voice acting Thread

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Akira99	Sep 20 2014 Anchor
I plan to be a voice actor any tips or ideas anyone has would be lovely
DeadlySparrowsStudio	Sep 20 2014 Anchor
Study acting! Not just voices. I would recommend the Meisner Technique (look into it, it's the flip side of Method). I've worked with tons of Meisner trained actors here in Austin and they are always a cut about the rest. If you watch the doc "I Know That Voice" (available to stream on Netflix), the main point that all of the greats drive home is: first and foremost you must be a great actor. Think about Last of Us or Bioshock Infinite (but especially Last of Us). Those games wouldn't be nearly as compelling without actors who could sell it. When I was first seeing Last of Us I thought "great, another zombie game…" but it's the ability to sell the human element that really sold it for me. Once you start making a voice reel, you should hear where you're strengths and weaknesses are. To me, almost everyone who is starting out realllllly over does it. Subtlety. Read tons of scripts, and don't restrict yourself to video games. Read the plays of Will Eno and Sam Shepherd. Learn how to sell non-natural dialog. If it's something you are really serious and invested in, I'd find a way to take acting classes from a reputable, serious teacher. First things first: are you already an actor? Best of luck, SJ
Carlvus	Sep 23 2014 Anchor
DeadlySparrowsStudio has covered all the main points there. The only things I'd add as a soundie who specializes in dialogue is try and look beyond the spoken word for great reads - there's much more to the human voice than speech. Spend a little time thinking about how that character breathes or laughs or grunts, whether there might be any vocal ticks or speech impediments, or any line specific detail like pauses or dysfluency. As SJ said, don't over do it, but give it some thought. "I Know That Voice" is a great doc to watch as you get a feel for the breadth of styles that exist in the industry. Only other thing I'd recommend is Dee Bradley Baker's site: Iwanttobeavoiceactor.com Charlie
Lucífer	Feb 6 2015 Anchor
Vocal control is key, practice as many different 'voices' as a warm up to give the muscles in your throat a bit of a tuning. D5 by AKG is a good microphone, avoid any microphone that says it can do both vocal and instrumental, they're usually orientated for the latter and not ideal for actual voice acting exercise/practice.

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Akira99

Sep 20 2014 Anchor

I plan to be a voice actor any tips or ideas anyone has would be lovely

DeadlySparrowsStudio

Sep 20 2014 Anchor

Study acting! Not just voices. I would recommend the Meisner Technique (look into it, it's the flip side of Method). I've worked with tons of Meisner trained actors here in Austin and they are always a cut about the rest. If you watch the doc "I Know That Voice" (available to stream on Netflix), the main point that all of the greats drive home is: first and foremost you must be a great actor.

Think about Last of Us or Bioshock Infinite (but especially Last of Us). Those games wouldn't be nearly as compelling without actors who could sell it. When I was first seeing Last of Us I thought "great, another zombie game…" but it's the ability to sell the human element that really sold it for me. Once you start making a voice reel, you should hear where you're strengths and weaknesses are. To me, almost everyone who is starting out realllllly over does it. Subtlety. Read tons of scripts, and don't restrict yourself to video games. Read the plays of Will Eno and Sam Shepherd. Learn how to sell non-natural dialog. If it's something you are really serious and invested in, I'd find a way to take acting classes from a reputable, serious teacher.

First things first: are you already an actor?

Best of luck,
SJ

Carlvus

Sep 23 2014 Anchor

DeadlySparrowsStudio has covered all the main points there. The only things I'd add as a soundie who specializes in dialogue is try and look beyond the spoken word for great reads - there's much more to the human voice than speech. Spend a little time thinking about how that character breathes or laughs or grunts, whether there might be any vocal ticks or speech impediments, or any line specific detail like pauses or dysfluency. As SJ said, don't over do it, but give it some thought.

"I Know That Voice" is a great doc to watch as you get a feel for the breadth of styles that exist in the industry. Only other thing I'd recommend is Dee Bradley Baker's site: Iwanttobeavoiceactor.com

Charlie

Lucífer

Feb 6 2015 Anchor

Vocal control is key, practice as many different 'voices' as a warm up to give the muscles in your throat a bit of a tuning. D5 by AKG is a good microphone, avoid any microphone that says it can do both vocal and instrumental, they're usually orientated for the latter and not ideal for actual voice acting exercise/practice.