Q&A Session with Actor Carlos Alazraqui, Voice of El Chupacabra ~ #DisneyPlanesEvent

While I attended an expense paid trip by Disney to the Monsters University Premiere and other events, all opinions are 100% my own.

In case you didn’t know (but I’m sure you do!), Disney’s PLANES debuted in theaters nationwide this weekend! While I was luckily enough to catch a screening while I visited California for the Monsters University Premiere , I decided to take my son for a viewing back on Friday. Be sure to check out my review! Today, we have another addition to my #DisneyPlanesEvent adventure. If you are a regular reader of my blog, I’m sure by now you’ve seen my Animation Session, my Drawing Demonstration, my time in the recording studio as a Voice Actress, my Q&A with director Klay Hall and producer Traci Balthazor-Flynn, and conference call with actress Teri Hatcher.

While visiting the Disney Toon Studios, we had the chance to meet and chat with actor Carlos Alazraque! He voices my favorite plane in the film, El Chupacabra. However, when I walked into the room, I immediately recognized him as Deputy James Garcia, from Reno 911! the television series and movie franchise. Once we started chatting, I soon realized there are many other projects that he is well known for!

About Carlos

Carlos has worked as a stand-up comedian for more than 25 years and one of LA’s top voiceover actors for over 18 years! He most commonly known as the voices for Rocko and Spunky on Rocko’s Modern Life. You can catch him voicing characters on shoes such as Family Guy, Camp Lazlo, and Justice League Doom. More recently he has voiced characters such as Nestor, the Latin Penguin in Happy Feet and Happy Feet 2, Bajrangi the Monkey in Dehli Safari, and King Magnus in Disney’s Sophia the First. You will also be able to catch him as Sigmund in the new Beverly Hills Chihuahua pilot. Of course I can’t forget that he was also the voice of Gidget, the Taco Bell Chihuahua!

Back in 2008, Carlos and his Reno 911! costar Cedric Yarbrough hit the college circuit performing. They are actually now one of the most requested acts in the country! He produced his own web series cartoon on Mondomedia.com called “Off the Curb,” which played live to a sold-out crowd in the Youtube Lounge at the San Diego Comic Con. Carlos also successfully produced the first-ever live Rocko’s Modern Life event at LA’s Downtown Independent Theatre, along with creator Joe Murray. The show sold out in one week! How awesome is that?

I Swish My Cape At You!

While chatting with Carlos it was so much fun to hear him break out into different voices and dialect. While he was hired for PLANES for his Spanish dialect, I have to say, he can do a pretty mean Austrailian accent! Since Carlos is multilingual, he acknowledges that as a voice actor, it’s a pretty helpful tool to have up his sleave! He’s been able to learn and study different dialects by just listening and learning to manipulate his own voice. He watches lips and takes visual cues to create the various sounds with his mouth. He compared it to a “wind instrument.” Must be a pretty cool talent to have!

When asked about his favorite part of PLANES, he chimed in that it was definitely the first table read of the script. He wasn’t sure yet if he would actual be in the movie, but just voicing the El Chupacabra at that moment for the casting director was an amazing experience. When he later learned that Disney wanted him in the film to voice El Chup, he couldn’t have been happier. Since Carlos has a 2 year old daughter, he was quite happy to be part of the “Disney Family”.

As I mentioned in my PLANES review, one of my favorite aspects about El Chup is that he really does care about his competitors. He forms an instant (and hilarious) friendship with Dusty right away. El Chupacabra sees the other planes as his comrades. You see this trait displayed throughout the film.

While yes, he does see the planes as his comrades, but he does have his competitive moments! Check out this hilarious clip of Carlo’s El Chupacabra as he “shames” his competitor Bulldog:

Be sure to follow the hashtag #DisneyPlanesEvent to learn more about all the fun my fellow bloggers and I had while out in California learning more about this film. Don’t forget to connect with PLANES on Facebook and Twitter! In all the excitement of the release, be sure to also follow the #DisneyPlanes hashtag for the latest information and news on the film.

Don’t forget to check out my PLANES Fruit Snack and the teaser trailer too!