Justina Machado on Finding Her Voice for Netflix’s New Animated Comedy ‘Swapped’

Pictures courtesy of Netflix

Nature’s sworn enemies are teaming up for a wild adventure. Skydance Animation and Netflix’s new family comedy Swapped (formerly Pookoo) has officially landed on the streamer, and it brings with it a massive, star-studded voice cast.

Serving as the second major feature film to come out of the multi-year partnership between Netflix and Skydance Animation (following Spellbound), Swapped is a Freaky Friday-like buddy comedy set deep inside the animal kingdom. Directed by Nathan Greno (Tangled), the film follows a tiny woodland creature (Michael B. Jordan) and a regal bird (Juno Temple) who are forced into each other’s fur and feathers after a body swap mishap.

Rounding out the stacked comedic ensemble—which includes Tracy Morgan, Cedric the Entertainer, and Ambika Mod—is the brilliant Justina Machado, who you may remember from Netflix’s One Day at a Time, All Together Now, or even last year’s Pulse.

We had the chance to catch up with Machado to talk about her foray into the world of voice acting, the challenges of recording over a two-year period, and the beautiful, socially conscious messages at the heart of Swapped.

Here’s what she had to say:

How did you first get into voice acting?

I don’t remember how I got into it. When I lived in Chicago, I did a lot of jingles back in the day, which is a different thing. I think somebody just offered me an animation project, and that’s how I got into it. The difference between that and live action is that you just have to bring all of that performance without the moving, and it’s about trusting the creative team.

What connected with you in the script?

I don’t remember if they let me read the script, because nowadays they don’t let you read stuff, unless I was Michael B. Jordan! What they did let me know was who my character was. That’s what I mean about having trust in the creative team, because sometimes you don’t get to read the script.

So is it all about finding the character when you’re in the booth?

Maybe they gave me a little bit of the script, I can’t remember. Because another thing is we recorded over two years, because they have to work around people’s schedules. I was here [in LA], I was in New York, I was in Chicago. I knew that they wanted some essence that I had, so that makes it easier. They just let me know what it is that they want and you just go with that.

Did you set yourself the challenge of fitting your voice into the character design?

There are certain really talented voice actors that have made their living that way, but I don’t do voices. I’m not Hank Azaria, you know, if you’re gonna hire me, you’re gonna hire me because you like the way I sound. I do love voice acting. When I see something like that, it’s really impressive.

How did director Nathan Greno help you find the character?

His whole vibe is just really welcoming and nurturing. Walking into any kind of session with him was always a pleasure, same for the whole creative team. That really helps, because if you’re nervous and you have somebody who’s like your cheerleader it helps a lot. He’s a big cheerleader, and so it was a lot of fun working with him. I would definitely work with him again.

Swapped is a very socially conscious movie. Is it important to you to take on roles that deal with those wider themes?

I think so. Especially as a person of color, as a Latina, it’s always been important for me to tell the stories with integrity and dignity and switch up the narrative that has been out there. It was a great surprise that this movie was like that. It really was. Since I didn’t really get a lot of the script, I was like, wow, this is quite a beautiful movie, and very touching. The idea of working together, seeing that you’re stronger together, that’s such a big theme in the movie. Taking care of the earth and of each other, everybody working in harmony—it’s really beautiful.

Do you feel like animation is an important medium to get these kinds of messages to younger audiences?

I do think it’s important. I also think that it’s kind of a family thing, you don’t have to be a little kid to enjoy it, to get it, to walk away with something, even though it’s a simple message that we’ve heard all our lives, that not a lot of people live by. It’s nice to be reminded in a way that is magical.

Swapped is streaming globally on Netflix right now. Are you going to be checking out Skydance Animation’s latest feature this weekend? Let us know in the comments down below!