It is even possible to "imitate" the voice of a fictional character without AI?
People say that this is more ethical than using AI. If this is really possible it may be hard to do?
The voice of a fictional character is the voice actor.
Yes, voice actors can be imitated without AI, like Rick & Morty recently did when they replaced the VA of the main characters with two different VAs. A lot of people didn't even notice it.
Bugs bunny has had 32 voice actors after mel blank no Ai required.
Erm… fictional characters get voiced by voice actors who get paid for the work they do, and using AI to recreate their own unique voice that they themselves created would steal their job.
I believe this is called an "impression".
It's almost like OP had learned about AI impressions before hearing that impressions have been a thing for far longer than we've had AI to imitate voices. No judgement here, just fascinating.
what does pressing objects into clay to capture their shape have to do with OP's question?
You've never heard of people doing impressions before?
I didn't know that this is somewhat common...
So it is not hard to imitate a voice?
Most people aren't very good at it, but there are plenty of people who practice and get quite good at doing it.
Most people, at least with a little practice, can imitate SOMEONE. But voice actors tend to be pretty skilled and make it look easier than it is.
We were performing arts geeks, but my group in high school sat around doing king of the hill imitations one month. Whoever did the best "Dangit Bobby!" didn't have to buy coffee. It's something anyone can learn, but it takes work to get good at.
It's possible and pretty common in the Voice Acting industry. Many characters have outlived their VAs such as Mickey Mouse, Bugs Bunny, Winnie the Pooh, Kermit the Frog, etc.
Subsequent VAs do impressions of the original voice. Largely these impressions are exceedingly close to the original voice and people hardly notice the change