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VOICE OVER TODAY – July 24, 2003
Helping voice-talent build careers.
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Published
by EDGE STUDIO
New
York training - 212-868-edge
Washington
DC training - 202-398-edge
Connecticut
training - 203-374-edge
Tele-Training
- 888-321-edge
established
1988
member Better Business Bureau
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WHAT IS EDGE STUDIO?
Voice Over
Career Building
- training, demos, resources, workshops, evaluations, guidance
Production
Studio & Casting Office
- for commercial and narration productions
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WANT WORK?
visit www.edgestudio.com/marketinghelp.htm
NEED PRACTICE
SCRIPTS?
visit www.edgestudio.com/scripts.htm
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THIS ISSUE INCLUDES:
1.)... 3
Ways To Charge For Your Voice-Over
2.)... Who Chooses A Voice-Over Artist?
3.)... What Characteristics Are Used To Find A Voice Over Artist?
4.)... What To Do After Being Chosen?
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1.) QUESTION: 3 WAYS TO CHARGE FOR A NARRATION
question
I have a quick question and need some advice. I have a client that is hiring me to narrate a corporate training web cam. The script is roughly 8 to 10 hours of work. Based on my experience (which is little), what might be a good fee to charge. Flat or per hour fee?
answer
Hi, and thanks
for your email.
Regarding your proposed job, there are three ways to charge:
#1. HOURLY
An hourly fee should range between $100 to $200 for this type and volume
job. (It would be higher if you were more experienced.) The benefit of
an hourly fee is that you are covered in the event that the script is
challenging and takes a long time to record. Conversely, you will earn
less should the copy be simple allowing you to record quickly.
#2. FINISHED
HOUR
Some narrators charge a fee for each completed hour of narration. In other
words, if the completed recording is 7.5 hours long, you are paid for
7.5 hours…regardless of how long it took to record. A typical fee
ranges between $150 to $250. This remuneration structure benefits you
if you are a proficient narrator, and get through the copy quickly.
#3. PACKAGE
PRICE
A package price for this job should be between $3,000 and $6,000. Clients
often like package prices, as they know what to expect, and therefore
can adjust (if necessary) and remain within budget.
A few final notes:
The above fees assume you are recording in their studio. If you are recording in your own studio, you could charge approximately 25% more to cover your studio.
Also, if you are editing and mixing the recording, assume that twice as many hours will be required, and that will directly affect your price.
Finally,
begin by basing your remuneration upon your client's budget...that is
if you can determine what that amount it is. In most situations, I advise
to simply ask your client for their budget. If they are unsure, or chose
to not divulge this information, explain that your standard rate is $xyz,
but that you would prefer to adjust your rate to accommodate them in place
of losing the job.
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2.) QUESTION: WHO CHOOSES A VOICE-OVER ARTIST?
The creative director and/or creative team does. This could be the producer, the copywriter, the client…anyone who is in charge of the production.
The creative team maintains a library of voice-over demos. When they need to hire a voice-over artist, they search their library to find the appropriate voice. Its advantageous for them to have a large library, as this allows them to be more specific when choosing a voice-over artist.
Often, the creative team will give a third party the responsibility of choosing the voice-over artist. The third party could be a casting director, talent agency, recording studio, or anyone else who maintains a voice-over library.
In this case, the creative team will furnish the third party a list of required voice characteristics (see “variables involved” below). The third party will then search through their library of demos, find a few voices that closely fit the description, and give those demos to the creative team to make the final choice.
Once a good rapport is established between the creative team and third party, the creative team may allow the third party to choose the final voice.
It is estimated that creative teams will play a voice-over artist’s demo 20 times for each time that it is chosen. The voice-over artist is unaware when their demo is being played.
(Auditions are another way that voice over artists are chosen.)
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3) WHAT CHARACTERISTICS ARE USED FOR TO FIND A VOICE OVER ARTIST?
To choose a voice-over artist, the creative director considers many things, such as:
• voice characteristics — gender, age, region
• Voice fundamentals — pitch range, tempo, tone, volume
• character type — e.g. authoritative, quirky, sad, sensual, first-person
• the amount of creativity the voice-over artist has — For example, can she make dry copy sound interesting? Can she easily provide alternate takes?
• the “directability” of the voice-over artist — For example, can she follow direction? Does she get upset when given direction? Can she interpret the production team?
• the professionalism of the voice-over artist — For example, is she punctual? Can she handle herself professionally in front of clients? Does she talk too much?
• the availability of the voice-over artist — For example, is she available at the last minute? Does she continually turn down jobs due to other commitments?
• is the voice-over artist union or non-union?
• what sort of fees does the voice-over artist charge?
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4) WHAT TO DO AFTER BEING CHOSEN?
When a member of the creative team decides to hire you, they will contact you and say that they are interested in using you for a project. Typically, they will tell you what type of project it is, how much it will pay, and when they need to record it.
Often, you will be contacted a day or two before the proposed recording date. For this, continually check your answering device. For if the casting professional leaves a voice-message for you and does not hear back within a few hours, they may have no other choice but to hire another voice-over artist.
It is not a problem if you are not available at the recording time they suggest. In this case, simply state that you are not available then, and perhaps an alternative time can be scheduled.
Word of wisdom…
Wait until after you have hung up the telephone with the creative team to begin jumping around and cheering the fact that you obtained a job.
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HAVE A DEMO?
We're always searching for new talent. Please mail us your CD demo to:
Edge Studio, 251 West 30th Street, suite 9-fm. NY, NY 10001 USA
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