Helpful, realistic advice from voice actor, Jamie Muffett, on how to get the most bang for your voiceover training buck and keep your expectations in check.
Sirenetta Leoni's insight:
We strongly agree with Jamie that acting is key and you are better off starting with studying the essentials, namely learning how to act, script analysis and taking direction. As he says the other stuff (recording technology, business, marketing, etc.) can be learned later.
Unfortunately, some aspiring voice actors start off by sinking thousands of dollars into top-of-the-line recording equipment, without realizing that if you're unable to interpret copy and deliver the client's message effectively, all the Neumanns in the world won't help you.
Voice actor Bill Farmer, best known as the voice of "Goofy"–just one of the many, many characters he voices–was interviewed at the recent "Armageddon Expo," a sci-fi/comics/games/animation convention held in Australia,
During the interview, Bill demonstrates his talents and impressive range; talks about the voiceover profession and how he develops new character voices; but perhaps more important, offers valuable advice to voice actors who would like to follow in his footsteps...
ABC Online (blog): "He was taught some of the craft by the great Daws Butler...He taught Bill that the silly voices were secondary to the acting. So though Bill can do an amazing array of voices, he thinks it's just as important to understand the character and the scene he's in."
A MUST READ...Excellent interview with internationally renowned voice coach, Patsy Rodenburg. If you've never heard of her, maybe you're familiar with some of the actors she's coached....Judi Dench, Ian McKellen, Ralph Fiennes, Joseph Fiennes, Nicole Kidman, Hugh Jackman, Natalie Portman, Daniel Craig, Orlando Bloom, Joseph Fiennes, and Ewan McGregor. Now do we have your attention?
The Guardian: "The voice encompasses so many things," she says. "Everyone comes on to the planet with a fantastic voice, but people lose it. The voice is about communicating, engaging, how you show yourself, how you speak, how you listen...Unless you connect to the text, the audience won't be able to connect with you..."
This eye-opening article from TalentZoo, which while not specifically written for an audience of voiceover professionals, makes a great and very important point which most definitely applies to voice talent...If your storytelling skills aren't finely honed, and you aren't really engaging, and persuasive to your listeners, your chances of getting the job diminish. Even a great set of pipes and top notch recording equipment can't make up for an uninteresting, detached performance...Time to get reading...
Talent Zoo: "Studies regarding bias and decision-making, initiated by the 2002 Nobel Prize winning psychologist, Daniel Kahneman, find that the “vividness bias” is one of the most persuasive tools in the communication toolkit. Indeed, studies find that “vividness” will sell what analytical tools won’t. And what is vividness? It’s colorful, animated, lively, exuberant information—the stuff found in a good story. Dull stuff may be equally or even more valuable, but it won’t get the hearing of a good story..."
Smart, easy-to-understand advice on what you need to do and what you should avoid doing to keep your voice in top competitive form as you get older.
There are definitely fairly simple things you can do to keep your sound-making apparatus in top shape. The good news is that it DOESN'T require Botox, or other expensive treatments, but like any exercise regimen, it will only work if you commit to doing it regularly.
Ann Utterback, PhD, Online Voice Coaching: "In my last post, I looked at the effects aging has on the voice. Several of my tweeps have expressed concern about how this ..."
An interview with veteran voice and video game actor, Rob Clotworthy. Rob, who's been working steadily as a voice actor since he was 15, shares his insights into the process of preparing for and acting in video games. As far as fan interviews go, it's one of the better ones.
DIALOGUE JUNKIE: "We had the privilege of interviewing Robert Clotworthy, the man behind the voice of Captain Jim Raynor in StarCraft and StarCraft II. He answered questions about his life, career, and state of dialogue in the industry. "
In this 1986 video---very quaint by 2011 standards---Daws Butler gives a 'tour' of the backyard workshop/studio where he taught voiceover classes and produced demos for students. It's hard to reconcile this elderly, soft-spoken gentleman with all the big, boisterous, energetic characters that he voiced for Hanna Barbera, but you can catch glimpses of his genius as he discusses and demonstrates some of his creative teaching methods.
From Bob Souer's Voiceover Boblog: "April 3, 1986 is the date of this video visit with Daws Butler. My thanks to my friend Mike Sommer for posting the link to this ..."
Casting director Bonnie Gillespie and crew interview voiceover agent Jermaine Johnson from AVO Voice Talent in LA. Good info and advice for both professional actors looking to break into voiceover; and professional voice talent looking for LA representation. Valuable insights that could save you time, money and aggravation. BTW He also confirms what most of us have already figured out...Demos on CD's are dead.
Please note that interview with Jermaine starts @7:15. Also make sure to listen, until the very end, b/c additional valuable tips are shared after the "end" of Jermaine's interview.
