Sarah Natochenny

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Sarah Natochenny
Natochenny at GalaxyCon Richmond in 2023
Born (1987-09-20) September 20, 1987 (age 36)
Occupations
  • Voice actress
  • film editor
Years active2004–present
Websitesarahnatochenny.com

Sarah Natochenny (/ˈnætəˌɛni, ˈnæt-/, born September 20, 1987) is an American voice actress and film editor. She is best known for voicing Ash Ketchum and various other characters in the English dub of Pokémon, as well as Alicia in the 2006 video game Bullet Witch in addition she voiced Crong in the English dub of Pororo's Dinosaur Island Adventure 2017. She has also edited documentaries for networks such as MSNBC and worked as an assistant editor on the films Life of Crime, Cold Comes the Night, Worst Friends and Cruise.

Early life[edit]

Natochenny was born in the Forest Hills neighborhood of New York City's Queens borough.[1][2] When she was 12, she participated in the Junior Olympics, where she won a bronze medal in rhythmic gymnastics.[3] She graduated from Brooklyn Technical High School in 2005. She went on to study at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute's Young Actors Program, as well as the Upright Citizens Brigade and Magnet Theatre in New York City.[1][3]

Career[edit]

At the age of 18, Natochenny replaced Veronica Taylor as the voice of Ash Ketchum on the English-language dub of Pokémon, starting with the show's ninth season in 2006.[1][2][4] She likened getting the role to "being struck by Pikachu’s Thunderbolt", stating: "Booking the job was the most exciting moment of my life."[2] Natochenny also voices various other characters on the show.[5][4] However, Natochenny acknowledged that she faced fan backlash for replacing Taylor as Ash Ketchum and had long struggled with depression, saying: "one that wasn’t circumstantial but was kicked off by the reaction I got when I first started. You're doing what you love and you finally book your first huge role on a show that you loved as a child and people are like ‘You're terrible.’ That's really painful to experience."[4] Natochenny voiced Alicia in the 2006 video game Bullet Witch.[6]

In 2009, Natochenny appeared in videos on the comedy website CollegeHumor.[7][8]

In 2019, Natochenny won the Outstanding Animation or Gaming - Demo, Best Voiceover award from the Society of Voice Arts and Sciences.[9]

In 2020, Natochenny co-starred in the live action pilot "I Adore Dolores," which was one of No Budge's top picks of the year.[10] She also appeared in three videos for Vanity Fair, talking about the dubbing process and improvising as never-before-seen characters.[11][12][13]

Natochenny has appeared on multiple episodes of The George Lucas Talk Show, including The George Lucas Talk Show All Day Star Wars Movie Watch Along, May the AR Be LIKE$$ You, and The George Lucas Holiday Special.[citation needed]

Natochenny is also a film editor, having worked as the primary editor on documentaries for networks such as MSNBC and an assistant editor on the films Life of Crime, Cold Comes the Night, Worst Friends and Cruise.[14]

Personal life[edit]

Natochenny splits her time between Los Angeles and New York City.[3] She has been open about her struggles with depression.[15] Natochenny is of Russian descent and speaks fluent Russian in addition to English.[16][4]

Inspired by a Pokémon episode that dealt with death, Natochenny and fellow voice actress Lisa Ortiz co-founded Voices for Fosters, a charity dedicated to helping rescued animals find permanent homes and advising people on how to foster them.[3] Their website states, "Our goal is to bring the joy of pet companionship to people who didn't think they had the time, end euthanasia and improve care standards for all animals".[14]

Natochenny named her cat Pikachu.[17]

Filmography[edit]

Anime[edit]

Year Title Role Notes Ref(s)
2006–2023 Pokémon Ash Ketchum, Delia Ketchum, Various other characters and Pokémon Season 9–25 [1][2][12]
2015–2017 Yu-Gi-Oh! Arc-V Aura Sentia [3]
2023 Tokyo Revengers Yuzuha Shiba Season 2 [18]

Animation[edit]

