more Voice Over Today past issues
This VOICE OVER TODAY Issue Includes:
1.) Comprehensive 3-Day Break-In Event - (4 seats left) - May 20, 21, 22
2.) What's In?
3.) A Pretty Cool Voice Over Reference Chart
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VOICE OVER TODAY - May 12, 2005
Helping Voice-Talent Build Careers.
Published
by EDGE STUDIO
www.edgestudio.com
New
York training - 212-868-edge
Washington
DC training - 202-398-edge
Connecticut
training - 203-374-edge
Tele-Training
- 888-321-edge
SINCE: 1988
RECOGNIZED: Voice and Speech Trainers Association
MEMBER: Better Business Bureau
SPONSOR: National Public Radio, Recording For The Blind & Dyslexic
VOICE OVER CAREER BUILDING
- training, evaluations, demos, marketing resources, guidance, duplication
PRODUCTION STUDIO & CASTING
- commercial and narration productions
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UPCOMING EVENTS at EDGE STUDIO
TELE-TRAINING
'GET ME WORK NOW!' MARKETING Seminar: $79 - June 3rd,
4pm-6pm EST
INTENSIVE-TECHNIQUE EVALUATION Workshop: $99 - June 6, 4pm-8pm EST
DO V.O. FROM HOME Seminar: $79 - June 13, 6pm-8pm EST
PROMO Workshop: $79 - July 18, 6pm-8pm EST
TELEPHONY Workshop: $79 - July 25, 6pm-8pm EST
NEW YORK STUDIO
COMPREHENSIVE 3-DAY BREAK-IN EVENT: $999 - May 20, 21,
22
MARKETING "GET ME WORK NOW!" Seminar: $79, May 25, 7pm-9pm
INTENSIVE-TECHNIQUE EVALUATION Workshop: $99 - May 26, 9am-1pm
DO V.O. FROM HOME Seminar: $79, June 1, 7pm-9pm
INTENSIVE-TECHNIQUE EVALUATION Workshop: $99 - June 8th, 6pm-10pm
CHARACTER & ANIMATION Workshop: $99 - June 20, 6pm-10pm
ADVANCED CHARACTER & ANIMATION Workshop: $99 - June 27, 6pm-10pm
SPECIAL - BOTH CHARACTER
WORKSHOPS FOR $179
PROMO Workshop: $79, July 6, 7pm-9pm
CONNECTICUT STUDIO
INTENSIVE-TECHNIQUE EVALUATION Workshop: $99 - May 24, 3pm-7pm
WASHINGTON DC STUDIO
CHARACTER & ANIMATION Workshop: $159 - May 15, 12pm-4pm
ADVANCED CHARACTER & ANIMATION Workshop: $159 - May 15, 4:30pm-7:30
SPECIAL - BOTH CHARACTER
WORKSHOPS FOR $275
INTENSIVE-TECHNIQUE EVALUATION Workshop: $159 - June 20, 12noon-4pm
INTENSIVE-TECHNIQUE EVALUATION Workshop: $159 - June 20, 6pm-10pm
MARKETING "GET ME WORK NOW!" Seminar : $119 - June 21, 9am-11am
DO VOICE OVER FROM HOME Seminar: $119 - June 21, 11:30am-1:30pm
PROMO Workshop: $119 - June 21, 2:30pm-4:30pm
TELEPHONY Workshop: $119 - June 21, 5pm-7pm
INTERESTED?
Please call to participate.
Call us weekdays 9-5 EST at 888-321-edge (3343).
IN THE BROWSING MOOD?
www.edgestudio.com
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ADVERTISEMENT
An essential tool for those working in audiobook narration-the
Audiobook
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To order your print copy now for only $49.95 (inc. s/h),
call AudioFile at
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Be sure to check out the section on Voice Talent-and sign
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guide@audiofilemagazine.com or visit www.audiofilemagazine.com
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1.) COMPREHENSIVE 3-DAY BREAK-IN EVENT
4 SEATS LEFT - MAY 20, 21, 22
Want a career in voice over?
...This is a great way to JUMPSTART it.
SEMINARS
+ Business
+ Marketing
+ Home Studio Set-Up
+ Website and CD
TECHNIQUE WORKSHOPS
+ Audiobook
+ Promo
+ Foundation: Commercial, Narration
+ Character & Animation
+ Telephony
STUDIO DAY
+ Assessment of Your Marketable Niches
+ Studio recording, including Demo Excerpt
+ Microphone Experience, Copy Reading
+ Direction and Career Guidance
Classes are small (we do not believe you will benefit
well with large class
size)
Feel welcome to call for details: 888-321-edge.
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2.) WHAT'S IN
NATURAL IS IN
Today, voice-over producers generally prefer voice talent
to use a
'natural' and 'conversational' vocal delivery. Note that this is not
usually the case for promos, hard-sell style, and character work, which
often require an affected style delivery.
