Voice Actors – are we stepping out from the shadows?

A friend sent me a link to an article published by CNN.com about voice actors (mostly cartoon voice actors) getting more recognition now because of the Internet. The fan base is increasing. Which makes sense. These famous A-lister voiceover actors – were mostly unknown for the most part, until the Internet. We’re not talking about the movie stars who have transitioned to animation, but the voice actors who stay mostly behind the mic, not the lens. And if they do appear on-camera, it is usually a character role.

The article focused mostly on voices like Frank Welker, Seth McFarlane, and Peter Cullen. One quote caught my eye – from Frank Cullen…

“The respect level (for voice acting) is climbing and climbing faster than it ever did before in the last few years. The studios are recognizing they don’t have to hire a big name actor. People don’t know the difference in most cases. They’re finding they can take a chance with talent and accomplish the same thing.”

I would like to agree with this statement. But you have to understand that it is being said by one of those voice actors in the inner circle. One who breathes the rarefied air that comes with living in LA. (Perhaps that is exhaust fumes.) “Take a chance with talent” doesn’t mean the unknown voice actor from the hinterlands. It means, accomplished versatile voice actors with reputable agents who live in LA.

While I don’t live in LA and am not actively pursuing animation work, I do have experience doing character voices for animation. Lots of character voices – for animated cartoons such as The New Yorker, Dilbert and Cul de Sac. The economy stopped production on these strips, so my outlet for the kind of creative expression has been stifled for the time being.

A couple of weeks ago, I had a chance to attend a table read of the Simpson’s (thank you Terry Greene, dialog editor/actor) up at Fox Studios in LA – and was able to see a few of these very talented, A-list voice actors at work. Three of the main cast (Julie Kavner, Hank Azaria and Harry Shearer) were not physically in attendance – instead those familiar voices emerged from the teleconference system in the middle of the conference room table. But Dan Castellaneta, Nancy Cartwright, Yeardly Smith, Tress MacNeille and Pamela Hayden were there in person.

It was a long table – with the actors around one half – and the writers (a lot of writers) around the other half. In the middle sat Matt Groening and the director of this episode.

The table filled the room – leaving just enough space for one row of chairs along three walls – the back wall had room for about 3 short rows of folding chairs. I wandered around until I found my seat – indicated by a copy of the script for the episode with a sticky with my name on the cover. There was coffee and fruit and donuts.

But I had just spent too many hours in the car to eat or drink anything. My stomach was churning after pounding the steering wheel as the traffic slowed to a crawl and I started to worry about being late. My infrequent trips to LA reinforce my decision not to move there – which will prevent me from being considered for most of the higher level animation work.

It was fun. Everyone read their parts with gusto. There was lots of laughter, which is partly why they invite an audience – the script has never been “read” before. Hearing Marge grunt through the speaker in response to one of Homer’s boneheaded moves, was almost worth the drive. Yeardly Smith is a master at lacing one word with deep sub-text. Nancy Cartwright moving from Bart to Nelson – who had a couple of fabulous straight lines this script – was such fun! And what can you say about seeing Dan Castellaneta in action. Tress MacNeille did nine (9) voices this episode – matching Hank Azaria.

These are the voice actors this article is referring to. Actors like Tress MacNeille and Pamela Hayden.  They really are A-list and deserve the recognition.

*************

PS – if some big time casting director is looking for someone to fill in a few voices for their next animated feature – here are a couple of samples! ;-)   Socialite Mother (New Yorker Cartoons), Miss Bliss (Cul de Sac) and Carol (Dilbert).

The Value of a Voiceover

Just what does it take to be successful as a voice talent in 2012? Treat it like a business. (This of course, assumes that you have some talent to start with.)

The Internet has changed what we do in many significant ways. It has 1) increased the number of people offering their services as voice talent (whether they should be or not), 2) cut out the middle man in casting (the people who know the value of voiceover), and because of a lack of truly understanding that this is a business like any other business it has 3) driven rates down down down.

Many people just getting started fail to see the big picture. Sure, the come on for so many of the endless voiceover classes screams “make $300 an hour,” but … can you live on one hour every few months?

One recent discussion centered on whether $25 per hour was a “good rate.”

Hey, if you are doing something 8 hours a day, 7 days a week, 50 weeks a year with a 2-week vacation and paid holidays, then $25 an hour will pay the mortgage and put food on the table – depending on where you live, it could buy you a bass boat too. But the reality of the voiceover business is that you will not be recording 8 hours a day, 7 days a week, etc., etc.

If you are a working voiceover professional, you are more likely actually voicing (and possibly editing) for an hour or two a day, but that $25 you will make for that hour must also cover the initial rate negotiation, the subsequent invoicing, the  maintenance of your equipment, that new software, the marketing plan and execution, etc., etc., etc. (There are a lot of etcetera’s in this business!)

There will be weeks where you will voice many more hours and simply not have time to do the bookkeeping and then there will be the weeks where you will not voice a single project and spend hours troubleshooting a corrupted driver issue, sorting through your email folders and catching up on marketing (or the laundry). This is not a job for people who must have a steady pay check. It is your own business.

And as it becomes easier and cheaper to acquire opportunities and tools, there is an ever increasing group of people who have simply skipped over the business part and fail to see that what they do actually has value.

Am I on Twitter?

So, I keep seeing this question pop up on various social networking groups…

“Are you on Twitter?”

Well, yes, I have a Twitter account. @ISDNVoiceover

And I have people who actively follow my tweets. Or have at least clicked on the link to Follow Me. And many of them will probably see this post when it gets fed to the various places it gets fed to when it is published.

But am I ON Twitter? Not very much.

I still don’t get it. Unless I am using it all wrong, it seems like a pull website. Where I have to go to it and pull the information. OK, Facebook is that way too, but for some reason I WANT to go to Facebook and check out what is happening. I just don’t find myself drawn to Twitter the same way.

Perhaps I just need someone to break it down for me. Talk to me like I’m six years old. Wait, the six year olds probably don’t need to be told. It is now in their DNA.

 

Forum Decorum

I belong to a slew of groups on LinkedIn – including a large number of voiceover related groups. Why is it that there seems to be a plethora of unprofessional comments. Social media has been around for years now and it amazes me how people don’t seem to understand that what they post is there for the world to see (when a group is an open group).

I felt compelled to comment today on one of them after a couple of people actually started slamming a legitimate producer for not posting his undying thanks to the group. His post was 6 MONTHS ago and people are still posting comments with links to their demos. And now some are complaining that he hasn’t posted to say thank you!?

It is an International Group with members from all over the world, and perhaps members with little time on social media or little time in the voiceover business, so – as a long time full-time voice talent – with a background as a producer – and an early adopter of technology and social media – may I offer a bit of advice? Thanks…

First of all. When someone posts looking for talent, it is fairly easy to click on their profile link and do some due diligence to see if they are “real” company. Check out their website. Is it professional? Can you check out who some of their clients are?

Then, reply privately! There is no need for two or more pages of voice talent shouting “pick me, pick me!” Really, take a look at any thread where someone has posted that they are looking for talent. It screams desperation.

And understand that producer seek talent in a lot of places. This particular producer posted to a group that specifically includes people that say they do eLearning work, so it was logical that he would post a request for people who do eLearning, but he probably was looking in other places as well. Even if this was the only group he posted to, a lot of people DID contact him privately, so he may not come back here…until the next time he needs talent.

But, if you look at the original post – it was 6 months ago! My goodness! Why are people still posting to the thread? And worse yet, castigating him? Why would he ever come back?

There are groups where introducing yourself when you join is encouraged. If you are joining a group where voiceover is not the main focus – then, certainly introduce yourself to the group and provide links to your demos.

Then watch the other introductions as they come in – and send PRIVATE responses to those people who may (or are) seeking the kinds of skills you possess.

The more professional, helpful, respectful and funny you are in the posts you do make to public forums, the more people will think of you as a professional and someone they would like to do business with.

Spread the word! Think about usage!

One of my favorite enewsletters comes from the plethora of enewsletters published each day by MediaPost. If I subscribed to them all, I would probably go mad.

This one is called Online Video Daily and today the top story was a VidBlog by Daisy Whitney titled:

Managing Online Video and TV Campaigns: Tips from Production to Talent Rights

The part of that headline that caught my eye and prompted me to click through was the “…to Talent Rights” part.

