The Art of Voice Acting: the art and business of performing for voice over (56 page)
Read The Art of Voice Acting: the art and business of performing for voice over Online
Authors: James Alburger
Most of the time, after leaving a live audition, you will simply wait for a call. If you do not hear anything within 72 hours, you can safely assume that you did not get the job. As a general rule, agents call only if you get the booking or are requested for a callback.
While you are waiting for that call, don’t allow yourself to become worried about whether or not you will get the job. Write your follow-up letter and continue doing what you usually do. Remember that voice acting is a numbers game, and that if you don’t get this job, there is another opportunity coming just down the road.
At the end of the day, the audition staff takes all the auditions and returns to their office. There, they listen to the recordings and narrow down the candidates. They may choose the voice they want right away, or they may ask for a second audition—called a
callback
—to further narrow the candidates. The audition producer will contact the appropriate talent agents to book talent for a session or callback, or may call independent performers directly. Voiceover audition callbacks are fairly rare, but when they occur, they are usually for a major regional or national account.
If you are scheduled for a callback, you may find there is less pressure, the attitude of the people involved may have changed, and the script may be different. At a callback, the producer may say that they really liked what you did on take 3 of the first audition. Chances are, unless they have a recording of that audition to play for you, or unless you have an exceptionally good memory, you will not remember what you did on take 3, or any of the takes for that matter. When this happens, all you can do is go for your best interpretation of the copy (which probably changed since the original audition), and use any direction from the producer to guide you.
The simple fact that you are called back for a second audition shows that there is something about your performance that the producer likes. Try to find out what it was that got you the callback. Do whatever you can to stay on the producer’s good side and make friends. If for some reason you do not get this job, the producer may remember you next week or next month when another voiceover performer is needed for another project.
After the callback, the audition staff once again takes their collection of auditions (much smaller this time), and returns to their office. This cycle may be repeated several times until the producer or client is satisfied that the right voice is chosen.
When you left the audition, you probably came up with dozens of things you could have done differently or “better.” You might even feel like going to your car, winding up the windows, and screaming real loud. Second-guessing yourself is self-defeating and counterproductive. Instead of beating yourself up with negatives, do something positive and be good to yourself. You’ve done a good job! You have survived your audition. Now you deserve a treat. Take yourself out to lunch, buy that hot new DVD you’ve been wanting, or simply do something nice for yourself. It doesn’t really matter what you do—just do something special. Then let it go.
Not all auditions are held for the purpose of casting a final project. In some cases, you will be auditioning for a demo. This type of
demo
is a spec spot that is produced by an ad agency as a potential commercial to sell an idea to their client. Often, the entire concept of an advertising campaign is changed between the demo and the time the final spot is produced.
You may be told that the audition is for a demo at audition, or at some time later. Either way, the recording from your audition normally will not be the recording used for the demo spot. If it is to be used for the demo, you will be compensated for your time at the audition.
AFTRA has a separate rate for demo sessions, which is different from their commercial scale. Demos are usually paid for on a one-time-only fee basis. However, a demo can be upgraded to a commercial if the client decides to use it. In this case, if you are a union member, your fee would also be upgraded to the commercial rate. Independent voice actors need to negotiate their own fee for a demo, or let their agent handle it.
As you begin to work voiceover auditions and sessions you will find there are certain things you will want to always have with you. Here are some common items for a voiceover “survival kit.” Feel free to add more.
- Water
- Pencil
- White-out pen
- Small photos
- A small travel pack of tissue
- Throat lozenges
- Dry mouth spray
- Chap stick or lip balm
- A green apple or dry mouth spray
- A wine bottle cork
- Business cards
- Demo CD
- Blank invoice or agreement
- Other items you’ll think of later
You’re Hired! The Session
Congratulations, you’ve got the job! Your audition was the first step— and on average, you’ll have submitted about 40 Œ 60 auditions for every job you land. The client likes your audition better than anyone else’s. You already know the details about the project, they’ve agreed to hire you at a fee you or your agent has negotiated, and you have a signed booking agreement.
Now, you need to know the details of the session: When does the session start (your
call time)
? Where will the session be recorded, or are you expected to provide the recordings from your own equipment? If you’re going to be recording in your home studio, you may or may not get direction from your client. For the purpose of this chapter, your session will be at a local recording studio in your city. Either way, the process will be basically the same. It’s just that if you’re recording voice tracks in your own studio, you’ll be wearing many hats.
The recording session is where your voice is recorded and all the pieces of the puzzle are put together to create a final commercial or soundtrack. Besides your voice, the project may include music, sound effects, other voices, recordings of interviews, or other
sound bites
, and digitally processed audio. It is the job of the recording engineer to assemble these various puzzle pieces to form the picture originally created in the mind of the producer or writer. It can be a challenging and time-consuming process.
If you are recording from your personal home studio, you are your own engineer, producer, and director. You may have your client on the phone or on a
phone patch
connection to your audio mixer, but you are ultimately in
control of both the recording process and your performance. Doing both can be a challenge, and although the purpose of this book is not about audio production, it is important that you at least have a basic idea of what’s happening on the other side of the glass.
Much of the creative process involves a lot of technology and a high level of creativity from the engineer. As a voiceover performer, only a small portion of the recording process involves you. To give you a better idea of how your performance fits within the whole process, the rest of this chapter will be devoted to walking you through a typical production.