* IMPORTANT * Most voice talent mistakenly assume that
'natural' and
'conversation' means "nonchalant." It does not. 'Natural' and
'conversational' mean ANY voice that is used in real life, such as excited,
compassionate, angry, sarcastic, funny, nonchalant, and so forth.
Therefore when a producer directs you to be 'natural'
and 'conversational',
they mean 'unaffected'. It may be necessary to ask them what emotion (tone
of voice) they desire, such as excited, compassionate, angry, nonchalant,
happy, perky, and so forth.
* IMPORTANT * Showcase your natural voice on your demo,
as
opposed to 'wasting demo space' showcasing dialects, accents, and other
voices that are not natural for you (unless you are extraordinary at them).
This is because producers generally prefer to hire voice-talent
who naturally have the voice type they require, as artificial dialects
and
accents rarely sound real. For example, if a producer needs to hire an
elderly, British, female voice, they will hire an elderly, British, female
woman.
The exception to this would be a casting director who
lives in a
suburban area (where there is not a large population of voice-talent)
and
needs to hire a specific voice-talent that is not local. In this case,
the
producer will either request a voice-talent to affect their voice (to
sound
like someone else) or they will hire a voice-talent who naturally has
the
required voice but lives in another area and record via phone-patch/ISDN.
(Details on phone-patch and ISDN in the marketing section.)
WHY IS NATURAL 'IN'?
Producers desire natural deliveries because the public
responds better to
them than they do affected ones.
This is why we estimate that 95% of voice overs use a
natural delivery.
Just 20 years ago, this would not have been the case. This is because
the
ubiquitous announcer style, which saw its demise in the late 1980s, was
an
affected, pushed, and projected style delivery.
IF NATURAL IS 95% OF THE INDUSTRY, WHY DON'T PEOPLE NOTICE IT?
Since natural voice overs blend in, they go by unnoticed.
For example,
most people never notice the voice over on a documentary. Nor do they
notice the voice over on television commercials, training films at work,
educational videos at school, and so forth.
WHY DO PEOPLE THINK OF VOICE OVER AS HARD-SELL STYLE?
Most people only notice the 5% of voice overs which are
affected, as these
'stand out'. Therefore when people think of voice over, they only recall
hearing the affected hard-sell style and they assume that is what voice
over is.
WHY DO PEOPLE THINK OF VOICE OVER AS COMMERCIAL EVEN THOUGH 92% IS NARRATION?
Most affected voice overs occur in the commercial sector,
and since people
only notice these, this is what they recall hearing when they think of
voice over. Conversely, people notice natural voice overs which occur
in
both commercial and narration sectors of voice over.
To confirm this, ask someone to mimic a voice over. Chances
are that
they'll do a hard-sell style radio commercial even though this style is
one
of the least popular styles.
WHY IS AFFECTED STILL HEARD?
The affected, unnatural style delivery is still heard,
albeit not too
often, for a number of reasons. This style works well for promos, hard-
sell commercials, and character/animation work.
Sometimes affected voices are also heard because untrained
voice-talent are
used, such as the owner of a company narrating a commercial, a secretary
narrating a company's telephone system, a local actor narrating a friend's
documentary, and so on. And unless trained, people tend to use an affected
style delivery.even if it is not as effective as a natural delivery.
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3.) A PRETTY COOL VOICE OVER REFERENCE CHART
Save this. If not now, eventually you'll need it.
REFERENCE CHART
...SPEECH COUNT
Average person reads 3 words per second (range is 2 to
4)
Average person reads 88 words per half-minute (range is 60 to 120)
Average person reads 170 words per minute (range is 135 to 215)
Average person reads 10,320 words per hour (range is 8625 to 12,030)
...LINE COUNT (12 point Arial, double-spaced, margin-to-margin)
Average 21 lines per page
Average number of lines per 30-second spot: 7.5
Average number of lines per 60-second spot: 15
...WORD COUNT (12 point Arial, double-spaced, margin-to-margin)
Average words per line of text: 13 (range is 8 to 18)
Average words per page: 273 (range is 168 to 378)
...READING TIME IN SECONDS
Average reading time per line: 4
Average reading time per page: 100
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ADVERTISEMENT
NYU-trained screenwriter-filmmaker needs voiceover artists
to read aloud 1)
produced full-length screenplays (American Beauty, Shawshank Redemption,
etc.) and 2) drafts of his own full-length screenplay. 3-hour sessions.
Straight reading of all text. No acting/voiceplay. Readings are held in
his
small Chelsea studio apartment on weekends and weeknights. No pay, but
good
practice accurately cold reading screenplay text and taking direction.
Email slaymakerb@sullcrom.com for 1-page audition, which can be done by
phone. (Full-length readings usually done in person, but can be done by
phone.)
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HAVE A DEMO?
We're always searching for new voice-talent.
Please email your MP3 demo to: demosubmission@edgestudio.com
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
HAVE A WEBSITE?
Adding active links on your website can expand your profile
while
increasing search-engine results. Take this opportunity to add a link
to Edge Studio. Visit www.edgestudio.com/link.htm
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
WANT TO ADVERTISE in Voice Over Today?
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
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