As we struggle each day to keep rates to a level where we can continue to make a living in this business, it is refreshing to see people advocating for payment for additional usage. Of course, the resource for the article is Extreme Reach, a group that specializes in all things related to delivering and managing video advertising and is used to using Union Talent.

Make sure you know whether a TV ad can run online. “Commercial talent and third-party rights are often restricted on specific ads. Some are not allowed to run on the Web. Some are for Web only. Most ads have rights expiration dates. When an ad runs where or when it is not allowed to, those terms are violated. As a result, agencies and brands can incur significant fines and additional unexpected costs,” Robert Haskitt, CMO of Extreme Reach said.

The advice offered by Extreme Reach may not be enforceable outside of a union contract, but the bottom line is something we should all remind ourselves and the people we are working with – usage counts.

Too Busy to Blog?

OK, so my last post was about how busy people can usually find time to do something else. But at some point, things have to take a back seat. And the past few weeks, the blog took the hit.

And not because I was so busy I couldn’t actually find the time to sit here and bash out a couple hundred words. No, it all comes down to balance.

At what point in our lives do we realize that it is not all about work? Some people learn this fairly early in life. In my case, I am starting to feel like I missed so many opportunities. My life has been consumed with keeping busy doing things that in some way improved my career.

Personal relationships suffered from neglect. My plants certainly suffered. The house was alternately clean – or not – depending on if there was extra in the budget to bring in the housekeeper – or if I ended up on a mad tear to do it myself.

Most people have hobbies. Or toys. A kayak, for example. After a trip to Alaska where I had the chance to kayak in Sitka Bay, I have wanted a kayak. That was in 2001. I don’t have that kayak yet. I probably won’t get a kayak, but I should at least get in a kayak again and paddle around to see if that should still be on my list. Just saw a Groupon for more than half off on a kayak trip. I should probably buy that.

Unplugging from the computer more often is probably one way to find a balance. But when your living depends on connecting with people who communicate electronically, it is difficult to do that too long or too often.

My droid (and BlackBerry before that) lets me stay connected and gives me the “idea” that I am getting away, but I’m not really. And in my role of mom to my mom, I need to check voice mail whenever my phone chirps – just to make sure there isn’t an emergency.

So, the blog took a back seat and may continue to do so unless I figure out a cool way to keep up with content like my friend Peter O’Connell.

Study the trends, reflect on the past. Do we want to repeat history?

Spanish philosopher George Santayana (1863-1952) said, in The Life of Reason (5 volumes, 1905-6) – “Those who cannot remember the past are condemned to repeat it.”

Well, I guess that depends on how you feel about the past. In some cases, we must not repeat it, and without getting political, we really do need to be vigilant about remembering the past. There are some recent signs that people are forgetting.

If you want to study up and philosophize on our voiceover past, I ran across a post on the Comprehensive Technical Group’s blog that highlights the  Duke University digital library of vintage television commercials. They go back some three decades, from the 1950s to the 1980s.

Some of the early spots are worth looking at again. It truly was a different time. Here is a spot for Ansco film – with a jingle, an announcer, and a cop in uniform taking a picture of a cute young couple at the park.

http://library.duke.edu/digitalcollections/adviews_ansco/

 

And Another Thing about FaffCon…

Full disclosure – I am not only a Founding Faffer and a Frequent Faffer, I am a Fanatic Faffer, so I have been part of the wonderful team helping Amy get things organized from soup to nuts.

Part of that team is all of the wonderful sponsors – without their support, FaffCon would simply be too expensive for most people.

Sure, educational conferences such as FaffCon are tax deductions, but you have to actually spend the money in order to get the deductions and there are limits to what pencils out.

So, many many many thanks to our incredible group of supporters. My friend Peter O’Connell (voice talent, bon vivant and also a Frequent Faffer) was part of the team making calls to potential sponsors as well as following up with the many sponsors who simply contacted us and said they wanted to support FaffCon. We were astounded actually at the number of people who did that, and are eternally grateful for every one of them.

He blogged about this today and I am stealing it because he already has all the links! (Thanks Peter! You are a gem.)

Below I have provided a list of our great Faffcon 4 sponsors. My request is that you take a look at their links and while purusing their sites, if you see anything you might want to purchase that they offer…please do so and mention you found them through FaffCon. And thanks.

