> Charlie! Anyone can benefit from learning more technique.
> You could even make your Crab character in the pizza
> commercial on your demo sound crabbier! As both a producer
> AND a voice actor, I'm here to tell you that it ain't as
> easy as it looks.
I guess since I'm not working that aspect of the biz, I have a different opinion. But the original question had to do with a "client" sounding bad, and what to do about it. I think, because of my own experience in doing so, that a production director can and should coach the client when appropriate. If you are a prod guy, with a deep voice, and your client is nasally, you are obviously not going to be able to make them sound like you, nor should you want to. My point was to coach them to bring out their unique sound, without allowing them to sound too annoying, or rough....basically, being
their voice coach, as you have.
Maybe it's because I've been in the biz for 15 years myself, and I have a biased view. But it
is easy, or should be, for a production director with at least 10 years experience to coach a client, or to do various deliveries himself/herself (obviously we all have our limitations, but for a basic, generic read....).
Where the difficulty lies for v/o artists, is that everyone and their grandma wants to work in radio, or has been told "you have a voice for radio". So, the competition is feirce. Clients (agencies) have a "sound" they are looking for. If you don't get the part, you probably didn't have the sound. I doubt it has much to do with technique. Usually, the client will ask the v/o artists to say it differently...so it's the sound, not so much the technique. Although, sometimes they can work hand in hand.
Someone just busting their chops, with little-to-no experience, would obviously have a hard time, and wouldn't sound polished...but for the "right" ad, the agency might take them over you...just because
that was the sound the client wanted. Even if you had a coach teach you HOW to sound
that way. It will always come down to preference, the client's preference.
While there are techniques that can help...having a certificate saying you've completed a course isn't going to get you the gig. I believe you can get the experience just as well by practicing, practicing, practicing. If you want to be able to sound like Joey on 'Friends' when you say "How YOU doin'?"... a coach could help, BUT you can achieve the same results by listening and practicing imitating. We all have our "range"...I don't have the deep ballsy voice that many in radio do have...so what? I really don't care, I just don't go after those jobs, and I don't want a coach to teach me how to
deliver that sound with technique because then I loose my own identity, that which DOES set me apart from the rest. I don't want to land a gig because I sound like so-and-so. I want the gig because of something I have that is unique to everybody else. Could a voice coach pull that out of me, sure...but it's not necessary for a :60 second spot.
For someone like yourself, I can understand wanting to "improve" what you've got...to find a newer, better product to deliver to the client. I understand that...and when one doesn't have natural talent, or believe they don't...they may need help, and may be willing to pay for that help.
I'm not pursuing a v/o career because I can utilize my talents to make my living elsewhere, but I am confident enough in my ability that if I wanted to make a career out of it, my "crab" character would be perfect, for the right part.
> There's so many folks who think they can
> load some software on their home computer, plug in a mic and
> start doing voiceovers, but try as you might, you're not
> gonna sound like Don LaFontaine.
I've heard many people on commercials wondering what business they had getting the gig, because they sounded aweful, in my opinion, but they either had what the client wanted, or a great agent, or were just at the right place at the right time. Technique for radio commercials is over rated, but that is only my opinion. If you want to get into voice acting, where you have many many lines and need to keep a consistant pace and sound, then yes, by all means, get a coach. I've heard Michael Reagan and Neal Boortz, as I'm sure you know both are talk show hosts, mention they have voice coaches...but then again, they talk for 3 hours straight.
I listen to my old airchecks of old spots, and cringe. Not so much anymore. I can deliver the smile...that's what matters. It took practice and experience. Could a voice coach have gotten me there faster...I doubt it. There are so many other things that go along with it, like confidence, that a coach can't teach.
> Ask some radio folks
> outside your market if they've gone to a voiceover audition
> and been rejected because they don't sound "real" It takes
> work to lose that on-air sound when you're going after
> agency business.
A friend of mine has taken lessons, it hasn't gotten him a gig yet. It's not because his technique is bad. He sounds great...it's because the competition is fierce. Too many people scraping for that same crumb.
> But folks who are not in radio ALSO do not say,"Wow, what a
> well-produced commercial", despite what YOUR ego wants you
> to believe. A good spot is in the message. Good production
> makes the message come alive and be memorable.
Actually, I have heard non-radio people say they liked or disliked a commercial, because of the way it was produced. We have a local yokel who does his own ads. He sounds aweful, and everybody believes this as a fact. He does his own tv ads too. He buys with lots of frequency, so his ads are successful. Some people would say it's the annoyance factor that makes him successful, because people remember him. I say, it's because he has lots of marketing dollars and is everywhere, all the time. You have no choice BUT to remember him.
It's nice sharing ideas with you.
<P ID="signature">______________
</P>
