Hey everybody.
Welcome to casting actor's cast, the
podcast that puts the act back in
well, acting
and occasionally overreact,
depending upon how much coffee I've had
before the recording.
We're going to talk today about voice
acting, versus on camera acting.
We're going to talk about the
differences.
Have you thought about doing voice over
work?
We're going to get into it.
Stay tuned to casting actor's cast
Watch you like
where we were praying
in your march?
Here he is.
Your host, Jeffrey Dreisbach
We're going to continue the conversation
right after this.
Well, hello, and welcome to today's
episode of casting actors cast.
I'm your host, Jeffrey Dreisbach
I'm a casting director, author,
teacher, and your friendly neighborhood
voice in your Earbuds
to day, we're diving into a topic that
honestly is close to my diaphragm.
I mean, I mean, heart the curious,
quirky and quickly expanding world of
voice acting and how it stacks up
against the good old fashioned on
camera work.
But first, this is that moment of the
episode where I get to say thank you
for tuning into cassing actors gas.
It's a pleasure having you here I look
forward to sharing this information
with you today.
But I also ask in return that you might
want to check out the website, its
casting actors cast, all one word dot
com.
You're going to find all kinds of
interesting things there.
One, you're going to see that my new
book is now available through Amazon.
The link is right there, or you can go
to Amazon.
It's called booked it,
the actor's play book for getting cast.
I think you're going to really like it.
It's 180
It's really helpful information for you
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Additionally, there's a form there that
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And all you do is fill out that form.
You give me your name and your email.
By the way, I don't do anything with
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I don't Spam you.
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When you open up and give me that, fill
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a free downloadable pdf book I'm doing
voice over work.
It's called conversation pieces out of
the studio.
The voice of our workshop for
professional actors.
Also there's a free video called
casting secrets, what they don't tell
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All right,
that's
talk about this voice acting.
Now, if you're an actor, who's been
pounding the pavement literally.
If you've ever tried finding a parking
spot near a midtown audition, you might
be thinking,
Jeff,
voice acting
isn't that just for cartoon characters
and talking serial boxes?
Oh, my dear listener.
That was so 1997.
Voice acting today has become a massive
industry.
We're talking audio books,
podcasts,
e learning modules, video games,
meditation abs, smart assistance and
even, wait for it, AI generated clones
of real voices.
Yeah, I know it's a little creepy, but
you know what?
If Siri ever sounds like Morgan
Freeman, I'm not going to complain.
So let's get into it.
If you're used too on camera work,
the jump to voice acting isn't just a
change in mediums, it's a full on
mindset shift.
It's what I call the invisible actor.
See here's the thing, when you're on
camera, you've got your eyes, you've
got your body language, your carefully
chosen wardrobe,
even your eyebrows doing half the
acting for you.
You know what I mean, that intense
squint you do to show your emotional depth,
that smirk that says, I'm the lovable
bad boy?
Yeah, none of that shows up in the
voice over booth, right?
In voice acting everything.
And I mean, everything has to live in
your voice your performance has to be
so vivid,
so alive that people can picture you
without ever seeing you.
Think of it as
acting in the dark,
no props, no lighting, and probably
wearing pyjama pants
or something.
Honestly that's one of the perks
I tell you, you haven't lived until
you've played a screaming dragon
warrior in a pair of fuzzy slippers
I have.
I was a voice over actor while I was
doing my regular acting for many, many
years, before I became a casting
director.
I am the voice of Mr.
Brushy brushy, the singing toothbrush.
I'm also the outer space lime on
palmalve liquid,
the dishwashing detergent.
So I've had a lot of experience in
doing animated voices as well as
straight voices as well.
So let's talk
about
the demands of doing voice over work.
It has to do with tone, cadence and
emotions.
Oh my.
So how do you make a performance come
alive using just your voice?
I think you've got a master
tone.
Are you able to produce friendly,
a friendly tone, or mysterious?
Or are you good at being sarcastic or
seductive?
Now let's talk about cadence.
Are you rushing through a line like a
squirrel on espresso, or delivering it slow
and smooth
like Jazz on a Sunday morning.
And of course, emotional delivery.
You have to feel everything and send it
all through your voice like you're
acting through a straw,
a weirdly powerful straw that can
either book you the gig or leave you
wondering why your audio book narration
sounded like siri's emotionally distant cousin.
Now let's move into what I call vocal
gym time.
It means that you need to develop
your voice.
No, two voices are alike.
The uniqueness of your voice is why
voice over work can be so lucrative and fun.
But this also means that you have to
develop vocal control.
I'm talking breathing exercises,
articulation, drills
and, yes, even vocal warm ups that make
you sound like a barnyard animal,
the moo, the Ne,
the buzz.
All that's fair game.
The microphone is, merciless.
It picks up everything.
Your mouth clicks, your dry lips, your
neighbor's leaf blower, your cat
knocking over, your water bottle, mid
take.
And if your mouth sounds like it's
hosting a rice, crispies convention
you're going to want to invest in some
editing software, or at least a very
kind audio engineer.
And then, of course, we have to say,
welcome to your new costar.
The home studio
let's not, forget your new costar.
And voice acting is technology.
If you want to get serious about this
stuff, you're going to need a home
recording set up.
But listen don't panic.
You don't need a NASA grade sound lab.
You can start simple, a decent usb,
mic, some foam patting, a pop filter
and a quiet space that doesn't echo
like your high school gym
listen.
I've seen some truly creative sound
booth closets full of sweaters,
makeshift pillow forts, cars parked in
garages.
Hey, I know that there's one actor I
know.
He records insides a giant cardboard
refrigerator box.
He calls it the booth of dreams.
Honestly it works.
Finally, one of the best parts about
voice acting is that it frees you from you.
If you're five foot two, and you always
get cast as the quirky best friend.
In voice acting, you can be a menacing
ogre, a charming spaceship captain, a
wise old tree.
You don't need to look the part.
You just need to sound the participant.
Let me tell you, it's incredibly
liberating.
I once cast a voice actor in a
commercial who sounded like a suave,
thirty something.
Turns out he was 17 and recorded from
his parents basement
with laundry running in the background.
Magic, right?
The great equalizer,
remote recording.
And thanks to digital platformings like
shoutouts too, sights like voices dot
com, backstage and voice 123, you can
audition and book work from anywhere,
New York, Los Angeles,
Peoria,
sascatchon
listen, if you've got a Mike and wi fi,
you are in the game.
The remote access
has blown the Gates wide open.
You don't have to wait around for pilot
season or hope for a guess starring role
that might just fall into your lap like
a way word.
Boom, Mike.
You can create your own momentum right
from your closet.
We're going to continue the conversation
right after this
let's talk about expanding the actor's
toolbox,
adding voice acting to your actor tool
kit.
Isn't just smart, in my view, it's
strategic.
Not only are you opening up creative
possibilities,
but you're building a more consistent
income stream
while on camera, gigs might be fewer.
And farther between
voice work can keep things flowing
between those netflick guest stars and
indie film rolls, where you're paid in
pizza.
Plus voice acting, it shaped, sharpens
your skills across the board, your
listening, your imagination,
your storytelling chops.
It makes you a more versatile actor,
period.
But I do have to qualify
some of this information, as excited
and enthusiastic as I am about doing
voice over work.
We need to talk about some other darker
areas.
Because the idea of doing voice work is
so popular,
and because
the technology has made it accessible
to so many people, the market is flooded
with all kinds of talent, some
unbelievably great and some not very
good at all.
The challenge now is to get heard
for the auditions that you submit
yourself.
For.
The business side of voice over work
hasn't changed a lot.
It has expanded considerably,
considerably, rather because of the
amount of attention it has gotten.
But still
having somebody representing you for
voiceover work is a smart idea.
I know that you can do a lot of this
work online, as I mentioned.
But please consider
the business side, which is a completely
different separate universe
than the acting side.
So I'm not here to dissuade you at all.
In fact, just the opposite.
But going in with clear eyes and
understand that it is such a
way for a lot of actors to get employed
and to book gigs.
It is also a market that is completely
flooded.
So just as a cautionary tale, being
aware of that of that means that you
need to develop some kind of a
strategy, some kind of an approach.
Once you get your voice overset up
done, your closet, your space, wherever
you're going to be recording.
It's also equally important to have a
plan in mind for how you're going to
get into the market of doing voice over
work
that takes more time.
So, you know, being aware of that is
only something I'm hoping that you will Embrace
and not be shocked by, because it can
take a lot of time away from other acting
choices that you might have available
to you.
So think it through.
So here are some final thoughts.
And
whether you're already Mike curious, or
if you're just dipping your toe in the
voice of a pool,
I encourage you to play.
I encourage you to explore
and listen.
Why not just record yourself reading
something ridiculous to get started.
Like, why not do Harry Potter in a
pirate voice?
Go for it
about your dog's inner monologue?
Why not
see?
Voice acting is here to stay, my friend.
And for the actors willing to Embrace
the weirdness,
the warmth and the vocal acrobatics,
it offers a world of opportunity.
And hey, if your face was made for
radio, like mine allegedly is,
then baby.
Welcome home.
Thanks for listening to casting actor's
gas.
If you like to day's episode, please
make sure to subscribe, leave a review
or shout it out on social media.
If you would and don't forget, you've
got a voice.
Use it
until next time.
Break a lip.
I'm Geoffrey driesback.
This is casting actor's cast.
It's been great having you in our
talent pool today.
Your support means the world to us.
So please consider sharing, liking and
reviewing this episode wherever you
jump in.
I'm, Meg and grace Martinez.
Thanks
from all the lots to screen.
Fast to every
for you
welf.
Sorry.
jack, slug, watch
where we
are.
You