian, too, but who can't?

I'm pretty good with a lot of European accents.

Pixa · #7 Post by **Pixa** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 2:24 pm

I don't really make an effort, but I have a pretty good French accent. I was in History once, and after coming out of the lesson, a random History teacher approached me to tell me I had a wonderful French accent, and wondered if I was from France. It was odd. I am however an 1/8th French and an 1/8th Italian, so I suppose that helps. I've never tried speaking Italian past poor imitations and stereotypes, however.

Dragonfire · #8 Post by **Dragonfire** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 2:25 pm

I can do some accents, but I can't talk forever using them (English, Australian, etc.), and I can sorta have a French accent, but it's not very good.

Although, my Texan accent is pretty good, for obvious reasons.

Nessa · #9 Post by **Nessa** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 5:29 pm

I can't do accents at all

My cousin can but he slips out of them really easy, he kept switching from a American to Indian accent when he tried to prank call me once. XD

Dragonfire wrote:I can do some accents, but I can't talk forever using them (English, Australian, etc.), and I can sorta have a French accent, but it's not very good.

Although, my Texan accent is pretty good, for obvious reasons.

I've been told I have a tiny Texan accent, nothing too big but it slips out when I say certain words and phrases.

jellyoflight · #10 Post by **jellyoflight** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 5:40 pm

I'm a bit rubbish at accents, although my French accent is quite good when I want it to be.

+ I can do an Indian accent rather well.

Very jealous of all those people who can just pick it up straight away! D:

Twinkle · #11 Post by **Twinkle** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 5:51 pm

I can mimic accents fairly well. However, every accent I do ends up with a slight Brummie twang. And if you've ever heard a Brummie Californian.... well, I'll leave that to the imagination.

Skynetmain · #12 Post by **Skynetmain** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 6:08 pm

I try not to mimic accents since I feel it is insulting to the people I am imitating... but when I do, I have fun with it.

The most common accents I do are: generic British (about 3-4 different styles based on various actors), generic Scottish, and generic Irish. By 'generic,' I mean that I don't know if they are spoken in a specific area, but I heard them on TV or in a movie and the voice stuck. I started doing the generic Irish last quarter since my Mechanics teacher is from Dublin, and I fell in love with his accent. I am constantly telling myself not to talk like him, but I slip into the accent when talking about the class.

I also do various places from around the US and a very bad Australian accent. I have a pretty good Valley Girl voice too. (Yes, I know I am a guy!) I also try non-English speaking accents, but I rarely use them since they always come out sounding too stereotypical.

Anoohilator · #13 Post by **Anoohilator** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 6:21 pm

I can do the usual accents, but was surprised to hear so many of you could do the indian accent - everyone that I know IRL is quite atrocious at it

Xandra · #14 Post by **Xandra** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 6:35 pm

English (a few of them- not just generic), Australian, Spanish...

None very well, mind you.

Anoohilator wrote:I can do the usual accents, but was surprised to hear so many of you could do the indian accent - everyone that I know IRL is quite atrocious at it

Oh god, I'm AWFUL at imitating Indian accents- but everyone I know IRL is fantastic at it.

#15 Post by **shapu** » Tue Feb 20, 2007 6:41 pm

It's actually very easy to do an Indian English accent. Here are the rules:
- It's lyrical, just like Irish. There's a regular pattern of up and down stresses (think iambs).
- The letter V, when the first letter in a word, becomes a wvv sound ("I got wvery wet in the river"). Milder accents do not contain this trait, so Vs stay Vs.
- It's got a bit of a hollow quality to it. You'll know it when you hear it.
- Rs have a slight roll, but not beyond just tapping your tongue the floor of your mouth.

Just listen to a native Indian speak English and listen for those traits. You'll pick it up quickly.