Still reserving my opinion on Dollhouse...

[deird_lj]

...but I just had to mention:

That is how one does an authentic Australian accent, people!



(I almost got all excited about a fake Aussie accent being done so well, but then looked her up and realised it's genuine. Drat.)

Comments

[kirby1024.livejournal.com]

It's the vowels. We have a quite different vowel system in Australian English compared to most American English dialects, complete with differing distinctions in words (the arch-typical cot/caught distinction, for example). Wikipedia on our vowels (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_English_phonology), and Wikipedia on California English (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_American_English_regional_phonology#California_English), which most American television shows work with.

Although, to be fair, we do appalling American Accents as well, as I was informed of by an American friend of mine after she'd stopped laughing at my 3-second impersonation. Vowels, my friend. We barely hear them, and they make all the difference!

[deird1]

Although, to be fair, we do appalling American Accents as well

Speak for yourself. :)
I managed to fool several different groups of Americans into thinking I was from the US. (But then, I've got an unusually good ear for accents.)

From Laney

[(Anonymous)]

A couple of Americans who were out here were amazed that every Aussie they met could do a passable US accent, when they couldn't even attempt an Aussie accent. But then we have it easier, given that
- we're exposed to US accents on tv constantly, and
- the general US accent is the most straightforward English accent to fake. Nicely predictable. Whereas a general Aussie accent is much more difficult and irregular.