Welcome to episode 120 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!

As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:

http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast

In this episode I want to talk about a pattern I’ve been noticing among my students lately. During class or in private coaching sessions, or even in conversations outside of class, I’ve had some students express either frustration or impatience with their level of progress when it comes to voice acting. More than one student has said something like,” Well, I’ve taken x amount of classes, (sometimes as few as 2, sometimes many more), and I’m still not getting the success I want.” Since this is a common refrain many aspiring voice actors may hear, whether from your peers or from yourself, I’d like to take this opportunity to address how to set your expectations about when you should achieve voice acting success. While I can almost guarantee that those of you who think you should be professionally competitive after just 2 classes are being a bit unrealistic, I can also understand how frustrating it can be not to know how how long you’ll need to study and practice voice acting before you’ll really “make it” in the industry.

This question becomes especially acute for students of voice acting who may have invested a lot of time and money into developing their voice acting skills but are still unsatisfied by their current ability to book work. They can often feel discouraged and self-critical which can lead to a downward spiral of demoralizing bitterness, especially if they compare themselves to peers who may be doing better than they are.

I wish I could provide these students with an official time table that could assure them that everything is on schedule and going according to plan. Unfortunately, developing one’s own artistic creativity rarely conforms to a regular schedule. Growing as an artist is almost never a linear process, because every artist is different. Some aspects of acting may come easily to you while others may require long periods of struggle before you finally achieve a breakthrough. You might ask me how I know this. It’s because I’ve had those same frustrations myself. While I’ve had incredible highs of artistic achievement and fulfillment along my voice acting path, I’ve also travelled through valleys of depression, wondering if I was ever going to be good enough to achieve my dreams. If you’re listening now and feeling frustrated or stuck, please know that you are not alone. Almost every successful voice actor has been there, including myself.

Allow me to spend this episode helping you to set more empowering expectations, and also encouraging you to be patient and honest with yourself. Many great artists have faced challenges like yours and overcome them. This means you can too. I want to share with you some stories that I’ve found inspiring when I’ve been at my lowest. I’ll also discuss how to apply this inspiration to your own artistic journey.

In the episode I recommend the film Vanya on 42nd Street to those who are interested in seeing some amazingly transparent acting. You can buy it here on Amazon.

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #120 Here (MP3)

VAMFR 015 | Introducing the New Lineup of Field Report Correspondents

Welcome to episode 15 of the Voice Acting Mastery: Field Report podcast!

You can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:

http://www.vamfieldreport.com/podcast

Greetings everyone! This is Crispin Freeman, voice actor and host of the Voice Acting Mastery Podcast. For this episode of our sister podcast, the Voice Acting Mastery Field Report, I’d like to start out by thanking all of our listeners who’ve been following this new show so far. For those of you just tuning in, in October 2015, we at Voice Acting Mastery launched the Field Report in order to give our audience some valuable new perspectives on the world of voice acting. Since the industry is constantly evolving and much has changed since I personally entered the field, I was eager to bring in some talented correspondents who could share with us their experiences building voice acting careers in today’s environment.

For the past 14 episodes, we’ve been fortunate enough to have Tom Bauer, DanWill McCann and Ashley Huyge bring us valuable insights on what challenges aspiring voice actors currently face in the entertainment industry. We’ve heard interviews from both seasoned industry professionals and up-and-coming talent, as well as special reports on relevant subjects designed to help you be successful in your own voice acting career! I hope you’ve enjoyed what Tom, DanWill and Ashley have shared so far. In this episode, we’ll be bidding a fond and grateful farewell to one of our correspondents, and we’ll also be welcoming a new one!

Recently, Ashley Huyge’s career has taken her in a different direction. She’s been busy both with her own voice over work as well as expanding her vocal coaching services for employees at corporations. While this is of course wonderful, it also means that she will no longer have the time to devote to being a correspondent for the Field Report. While we will miss her contributions to this podcast, we are happy for her success and we wish her the best in all her endeavors!

Fortunately for us, and for our listeners, we’ve been lucky enough to meet a wonderful new voice actress who has agreed to team up with us! Please join me in welcoming our newest Field Report correspondent, Maureen Price! Maureen has years of experience acting both on stage and on camera and is currently in the early stages of building her voice acting career. She’s eager to share with you her insights and experiences as she explores the world of voice over, and I for one am looking forward to hearing them.

In this episode of the Field Report, I decided to bring all three correspondents together for a round table interview, much like I did in the first episode. I wanted to spend some time introducing Maureen and give our listeners a preview of the unique perspective she’ll be bringing to the podcast. I also wanted to check in with both DanWill and Tom about how their voice acting journeys have been unfolding over the last year. There have been some exciting developments which I’m sure they’re eager to share with all of you!

So please welcome our new lineup of Field Report Correspondents, Maureen, DanWill, and Tom!

The VAM Field Report will be released on the 1st Wednesday of every month so stay on the look out for it!

If you’re enjoying the podcast, I would really appreciate it if you could give our correspondents a positive review in the iTunes Music Store! Here’s how:

1. Follow this link to the Voice Acting Mastery Field Report Podcast in iTunes. Your browser should open up to a page listing the podcast.
2. Click on the View in iTunes button which looks like this:  in order to view the podcast in iTunes. (NOTE: You must have iTunes installed on your computer for this to work)
3. Click on “Ratings and Reviews”
4. Now click on the stars to rate. They look like this:  and click on “Write a Review” to leave your thoughts! It looks like this: 

Thanks for listening!

Download VAM Field Report Episode #15 Here (MP3)

VAMFR 014 | Interview with Tony Oliver, Part 3

Welcome to episode 14 of the Voice Acting Mastery: Field Report podcast!

In this episode, our correspondent, Tom Bauer concludes his interview one of his personal voice over mentors: Tony Oliver.

Tom first met Tony while taking class with him in November of 2012 and Tom has had the good pleasure of working with Tony since as a voice actor. Tony‘s voice over roles in anime include Rick Hunter in Robotech and Lupin in the Lupin the Third TV series. Tony also worked for many years as a writer and producer on the famous Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers television series for Saban Entertainment. He is also a talented director and teacher, directing such popular anime titles as Gurren Lagann and Hunter X Hunter.

In part 2 of this interview, we learned about Tony’s personal methodology when directing his actors and teaching his students. He stressed the importance of focusing on a character’s feelings and emotions in order to deliver a more believable and natural performance. Tony also gave advice on how to handle rejection and the importance of staying positive and finding joy in your craft to sustain your momentum and maintain your stamina while pursuing your voice acting career.

In this final episode, Tom asks Tony about the differences between directing veteran and younger voice actors. Tony also talks at length about how he became a teacher and how he helps his students ‘get out of their head’ when performing in the booth.

If you are interested in taking class with Tony, make sure to visit the Workshops Page of the Adventures in Voice Acting Website.

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 #14 Here (MP3)

VAMFR 013 | Interview with Tony Oliver, Part 2

Welcome to episode 13 of the Voice Acting Mastery: Field Report podcast!

In this episode, our correspondent, Tom Bauer continues his interview one of his personal voice over mentors: Tony Oliver.

Tom first met Tony taking a class with him in November of 2012 and he’s been fortunate enough to work with him as an actor on a few anime shows. Tony is probably most famous for his voice acting work in anime, taking on such roles as Rick Hunter in Robotech and Lupin in the Lupin the Third TV series. Tony also 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.

In part 1 of this interview, Tony was telling us in detail how his personal life experiences led him to where he is today as a voice over director. He also emphasized how important it is for an actor to be training constantly so that they’re ready for anything when it comes time to perform.

In this episode, Tony talks about what he learned in the early days of his voice over career and how he applies his personal acting methodology both as a director, when he’s guiding the performances of other actors, and as a teacher, when he’s working with his students. Tom and Tony also talk about what it takes to succeed as a voice actor and how to thrive in an industry where you constantly face rejection. They begin this part of their chat with Tom asking Tony about the kinds of challenges he faced while he was developing his skills as a voice actor.

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 #13 Here (MP3)

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)

Welcome to episode 116 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!

As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:

http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast

In the first episode of this three part series, I outlined the basic computer skills you need in order to be able to record professional quality audio in your home studio. In the second episode, I expanded on that subject and explained the actual process of digital recording using simple metaphors. After listening to those episodes you should have a much clearer understanding of how your computer works and how your microphone and audio interface process and record audio as digital information. If you haven’t listened to the the previous two episodes in this series yet, I highly recommend that you review them both before continuing. As I conclude my discussion of this topic, I’m going to be building on the information I shared with you in the last two episodes.

In this third and final part of the series I want to talk about how to use your home recording setup to its fullest potential. I’ll be revealing to you the settings that professionals use to maximize the quality of their recordings. I’ll explain the differences between different digital audio formats, and I’ll also be warning you about some of the most common mistakes voice actors make when recording at home so you can avoid them! As I’ve mentioned previously, it may be good for you to have a notebook nearby to write down the terms and ideas I’ll be discussing. After listening to this series of episodes, you should have a solid foundation for understanding the fundamentals behind professional quality digital audio recording.

If you have any thoughts, thank you’s or questions about this 3-episode series, please feel free to leave a comment on this blog post!

I’m also getting ready to do my next round of Q&A here on the podcast, so if you’d like a chance to have your question answered in a future episode, you can call the Voice Acting Mastery phone line at 323-696-2655. Please remember to state your first name and what city in the world you’re calling from before leaving your message. Thanks for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #116 Here (MP3)