Recently I posted on Facebook that I have representation for voice-over for the first time. Friends commented, a couple said they were interested in finding out more. One person asked for my phone number, which I gave to them, and they have yet to call me.
The number of people who will actually follow up with me is likely to be slim and that's okay, because to get to where I am today, where I am competing in the market place (I haven't yet booked a job) has taken years of sweat, grit, perseverance and determination. It hasn't come easily and I can most definitely tell you: it's not for the faint of heart. If you don't want it badly and you aren't prepared to do the work to get there, it ain't gonna happen. Your fairy godmother isn't going to appear by your side handing you a voice-over career.
It has been seven years since I took my first class and I've been at it non-stop since then. I studied with a coach, which is a must, for 2 years and continued my training when I moved to Seattle. I recorded preliminary demos a few years ago which I knew needed work and I kept at it.
My Dad, who has directed TV commercials and hired VO talent, gave me some good advice. He told me to just keep practicing and I listened to Dad. I spent a year on Voice123, which is known in the industry as a "pay-to-play" site. Over the course of a year, I submitted 100 auditions and booked 1 job which is actually considered the norm. I chose not to renew my membership as I felt the payoff wasn't worth it to me. Also, most of the jobs on these sites don't pay that much.
At the end of 2014/beginning of 2015 I re-recorded my demos, which was also my father's suggestion. Rather than paying a coach thousands of dollars to record, I listened to my Dad and took advantage of a friend's kindness and recorded in his home studio for free. I've since re-paid him with dinner. I paid someone else $150 to add music and sound effects and voila! My demos were now done.
My Father was correct in telling me that over time I would know when I was ready to re-record and when my demos would be done. Since recording my initial demos, I knew that my character demo (which would be used to get video game work) was the strongest. My commercial demo wasn't at all competitive the first time I recorded it. Because I don't have the kind of sultry, seductive voice that many female voice-over artists who book commercial work have (nor do I have their vocal resonance), I knew I had to work with what I had. I used my strengths (comedy), wrote my own comedy and while I may not have the most competitive commercial reel still, it's funny and enjoyable to listen to.
If you are thinking of embarking on a career in voice-over, I have some news that will not be comforting. It's going to take time, a long time, to get good at it. You know how Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours to get good at something? Well, he is correct. You're looking at 10,000 hours. Unless you are a natural (you might be, but they are few and far between), you are looking at a minimum of 5 years to get decent enough to where you can compete in the market.
If you live in a town or a city that has a reputable voice-over coach, take lessons with that person. Know that you are going to be bad at it for a very long time. That's just par for the course. Don't take it personally. Keep going and don't give up if it's what you really want. I went to my class religiously every week for a year. I was terrible at first and I knew I was terrible. But, I kept going and it eventually got easier. I can't believe that now I can look at a piece of copy (that's the script) and know what to do with it within minutes. Everything I've learned is finally clicking into place.
People seem to have the impression that doing voice-over work is easy or that having a good sounding voice is all that you need. Neither of these things are true. While it's great if your voice sounds good, in my opinion it's the people who have the really weird, quirky, unique and unforgettable voices who have an edge over the rest of us. Whatever your voice is like, it's what you do with it that matters. It takes a long time to learn all of the things you need to know how to do to have a career in voice-over.
The number of people who will actually follow up with me is likely to be slim and that's okay, because to get to where I am today, where I am competing in the market place (I haven't yet booked a job) has taken years of sweat, grit, perseverance and determination. It hasn't come easily and I can most definitely tell you: it's not for the faint of heart. If you don't want it badly and you aren't prepared to do the work to get there, it ain't gonna happen. Your fairy godmother isn't going to appear by your side handing you a voice-over career.
It has been seven years since I took my first class and I've been at it non-stop since then. I studied with a coach, which is a must, for 2 years and continued my training when I moved to Seattle. I recorded preliminary demos a few years ago which I knew needed work and I kept at it.
My Dad, who has directed TV commercials and hired VO talent, gave me some good advice. He told me to just keep practicing and I listened to Dad. I spent a year on Voice123, which is known in the industry as a "pay-to-play" site. Over the course of a year, I submitted 100 auditions and booked 1 job which is actually considered the norm. I chose not to renew my membership as I felt the payoff wasn't worth it to me. Also, most of the jobs on these sites don't pay that much.
At the end of 2014/beginning of 2015 I re-recorded my demos, which was also my father's suggestion. Rather than paying a coach thousands of dollars to record, I listened to my Dad and took advantage of a friend's kindness and recorded in his home studio for free. I've since re-paid him with dinner. I paid someone else $150 to add music and sound effects and voila! My demos were now done.
My Father was correct in telling me that over time I would know when I was ready to re-record and when my demos would be done. Since recording my initial demos, I knew that my character demo (which would be used to get video game work) was the strongest. My commercial demo wasn't at all competitive the first time I recorded it. Because I don't have the kind of sultry, seductive voice that many female voice-over artists who book commercial work have (nor do I have their vocal resonance), I knew I had to work with what I had. I used my strengths (comedy), wrote my own comedy and while I may not have the most competitive commercial reel still, it's funny and enjoyable to listen to.
If you are thinking of embarking on a career in voice-over, I have some news that will not be comforting. It's going to take time, a long time, to get good at it. You know how Malcolm Gladwell says it takes 10,000 hours to get good at something? Well, he is correct. You're looking at 10,000 hours. Unless you are a natural (you might be, but they are few and far between), you are looking at a minimum of 5 years to get decent enough to where you can compete in the market.
If you live in a town or a city that has a reputable voice-over coach, take lessons with that person. Know that you are going to be bad at it for a very long time. That's just par for the course. Don't take it personally. Keep going and don't give up if it's what you really want. I went to my class religiously every week for a year. I was terrible at first and I knew I was terrible. But, I kept going and it eventually got easier. I can't believe that now I can look at a piece of copy (that's the script) and know what to do with it within minutes. Everything I've learned is finally clicking into place.
People seem to have the impression that doing voice-over work is easy or that having a good sounding voice is all that you need. Neither of these things are true. While it's great if your voice sounds good, in my opinion it's the people who have the really weird, quirky, unique and unforgettable voices who have an edge over the rest of us. Whatever your voice is like, it's what you do with it that matters. It takes a long time to learn all of the things you need to know how to do to have a career in voice-over.
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