Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Anyone ever do this kind of work & HAVE SUCCESS? I bookmarked a few websites on it a little while back, but haven't done anything yet.
I think it's so interesting & would love to do this. I've always had a nice tone to my voice & people have asked throughout the years here & there if they're talking to a recording when in fact it's me.
I've met a couple of people at networking events that do voice over work. Both of them were ex-newscasters and had connections to help them get started. In addition they also built small studios in their house to do all of their recording. If they got an audition or a job they could quickly crank it out at home and email over the data file.
Neither one of them was doing it full time, but made it sound like it was some nice additional income on top of their other business ventures.
Well, that's encouraging to hear, thanks. I got to thinking that when you hear people doing radio commercials & the voices that read audio books, etc., someone has to do them & I think I'd be perfect! It can easily be an AT-HOME job too since you said you just have to send the recording via email. I know I probably won't have a recording studio in my home, but I'm sure that's not a necessity.
Anyone know any other good websites about it & getting work doing it?
Having the studio at home is how they make money. Don't have to rent a recording studio or pay a studio engineer to record you. The impression I got is that the home studio was nothing fancy, just took a closet and padded the walls, bought high quality microphones and sent the audio to their home PC. Most of the work was not glamorous, typically made $100-$200 recording jingles for local TV or radio commercials. But if you can crank out 4-5 a week and only spend an hour on each one it's a great part time job.
Sat down next to one of these people at a lunch gathering and spent an hour talking to them about their work. So not an expert on this by any means. But the key was networking like crazy, this guy knew every ad agency, TV & radio station and corporate communications person in town.
Oh...yeah, the tiny bit of Googling I've done so far, plus what you just said, it's appearing to be much more difficult than one would initially think. I'm not looking for this to be a main source of income, but supplemental. I'm trying to find a few work at home gigs, because with a good 2 or 3 going on, then I should be able to make enough money to live comfortably, never have to work outside the home again, travel at least once a year, have a nice (not extravagent) home, etc.
It’s very, very, very difficult to break into the industry. 30 years ago actors used to supplement their income with voiceovers. Nowadays it’s pretty much a career unto itself that demands full time attention. If you do casually or part time you won’t make much money at it.
Jobs can pay very well, around $1,500 a day, so you can see why the competition is so fierce. Also, most of the work is character voices and looping. The “straight” narrator/announcer gigs are even rarer and harder to get.
I took a 3-hour seminar on this once. It was pretty interesting. Didn't pursue it further, but it was given by an agency that works with the talent in NYC. I don't remember the agency name.
Most people who do voice-overs create a marketing CD demonstrating their voice doing different types of ads.
Anyway, I just Googled "Voiceover Agencies NY" and this is what popped up.
I work in the game industry as a sound designer, so I'm not a voice actor but frequently hire and work with them. Like some others have said, it's a very niche field with insane competition. Money is good, but actually finding jobs may be more trouble than it's worth. There's a healthy amount of work, but it's pretty much the "who knows who" world where networking and connections are key. Basically plan on networking a ton and hoping someone in the network likes you enough to hire you.
If you feel ambitious enough to pursue, here's some pointers that me and other audio designers/producers look for when casting:
- Know different microphone technology, what mic suits you best, etc.
- Have a good home studio setup. This means an area with good acoustics, little or no noise, a proper recording setup+mic.
- Have basic audio recording and editing skills. Know how to apply effects to your voice, clean up your recordings, etc.
- Be able to emulate a wide range of voices.
- Follow direction well
- Have a good imagination, be able to commit to an idea.
That's just a few big things I can think of off the top of my head. Sometimes we will bring actors out to an actual studio to record, but with the ever growing presence of home studios, there's a lot more VO being done right in the Voice actor's own house. That's why it's imperative to have good audio recording/editing skills and know your audio gear in and out!
Also, someone else mentioned this but I want to drive this point home, and it's that Voice Acting is just that, Acting. with your voice! But really, it's an art, something I know I could never do, and honestly not many people truthfully can. There are SO SO soooo many people that think voice acting is just about having a pretty voice and coming in and reading a script. A few actors reserve that pleasure, but even they can switch it up when need be. The truth it, the majority of voice acting wants you to be able to go all over the place with your voice. From accents, throat noises, pitch, speed, tone, it's really really in depth. There's few straight up narration roles, but many character roles that will want you to work your voice in ways that are very different than your normal voice. That's the art of voice acting, not just reading a script in your normal voice.
All and all, it's a very tough field to get into. The work is fun and pays good, but the competition is fierce, the skill level needed is very high, and it may be more stressful than you are willing to put up with. As a sound designer which is another incredibly niche and hard to break into career, my journey has been filled with more strife and hardship than actual time enjoying the fun bits of the job. I've definitely turned some of my hairs gray just trying to find work, and then stressing out more worrying about the stability of it. Fun job, stressful life or Boring job, good quality of life? Pick your poison!
I have no advice, although I was nodding my head as I read the_grimace's post, as it seems like this is a kind of work that a lot of people think they could do well without realizing how much there is to it.
I read an article awhile ago on some voice actors who have made it big. There's one woman in particular who has done a TON of those "as seen on TV" product ads. I recognize her voice when she comes on and I HATE IT, I have to change the channel immediately. I know I must be an exception as she keeps getting job after job after job, but when she's voicing ecstasy over some stupid hair cutter or something, I just can't take it. Her voice just sounds SO fake.
Well, that's encouraging to hear, thanks. I got to thinking that when you hear people doing radio commercials & the voices that read audio books, etc., someone has to do them & I think I'd be perfect! It can easily be an AT-HOME job too since you said you just have to send the recording via email. I know I probably won't have a recording studio in my home, but I'm sure that's not a necessity.
Anyone know any other good websites about it & getting work doing it?
Forever Blue,
Your problem, and mine too, is two-fold: First, that we live close to "Hollywood"; Second, that movie and television stars in California -- in fact, on both coasts -- are heavily involved in the voice-over business. For example, it doesn't really matter how good I am (and I'm pretty good) because I don't have the "voice recognition" of people like Kelsey Grammer, Sam Eliot, John Goodman, etc.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
I'm not looking for this to be a main source of income, but supplemental. I'm trying to find a few work at home gigs, because with a good 2 or 3 going on, then I should be able to make enough money to live comfortably, never have to work outside the home again, travel at least once a year, have a nice (not extravagent) home, etc.