REALLY IMPORTANT NOTE: This podcast is geared to actors who are living and auditioning in LA, so the basic assumption is that their listeners are trained actors and have some professional acting auditioning experience. If you have no prior acting training or experience, you'll need to look for and get high quality on-camera acting and voiceover training first, before you can even think about approaching an LA agency. Otherwise, don't waste their time and yours.
British voice talent, Lorelei King is one of the best known and most successful audiobook narrators in the UK–she has narrated over two hundred audiobooks, and won multiple awards for narration; performing works by such best-selling authors as Margaret Atwood, Patricia Cornwell, Janet Evanovich, and Lynda LaPlante.
Bottom line: When Lorelei generously offers free advice on how to prepare before a session, and how to act–and not act–during a session, we should ALL pay attention....
Even when you think you know-it-all...you really don't. Not only CAN you learn from others in the voiceover industry; you MUST learn if you want to stay relevant, fresh and keep your skills up to date.
The Actors Voice: "You know the type. The actor friend who knows EVERYTHING. She's seen it all. He's done it all. She's heard it all. He's experienced it all. Absolutely nothing you tell these folks comes as a surprise because apparently there are no surprises in their lives, since they're experts on all things, ever...How sad."
In this excellent 8-minute video from a recent voice acting seminar, veteran voice director, Christine Coyle, the Creative Director from Dick Orkin's famous Radio Ranch, walks two participants step-by-step through the process of looking for clues and cues in the commercial dialog copy that lead them to make more interesting and far funnier choices. You really get a good glimpse into the creative process of this experienced and talented voice director; and how it is that she's been able to consistently draw such great, funny performances out of voice actors for years.
Event sponsor, Danoday.com: "Text analysis is the most vital skill for voice overs. Christine Coyle (Radio Ranch) demonstrates how to get the most..."
Interesting. Most of these tips can be applied to voice acting with a couple of notes/clarifications...
>Pauses ARE extremely important in voice acting, but they should never be forced, or inserted artificially. When you pause, to make a point, after communicating a thought, it shouldn't feel forced or unnatural.*
>While physicalizing is critical to voice acting, what they intend to discourage in this article is flailing about and non-speciifc movement. Any physical movement you make in the booth, should be purposeful and speciifc; when you gesture, it should feel natural and done for a reason.
* True, today is "Talk...like...Shatner. Day"..., but do it on your own time, for fun; not in the studio.
"Actingbiz provides free acting information and resources for actors and actresses of all ages. Includes articles about auditions, agents, managers, casting directors, and more. (RT @castingfrontier: DailyTip: Act with your voice, your eyes, and face. Use your energy to enhance, not detract. http://ow.ly/4evwY)"
Seth Goodin puts into words what many of us have been wondering: "Are the "gatekeepers─the pickers─indeed fading away?"
If so, what are the implications for voice actors?
Those of us who have been around the voiceover industry for more than ten years have already witnessed significant shifts in "gatekeepers," as more and more clients have turned to online data bases (e.g., Voicebank, Voice123) to find talent for their projects; often bypassing traditional voice talent agencies altogether. And with constantly improving, cheaper, and more portable technology, the landscape ten years out may look totally different, yet again...We may have a totally new set of "gatekeepers;" either human, or possibly even digital ones.
At any rate, I think that voice actors would do well to take Seth's advice that you shouldn't just be waiting around for someone to "pick" or "annoint" you to heart, because way too many of us, use this excuse as a justification for doing little or nothing while we wait (present company included). Ultimately there is only one person who is responsible for advancing your career and you don't have to wait around for him or her to pick you. Tag─you're it!
From Seth's Blog: "...It's a cultural instinct to wait to get picked. To seek out the permission and authority that comes from a publisher or talk show host or even a blogger saying, "I pick you." Once you reject that impulse and realize that no one is going to select you--that Prince Charming has chosen another house--then you can actually get to work."
Is there some very well-known industry bigwig that you've long admired, but have no real hope of ever meeting, other than in your wildest fantasies? This post by unknown LA actor, Ben Blair, takes you step-by-step through the process of how he was able to turn his fantasy of getting a meeting with a well-known TV director into reality, by using Twitter (yes, Twitter) in a smart, creative way. Find out how he did it. You may be inspired to try it on your own...and if you do, let us know whether you get any results. (Note: It's a long post, but worth reading IMHO.)
The Actors Voice - POV: Ben Blair Archives: "In December, I had the fortunate opportunity to spend a day shadowing Joe Russo, director and executive producer of NBC's Community. And I got this opportunity because I tweeted that I wanted to meet him. WHAT? Yes, you read that right. Here's how it went down... RT @marciliroff: If u haven't read this yet...u should!"
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