Year Title Role Notes Ref(s)
2014 Robin Hood: Mischief in Sherwood Marian [6]
2014 Super 4 Twinkle English dub [19]
2015 Yoko Vic [20]
2016 World of Winx Venomiya, Silke Netflix series [3][21]
2018 Peter Pan: The Quest for the Never Book Tinker Bell English dub [3]
2018 The Jungle Book Mowgli Series 3 [3]
2018 Camp Camp Vera 2 episodes [22]
2019 44 Cats Lampo
Igor
Baby Pie
English [23]

Film[edit]

Year Title Role Notes Ref(s)
2006 Pokémon: The Mastermind of Mirage Pokémon Ash Ketchum DVD redub version
2007 Pokémon Ranger and the Temple of the Sea Ash Ketchum and Clamperl
2008 Pokémon: The Rise of Darkrai Ash Ketchum, Ash's Staravia and Dawn's Buneary
2008 Turn Left at Pennsylvania Avenue Skecht Performer
2009 Pokémon: Giratina and the Sky Warrior Ash Ketchum, Ogin, Ash's Staravia and Dawn's Buneary
2009 Pokémon: Arceus and the Jewel of Life Ash Ketchum, Ash's Staraptor and Dawn's Buneary
2011 Pokémon: Zoroark: Master of Illusions Ash Ketchum
2011 Pokémon the Movie: Black—Victini and Reshiram Ash Ketchum
2011 Pokémon the Movie: White—Victini and Zekrom Ash Ketchum
2012 Pokémon the Movie: Kyurem vs. the Sword of Justice Ash Ketchum
2013 Axel: The Biggest Little Hero Young Boca [3]
2013 Pokémon the Movie: Genesect and the Legend Awakened Ash Ketchum
2014 Pokémon the Movie: Diancie and the Cocoon of Destruction Ash Ketchum
2015 Pokémon the Movie: Hoopa and the Clash of Ages Ash Ketchum
2016 Pokémon the Movie: Volcanion and the Mechanical Marvel Ash Ketchum
2016 Sheep and Wolves Xavi [6]
2017 Pokémon the Movie: I Choose You! Ash Ketchum, Delia Ketchum [24]
2017 Pororo's Dinosaur Island Adventure Crong, Hamster, Tricolor (voice) [25]
2018 Pokémon the Movie: The Power of Us Ash Ketchum, Toren's Chansey
2019 Pokémon: Mewtwo Strikes Back—Evolution Ash Ketchum
2021 Pokémon the Movie: Secrets of the Jungle Ash Ketchum and Delia Ketchum
2021 Ghostbusters: Afterlife Mini-Puft
2021 Girls und Panzer das Finale: Part 1 Klara [26]
2021 Seal Team Shark
2023 Mavka: The Forest Song Kylina English dub [27]

Video games[edit]

Year Title Role Notes Ref(s)
2006 Bullet Witch Alicia [6][28]
2009 PokéPark Wii: Pikachu's Adventure Celebi, Starly, Staravia, Staraptor, Mismagius, Buneary, Lopunny, Roselia, Roserade [3]
2009 PokéPark 2: Wonders Beyond Starly, Staravia, Misdreavus, Buneary, Lopunny, Roselia
2013 Gangstar Vegas Roni Q [3]
2013 Grand Theft Auto V The Local Population [3]
2013 Thor: The Dark World Sif iOS [6]
2014 Asphalt Overdrive Getaway Girl [6]
2018 Super Smash Bros. Ultimate Chansey
2018 White Day Han So-young [29]
2022 Pokémon Masters Ash Ketchum

Television[edit]