Voicebank.net

Bob Souer – Professional Story-teller

Edge Studio

Mara Junot – Professional Voice Talent

Audio-Technica

BSW (Broadcast Supply Worldwide)

Voice Actor Dave Courvoisier

Liz de Nesnera – French and English Voice Over Talent

GA Voiceovers – The Voice of Technology

Get Rich – Rich Owen | Voiceover Talent

JS Gilbert -Professional Voice Talent

Bobbin Beam – ISDN Voice Actress | Female Voice Talent

Voiceovers by Moe

Melissa Exelberth – Bilingual ISDN Voice Talent

Harlan Hogan’s Voiceover Essentials

The VO-BB.com

VoxMan – Corey Snow Voice Actor

Word2Wav An Automated Audio Recording Application

Source Elements

Lynda.com – Online Software Training Videos

D3 Voiceworks – Diane Maggipinto Female Voice Talent

Sound Advice – Voiceover from an Audio Engineer’s Perspective

Voice Over Xtra – The voice-over industry’s online news, education and resource center

The Dallas Voice Acting Meetup Group

In Between Sessions

I wish I could say that I was so busy that I had back to back sessions every day and had to squeeze in the bookkeeping, marketing and plant watering. Well, I’m busy enough that I make a living doing this voiceover stuff without the back-to-back sessions. And even if I don’t have projects stacked up waiting, I still have a hard time getting all the other stuff done. But there is simply no way I can actually organize a day with any strict rules on when I am going to do anything.

The day started out like a typical Tuesday. Walk down to the coffee shop for my 7-8 AM solve the world’s problems group, but the phone rang and I had to race back home to get the car to drive out to my mom’s Assisted Living Community to call off the Paramedics. You would think after 7 months of seeing what a cold damp morning does to my mom’s hip pain, they would be able to figure out that she needs a pain pill, not a trip to the ER. By the time I got there, she was calm and on her way to breakfast.

So, morning email check and related paperwork was delayed for a while. So, what am I doing posting to the blog? Well, because I can. My time management theory is much like the chaos theory.

Through this seemingly crazy unorganized world I live in, I seem to end up getting things done. So, if I feel like posting to the blog, I might as well!

Getting back to my typical Tuesday. I have a session coming up at 11:30 today – a repeat client – a nice little project for a museum. We’ll do phone patch on this one and I just printed out the script to see if there are any surprises. But before that, I updated my class blog, did a little MCA-I work, read my email and got the notice that my first title on Audible has just been approved by the author, approved a couple of Facebook tags on some photos from a toga party this weekend, replied to a couple of emails and thought about watering my plants.

Next up, write some checks (personal and business) and get a couple of invoices out for February before we get too far into March. Oh, and then there is the tax appointment later today. I should probably do a once over on that stuff too.

So, I guess in a way, I am grateful that I don’t have back-to-back sessions. When would I have time to get everything done?

Happy St. Valentine’s Day Massacre!

I couldn’t help myself, I had to send out a press release announcing the opening of the Mob Museum in Las Vegas, because it includes a couple of videos narrated by myself and my friend Scott Gentle. Both videos were created by Northern Light Productions out of Massachusetts and are examples of what good video should be – from the visuals, to the editing, to the sound.

I had the good fortune to narrate a longer documentary produced by Northern Light Productions called “Weapons of Mass Disruption,” which tells the more than a little disturbing story of cyber warfare. The script was superb and such a pleasure to read.

Anyway, here is the release about the work we did for the Mob Museum. I can hardly wait until my April trip to Las Vegas so that I can check out the museum for myself.

**************

“Mob Museum” Brings Voice Talents Terwilliger and Gentle Together

Today’s opening in downtown Las Vegas of the Mob Museum, the National Museum of Organized Crime and Law Enforcement, brings together the Mob and the Law. It is also where voice talents Connie Terwilliger and Scott Gentle deliver inspired narration for two of the Museum’s key exhibits.

Produced by Northen Light Productions in Massachusettes, Gentle’s narration is featured on the “Bootleg Wars” video that supports what will likely be one of the most popular exhibits – the actual brick wall where the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre took place. Terwilliger’s voice is heard on “Web of Deceit” – a fascinating look at mob violence, corruption, conspiracy and murder.