VAMFR 012 | Interview with Tony Oliver, Part 1
VAMFR 012 | Interview with Tony Oliver, Part 1
Welcome to episode 12 of the Voice Acting Mastery: Field Report podcast!
In this episode our correspondent, Tom Bauer is honored to interview one of his personal voice over mentors: Tony Oliver.
Tony’s résumé runs the gamut in the entertainment and voice over industry. He is probably most famous for his voice acting work as Rick Hunter in the ever-popular anime series Robotech. He’s also played the voice of the mischevious Lupin in the Lupin the Third anime TV series. Tony worked for many years as a writer and producer on the famous Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers television series for Saban Entertainment. If that wasn’t enough, Tony is also a talented director and teacher, directing such popular anime titles as Gurren Lagann and Hunter X Hunter.
Tom first met Tony when he took one of his voice acting classes in November of 2012. Soon after, Tom had the good fortune of getting to know Tony as a director when they worked together on the anime series, Magi: The Kingdom of Magic, where Tom was cast as Nero and Ren Hakuyu.
In this first episode, Tom focuses on Tony’s early career. Tony explains how he got his start as a voice actor and how his breadth of experiences and the challenges he faced led him to where he is today as a voice over director. He also stresses the importance of continually training yourself as an actor so that you’re prepared for anything when it comes time to perform. But Tom is happy to let Tony tell you more about that!
The VAM Field Report will be released on the 1st Wednesday of every month so stay on the look out for it!
Download VAM Field Report Episode #12 Here (MP3)
5 Responses to “VAMFR 012 | Interview with Tony Oliver, Part 1”
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- VAMFR 013 | Interview with Tony Oliver, Part 2 | Voice Acting Mastery: Become a Master Voice Actor in the World of Voice Over - […] part 1 of this interview, Tony was telling us in detail how his personal life experiences led him to…
Thank you both for the insights. It’s a remarkable story, and hearing the skills necessary is a great way to learn what you may need to be successful.
2 Questions:
In you last podcast with Erika, she mentioned places where you can practice voice acting, and radio plays. When I asked about that under that podcast episode there, Crispin suggested Voice Acting Club, and Voice Acting Alliance (thank you Crispin), were those the places Erika was speaking of?
I’ve begun listening to podcasts a lot lately, and I’ve noticed situations where podcasters will discuss topics with guests that sound so similar, that they can become indistinguishable.
In hearing both your thoughts, at the end of this podcast, and episode 26 about “Finding your voice type”, would you say that, your life experiences are the main thing that sets you apart from other people that happen to “sound like you”? If you find yourself in a situation like this, how do you differentiate yourself from the crowd?
Thanks.
Hi Jeremiah,
Thanks for listening to the podcast and for your feedback! I will do my best to answer your questions.
1) While I can’t speak for Erika, I’ve had experience using both the Voice Acting Club and Voice Acting Alliance to help hone my skills as a voice actor. I’m sure Erika was talking about forums like those you can find online, if not VAC and VAA specifically.
2) You are unique in your own self. No two voices, or people for that matter, are exactly the same. And while your voice register might fall into popular tropes and archetypes that you may share with other actors, it’s important to remember that it’s not about trying to sound different. It’s about finding your own truth in any given imaginary circumstance.
Your life experiences are only one part of who you are. Your perspective, ideas, and imagination when bringing a character to life automatically differentiates you from others. Every facet of myself makes me different already. No one is you, but you. And you have to absolutely trust that. If you worry about sounding different from others, your listening audience will always be able to tell. Your ‘want’ will be to ‘sound different’ from everyone instead of focusing on your character’s ‘want’. Remember, if you think it, we can hear it.
I hope this answered your questions, Jeremiah. Thanks again and keep on listening!
It did. Thank you for the insightful answer! I look forward to the next part of the interview!
I really liked the point of “trusting your training” because practice is great until the real thing comes along and nerves shoot through the roof and adrenaline becomes a factor.
I had the opportunity to meet Tony at Nekocon a few years back. He’s a wonderful teacher, and I got to perform for him at one of his panels.
Glad he’s doing well for himself now! Can’t wait for the next one~!
Thanks Kalyn! I’m so grateful to both Tom and Tony for this wonderful interview series!