VAMFR 001 | Introducing the Voice Acting Mastery Field Report and Correspondents

Welcome to episode 1 of the Voice Acting Mastery: Field Report podcast!

Greetings everyone! As promised, Voice Acting Mastery is continuing to evolve and expand to serve the needs of our listeners and students. As part of that expansion, I’m proud and honored to present the first episode of our brand new sister podcast, the Voice Acting Mastery Field Report!

All of us at Voice Acting Mastery have been working hard for quite some time behind the scenes to put together this exciting new show for you. It’s our goal to help you gain an even greater perspective on the world of voice over by sending real, working voice actors into the field to conduct interviews and share stories about what’s currently happening in the industry. If you’re already a Voice Acting Mastery fan, you know that I’ve done my personal best to share my own experiences and expertise on the subject and to provide the best road map I could to help my listeners and students succeed as voice actors. However, I’ve always known that my perspective was only one among many, so over the years I’ve also turned to trusted colleagues and industry experts to bring added wisdom and experience. It’s vitally important to me that my listeners have access to as many relevant viewpoints and up-to-date stories as possible, because the voice over world keeps changing as new technology, new markets and new media enter the scene. I’ve been looking forward to expanding the Voice Acting Mastery family and bringing in talented, enthusiastic voice acting professionals to help our listeners understand the current state of the industry, and how best to approach building a successful career in today’s environment.

In this, our pilot episode, you’ll be meeting our three VAM Field Report correspondents, Ashley Huyge, Tom Bauer and DanWill “DW” McCann. I felt it would be helpful for you to get a sense of who they are, to hear about their voice acting backgrounds, and especially to become familiar with how they sound! You’ll be spending time with them often in the future, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy getting to know them and hearing their unique perspectives on the voice over world. They were all gracious enough to sit down with me and give me some insight not only into their own personal journeys as voice actors, but also to share a little bit about some topics they’re planning on covering in future episodes of the Field Report. I decided to include all of their stories in this first episode so as not to break up the flow of the group interview, so I hope you’ll enjoy this bonus-length episode. I’m eager to share these vibrant and talented individuals with all our listeners.

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 #1 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 105 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

This episode is about how essential it is to understand and immerse yourself in the different types, genres and styles of voice acting if you want to truly be a successful professional. Other voice acting teachers may use different terms to make distinctions between different flavors of voice over, but for the purposes of this episode, I’m going to talk about voice over jobs first in terms of categories, dividing them initially into “narration-based” or “character-based” voice over. Then I’ll get more specific, referencing project types like commercials, promos, narration, animation, video games, anime, and so on. Within each project type, there are then different genres you’ll want to familiarize yourself with, like science fiction, fantasy, real-life-drama, slapstick or romantic comedy, etc. And finally, each genre has the potential to be made with a different style depending on what studio is producing the project and what audience the project is intended for. Each voice over project therefore is going to have its own specific flavor and intention.

In order to excel in voice over it is crucial that you familiarize yourself with the body of work that already exists in each genre and style of voice acting. You also need to be aware of past and present trends and conventions that are commonly referenced or currently used in each genre. Industry professionals will often reference such trends or tropes when collaborating with you, and they will expect you to know what they are talking about. This is because the most successful trends in each voice over genre also tend to be the most influential. Many subsequent projects will reference influential titles that came before them. If you are not familiar with these titles and the conventions they’ve established, you will be at a severe disadvantage when it is time for you to perform.

The best way to make sure you are up-to-date and well informed on the latest voice over trends is to immerse yourself in them! Fortunately, it has never been easier to stay up to date on what’s relevant in the diverse world of voice acting! I want to spend this episode outlining some of the most popular types, genres and styles of voice over and how best to immerse yourself in them. You’re going to find that internalizing this kind of knowledge will greatly increase your marketability as well as your ability to collaborate in the industry.

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #105 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 104 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 impress upon you the importance of developing your acting skills in front of an audience.

Too often people approach me wanting to be voice actors, but they seem disinterested in or afraid of performing in front of people. They think that voice acting is somehow more “private” or “safer” than being a stage actor or performing in film and television, and they are hoping this “safety” or “privacy” will make it easier for them to be a voice actor. This misconception is quite common and can actually foster a mindset that can cripple one’s ability to succeed in voice acting, so I felt it was important to address it in detail.

