1 answer
Isabela
Student
Watertown, Wisconsin
2
Questions
Updated
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How do you get into voice acting?
I want to be a voice actor.
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1 answer
Tara Chiusano
Actor/Teaching Artist
35
Answers
Updated
Tara’s Answer
Hi Isabela!
Wonderful! I am excited for you to pursue a career in voice-over work. It can be lucrative and gives you the opportunity to work from home. That being said, you will need to start practicing every day in order to be competitive in the global market (the internet connects us all now which means you'll be competing with actors all over the world...). I'm going to assume that you've been told several times that you have a nice speaking voice, and I will proceed based on this assumption.
Practice makes perfect: google "voice-over scripts" and practice reading V/O copy (car commercials, health care commercials, pet food, restaurants, etc.). Record yourself on your phone and be honest with yourself. Do you sound engaging? Clear? Emotive? Sign-up for a local acting class. Acting skills are EXTREMELY important for being successful in the voice-over industry. It's not just about having a great voice anymore. Practice reading books aloud. There's a large market for narration--especially with Amazon. Once you feel that you're pretty confident with your speaking voice and acting, go on to the next step.
Set up your home studio: Purchase some affordable recording gear. The Scarlett Solo Studio pack from Focusrite is not a bad deal for what you get. It has a great condenser microphone, a USB audio interface, and headphones. You'll need to hook all this up with a computer that runs either Garage Band (Mac) or Audacity (PC). Also, get a pop screen. This helps to eliminate some of the extra noise from the "p's" and "t's". (I don't have any affiliate connection with these items). Set up your equipment in a closet (surrounded by a ton of clothing) or make a room with soundproof panels on the walls.
Learn how to use either Garage Band or Audacity for editing audio. You'll most likely be asked to edit your own recordings and then send them to the agent or client. The days of going into a studio are pretty much over.
Make a commercial voice-over demo. If you have already done some work, you can get copies of it and splice it together OR make a demo from scratch. You'll need to get an engineer friend to help you with this one. They can layer in background music and sound effects to make the commercials sound polished.
Sign up for Fiverr.com or Upwork.com and start freelancing! Voice123.com is also a good place to start. Anything to get as much practice and experience as possible. Don't worry about making a ton of money just yet. Try to make connections and build up your resume.
Keep training and keep bettering your voice! Good luck!!
Tara recommends the following next steps:
Take an acting class or voice-over workshop
Set up your home studio
Learn Garage Band or Audacity
Make a commercial demo
Sign up to be a freelancer on Upwork, Fiverr, Voice123
Wonderful! I am excited for you to pursue a career in voice-over work. It can be lucrative and gives you the opportunity to work from home. That being said, you will need to start practicing every day in order to be competitive in the global market (the internet connects us all now which means you'll be competing with actors all over the world...). I'm going to assume that you've been told several times that you have a nice speaking voice, and I will proceed based on this assumption.
Practice makes perfect: google "voice-over scripts" and practice reading V/O copy (car commercials, health care commercials, pet food, restaurants, etc.). Record yourself on your phone and be honest with yourself. Do you sound engaging? Clear? Emotive? Sign-up for a local acting class. Acting skills are EXTREMELY important for being successful in the voice-over industry. It's not just about having a great voice anymore. Practice reading books aloud. There's a large market for narration--especially with Amazon. Once you feel that you're pretty confident with your speaking voice and acting, go on to the next step.
Set up your home studio: Purchase some affordable recording gear. The Scarlett Solo Studio pack from Focusrite is not a bad deal for what you get. It has a great condenser microphone, a USB audio interface, and headphones. You'll need to hook all this up with a computer that runs either Garage Band (Mac) or Audacity (PC). Also, get a pop screen. This helps to eliminate some of the extra noise from the "p's" and "t's". (I don't have any affiliate connection with these items). Set up your equipment in a closet (surrounded by a ton of clothing) or make a room with soundproof panels on the walls.
Learn how to use either Garage Band or Audacity for editing audio. You'll most likely be asked to edit your own recordings and then send them to the agent or client. The days of going into a studio are pretty much over.
Make a commercial voice-over demo. If you have already done some work, you can get copies of it and splice it together OR make a demo from scratch. You'll need to get an engineer friend to help you with this one. They can layer in background music and sound effects to make the commercials sound polished.
Sign up for Fiverr.com or Upwork.com and start freelancing! Voice123.com is also a good place to start. Anything to get as much practice and experience as possible. Don't worry about making a ton of money just yet. Try to make connections and build up your resume.
Keep training and keep bettering your voice! Good luck!!
Tara recommends the following next steps:
Tara recommends the following next steps: