Welcome to episode 109 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 first part of my interview with the talented and amazingly driven voice actress, Stephanie Sheh! You may know Stephanie’s voice acting from her work portraying characters such as Zhu-Li in Nickelodeon’s hit series, the Legend of Korra, Hinata in the ever popular anime series Naruto, and most recently Sailor Moon herself in both the re-released original anime series and the newer Sailor Moon Crystal remake. What you may not be as familiar with is her work behind the scenes in animation and video games! She’s produced, directed, cast and even engineered voice acting sessions for numerous projects. She has hands-on experience with almost every aspect of the production chain, and because of her broad array of talents, she has a wealth of information about what it truly takes to succeed in the industry.

I had the great pleasure of working with Stephanie when I first came to Los Angeles. I was fortunate enough to direct her in an obscure anime show called I, My, Me Strawberry Eggs where she played one of the lead characters. I was impressed with her work and commitment level back then and my admiration for her tenacity and skill has only grown. What I really appreciate about Stephanie is how down to earth and practical she is. She never minces words about what it takes to succeed and always tells the unvarnished truth. She is focused and dedicated. She knows that her success is up to her and she tries to share that understanding with others so that they too will take responsibility for finding their own avenues to creating a viable and fulfilling career.

In the first part of our discussion, Stephanie shares with us how she broke into voice acting. She had a very unconventional path and her journey reveals a lot, not only about her and her level of commitment, but also about the entertainment industry and some of the unspoken expectations that people in Hollywood may have. She also discusses her initial fear that her family would not support her decision to pursue acting as a career and how she had to overcome that fear of rejection in order to follow her acting dreams. I’m honored to have Stephanie on the podcast, so pay close attention! She’s got a lot of great insights to share!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #109 Here (MP3)

VAMFR 004 | Interview with Robin Armstrong, Part 3

Welcome to episode 4 of the Voice Acting Mastery: Field Report podcast!

In this episode our correspondent, Ashley Huyge, continues her discussion with writer, director, and VO talent, Robin Armstrong.

As of now, there’s no traditional academic path for voiceover. You can’t go to college, study for four years and leave with a degree in voiceover. Finding someone to guide you as a mentor is invaluable and in today’s episode Ashley is joined by one of her mentors, actor, director and VO talent, Robin Armstrong. In the two previous episodes of this interview, Robin has treated us to stories about his journey to becoming a voiceover talent, and how he keeps his business and artistry balanced. Today he’ll be sharing a couple of very important concepts: generosity and community. It’s due to Robin’s generosity and his ability to develop his community that he and Ashley met. I think you’ll find the final part of their interview very enlightening.

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 #4 Here (MP3)

VAMFR 003 | Interview with Robin Armstrong, Part 2

Welcome to episode 3 of the Voice Acting Mastery: Field Report podcast!

In this episode our correspondent, Ashley Huyge, continues her discussion with writer, director, and VO talent, Robin Armstrong.

In entertainment, there are often people who wear many different hats and have multiple skill sets: Actor/ director. Model/ actor. Singer/dancer. In our last episode, Robin was kind enough to share with us his background as an actor, director and writer and how self-motivation was a key to his success. Now he’ll share with us his leap from film director to VO talent and how he believes the combination of artistry, science and business are important for balance in the entertainment industry.

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 #3 Here (MP3)

VAMFR 002 | Interview with Robin Armstrong, Part 1

Welcome to episode 2 of the Voice Acting Mastery: Field Report podcast!

In this episode our correspondent, Ashley Huyge, is fortunate to be speaking with writer, director, and VO talent, Robin Armstrong. Winner of a Sundance Film Festival Audience Award, Robin began as a young man in Arizona, creating commercials, chasing after opportunities and building a career in entertainment. He continues to coach, craft and create in Los Angeles. Today he shares with us a bit of his journey through the making of a career, and the importance of self-motivation.

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 #2 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 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)