You see, what most of these shy but hopeful aspiring voice actors don’t realize is that in trying to avoid performing in front of an audience, they are actually denying themselves something they critically need. Without the feedback and response one gets from an audience, an actor is just going through the motions, shooting blindly in the dark, unaware of whether they are communicating effectively. Avoiding the audience is like trying to learn tango without a dance partner, or shooting hoops without a net, or playing tennis by yourself. Not only are these things crazy, they are also ineffective. They don’t make you any better.

If you really want to be a pro at voice acting, there’s really no faster or more effective way I know than to practice acting in front of an audience. I realize this might still seem like a terrifying prospect to some of my listeners. So I’m going to do my best in this episode to explain why it’s so important as well as how to overcome any anxiety you might have about performing in front of others. I’m sure you’ll find it useful!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #104 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 103 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

Welcome to the third and final part of my interview with my personal voice acting mentor, the amazing Richard Horvitz!

Richard has worked on many famous animated shows including Angry Beavers, Invader Zim and the Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy.

Richard is also a teacher of voice acting and offers both classes and private coaching through his website at RichardHorvitz.com

In the last episode, Richard shared with us his incredibly useful 5 step process for helping an actor play pretend more fully. If you haven’t listened to that episode yet, I recommend you go back and check it out. We reference those 5 steps quite often in our discussion.

In this episode, I get to reveal to you the famous animated character from the late 60’s/early 70’s that Richard and I both dearly love. It’s fascinating to me that Richard and I are such different types of actors and yet we both have an amazing appreciation for the same character. Richard also talks about when it’s appropriate for a voice actor to say no to auditioning for certain projects. We wrap up our conversation with Richard’s final advice to aspiring voice actors as well as information on how to contact Richard in order to take class with him. I’m honored to present you the final part of my interview with my voice acting mentor.

If you are interested in taking class or being coached by Richard, please check out the classes section of Richard’s website!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #103 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 102 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

Welcome to the second part of my interview with my personal voice acting mentor, the amazing Richard Horvitz!

Richard has worked on many famous animated shows including Angry Beavers, Invader Zim and the Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy.

Richard is also a teacher of voice acting and offers both classes and private coaching through his website at RichardHorvitz.com

In the first part of our interview, Richard talked extensively about the importance of playing pretend when it comes to acting. He gave numerous examples of how we sometimes get in our own way when trying to portray a character believably. His examples and exercises were incredibly insightful and practical!

In this episode, Richard shares with us his 5 step process on how to play pretend more fully. Not only are these 5 steps what he uses in his own acting, but they also form the backbone of what he teaches his students as well. Afterwards, Richard shares with us some of the challenges he faced early in his career. It seems that almost every actor has experienced what one could call the “dark night of the soul”. It’s that time in your life where everything seems bleak and hopeless, even though you’re doing your best to pursue a successful career. I’m very grateful to Richard for sharing with us his own struggles and how he overcame them. I think you’ll find his journey very inspiring.

If you are interested in taking class or being coached by Richard, please check out the classes section of Richard’s website!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #102 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 101 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

Prepare yourself, because you’re in for a real treat!

Welcome to the first part of my interview with my personal voice acting mentor, the amazing Richard Horvitz!

Richard has voiced some of the most iconic characters in animation including Daggett in the Angry Beavers, Zim from Invader Zim and Billy in the Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy.

Not only is Richard an accomplished voice actor, but he’s also an amazing teacher. When I first arrived in Los Angeles back in 2001, I was in desperate need of a competent voice acting coach to get me up to speed in this competitive market. Even though I had extensive theatrical acting experience and had gotten my voice acting start in New York City, moving to LA meant taking my skills to a higher level. I was overwhelmed and a bit intimidated by the world of Hollywood voice acting, and I wasn’t sure how best to gain momentum or achieve success.

Fortunately, I was introduced to Richard, and I immediately recognized how insightful his coaching was. I studied with Richard regularly in the early part of my Los Angeles career and I’m deeply indebted to him for his generosity, his candor and his encouragement. Richard’s coaching was my secret weapon for gaining a solid foothold as a voice actor in LA, and I’m so happy to be able to share his wisdom with you!

Before we get started, I should let you know that Richard’s enthusiasm is infectious and because of that we ended up talking for far longer than I usually do with my interview subjects. That means you’ll be getting some extra long episodes in this series of interview sections. I can’t think of a better way to introduce my new monthly podcast release schedule than to provide my listeners with some bonus content, so I hope you enjoy the extra time as much as I did!

If you are interested in taking class or being coached by Richard, please check out the classes section of Richard’s website!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #101 Here (MP3)