It all begins with an idea! That idea is put into words on a script, which may go through many revisions and changes. At some point during the script’s development, thoughts turn to casting the roles in the script. In some cases, a role may be written with a specific performer in mind, but this is usually the exception to the rule. To cast the various roles, the producers listen to demos and hold auditions. The audition process (
Chapter 24
) narrows the playing field to select the most appropriate voice talent for the project at hand. If your voice is right for the part, and your demo or audition was heard by the right person, you could be hired for a role.
Be absolutely certain you arrive
before
your scheduled session time. It is much better to be early and have to wait a few minutes than for you to be late and hold up the session. Recording studios book by the hour, and they are not cheap. Basic voiceover session time can be in the range of $100 an hour or more, depending on the studio. Some Hollywood and New York studios book out for $300 to $500 per hour. You do not want to be the person responsible for costing the client more money than necessary.
Time is also of the essence when you are in the studio. Things can happen very fast once you are on-mic and recording begins. You need to be able to deliver your best performance within a few takes. If the producer or director gives you instructions, you need to understand them quickly and adapt your delivery as needed.
If you are working a dialogue script with a performer you have never met before, you both need to be able to give a performance that creates the illusion that your separate characters are spontaneous and natural. This is where your character analysis and acting skills really come into play.
Studio time is a valuable commodity. The producer will want your best performance as quickly as possible. In reality, it may take a while to get it. A voiceover session for a :60 radio commercial can take as little as 5 minutes to as much as an hour or longer. A long session for a seemingly simple spot can be the result of one or more of the following factors:
- There may be several voices speaking (dialogue or multiple-voice copy), and it may take some time to get the characters right.
- Microphone placement may need to be adjusted or the mic may need to be changed.
- The copy may require major changes or rewrites during the session.
- A session being done to a video playback may require numerous takes to get the timing right.
- There may be technical problems with the equipment.
- The voice tracks may need to be inserted into a rough spot for client approval before the performers can be released.
- The session may be a
phone patch
and the client may request changes that need to be relayed through the producer or engineer. - Your client may not know what he or she really wants.
- There may be several would-be directors trying to offer their ideas, creating unnecessary delays.
- The voiceover performer may lack experience, and may not be able to give the producer the desired reading without extensive directing.
- An earlier session may have run overtime, causing all subsequent sessions to start late.
Regardless of how long you are in the studio, you are an employee of the ad agency, producer, or client. Present yourself professionally and remain calm. Above all, do your best to enjoy the experience. Keep breathing, stay relaxed, and keep a positive attitude.
A voice-actor friend of mine once described a producer/director as “headphones with an attitude.” Regardless of the producer’s attitude, you need to be able to perform effectively. You must be able to adapt your character and delivery to give the producer what he or she asks for. And you need to be able to do this quickly with an attitude of cooperation.
It is common for a producer, after doing many takes, to decide to go back to the kind of read you did at the beginning. You need to be able to do it! It is also common for a producer to focus on getting exactly the right inflection for a single word in the copy. You might do 15 or 20 takes on just one sentence or a single word, and then a producer will change his mind and you will have to start all over.
Every producer has a unique technique for directing talent. You must not let a producer frustrate you. Occasionally, you will work for a producer
or writer who is incredibly demanding, or simply does not know what he or she wants. When working for this type of person, just do your best and when you are done, leave quietly and politely. When you are alone in your car, with the windows rolled up, you can scream as loud as you like.
There are some producers who operate on a principle of never accepting anything the first time—no matter how good it might be. Your first take might be wonderful—you hit all the key words, get just the right inflection, and nail the attitude. Yet, the producer may have you do another 10 takes, looking for something better, all the while drifting off target. When all is said and done, that first good take may be the one that’s used.
Some sessions may be crowded with many people deeply involved with the project you are working on. Of course, the studio engineer will be present, and there will usually be someone who is the obvious producer/ director. But the client or storeowner may also be there, as well as his wife, their best friend, the agency rep from their ad agency, the person who wrote the copy, and maybe even an account executive from a radio or TV station. All these people have an opinion about what you are doing, and may want to offer suggestions about what you can do to improve your performance. It’s a nice thought, but too many directors will make you crazy.
You may actually find yourself getting direction from more than one person. One of the obvious problems with this is conflicting direction. As a performer, you must choose one person in the control room to whom you will listen for direction and coaching. Most of the time this should be the producer handling the session. However, if it is obvious that the producer cannot control the session, you might choose someone else, if you feel the person is a better director. Most studios that record voiceover have engineers who are very experienced in directing voice actors. It is not uncommon for an engineer to “take over” the session if he recognizes that the client or producer is not getting an effective performance or the desired results.
Once you have made your choice, you must stick with that person for the duration of the session. Changing directors in mid-session will only make your performance more difficult. Simply focus your attention on the person you picked and direct your questions and thoughts to only that person, mentioning him or her by name when necessary. There’s a way of doing this that won’t offend anyone.
When someone else presses the talkback button and gives you some direction, you need to bring control back to the person you chose. Allow the interruption to happen, and then refer to your chosen director for confirmation or further comment. After this happens a few times, the would -be director will usually get the hint and let the person in charge handle the session. Future comments will then be routed to you via your chosen producer or director—as they should be.