List of acting performances in television
Year Title Role Notes Ref(s)
2024 Game Changer Herself Episode: "Pencils Down" [30]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d "At BoroughCon, FoHi's voice on 'Pokemon'". qchron.com. June 2017. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  2. ^ a b c d Haque, Fahima (July 15, 2016). "'I'm a sensitive type of Pokémon': meet the voice behind Ash Ketchum". The Guardian. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "About". sarahnatochennyhome. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d "FEATURE: Ash Ketchum English VA Sarah Natochenny's Journey of Finding Herself in Pokémon". Crunchyroll. March 24, 2023. Retrieved March 16, 2024.
  5. ^ Hoffer, Christian (April 22, 2017). "Ash Ketchum Has a Special Earth Day Message Courtesy of His Original Voice Actor". Pokemon on WWG. Archived from the original on March 23, 2018. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  6. ^ a b c d e f "Sarah Natochenny (visual voices guide)". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  7. ^ "Ice Age in 4D". CollegeHumor. July 13, 2009. Archived from the original on September 25, 2011. Retrieved July 18, 2009.
  8. ^ "Bleep Bloop: Voice of Ash Ketchum". CollegeHumor. Archived from the original on August 14, 2011. Retrieved July 18, 2009.
  9. ^ "2019 Winners". Sovas. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  10. ^ "I Adore Dolores". NoBudge.
  11. ^ "Sarah Natochenny (Ash from Pokémon) Improvises 10 New Cartoon Voices". Vanity Fair. February 28, 2020. Archived from the original on December 19, 2021. Retrieved May 23, 2021 – via YouTube.
  12. ^ a b "How Pokémon Is Dubbed From Japanese To English". Vanity Fair. March 16, 2020. Archived from the original on December 19, 2021. Retrieved May 23, 2021 – via YouTube.
  13. ^ "Voice Actor (Ash from Pokémon) Breaks Down Voice Dubbing in 9 Steps". Vanity Fair. October 30, 2020. Archived from the original on December 19, 2021. Retrieved May 23, 2021 – via YouTube.
  14. ^ a b "About Us". voicesforfosters. Retrieved January 28, 2021.
  15. ^ Natochenny, Sarah [@sarah_natochenny] (September 20, 2019). "Sarah Anne on Instagram: "Portrait of a woman getting better with age. Hot tips: don't drink alcohol, do sleep eight hours, do wear sunscreen daily and hats during…"" – via Instagram.
  16. ^ Kaplan, Avery (April 28, 2020). "Interview: Sarah Natochenny on recording Marvel's Black Widow: Bad Blood". The Beat. Retrieved May 23, 2021. Amanda actually cast me based on knowing me, she's like, "I think you're this person." And also, I'm Russian-American, so that helped. And I speak Russian, so.
  17. ^ Gularte, Alejandra (December 22, 2022). "Voice Actress Sarah Natochenny Understands the Importance of Ash Ketchum". Vulture. Retrieved November 6, 2023.
  18. ^ Ash Ketchum's English Actor Sarah Natochenny Joins Tokyo Revengers Cast
  19. ^ Kids First (December 7, 2017). "Super 4: Welcome to Kingsland – So Many Adventures! Something for Everyone". Huffington Post. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  20. ^ "Yoko". Behind The Voice Actors. Retrieved December 2, 2020.
  21. ^ Otakon 2016 guests
  22. ^ "- YouTube". YouTube.
  23. ^ "44 Cats". Netflix. Retrieved November 5, 2020.
  24. ^ Bennett, John J. "Not All Heroes Wear Frowns". North Coast Journal. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  25. ^ "- YouTube". YouTube.
  26. ^ Mateo, Alex (September 16, 2021). "Sentai Filmworks Reveals English Dub Cast for 1st Girls und Panzer das Finale Anime Film". Anime News Network. Archived from the original on January 7, 2022. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
  27. ^ "Mavka: The Forest Song". Raising Childre Network. Retrieved July 5, 2023.
  28. ^ "Bullet Witch localization". CrystalAcids.com. March 4, 2007. Retrieved November 17, 2010.
  29. ^ "White Day: A Labyrinth Named School (Game) - Giant Bomb". Giant Bomb. Retrieved March 23, 2018.
  30. ^ "Pencils Down". Dropout. March 25, 2024. Retrieved March 26, 2024.

External links[edit]