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)

Welcome to episode 119 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 the multi-talented America Young! In part 1 and part 2 of this interview, America shared with us her experiences working in almost every aspect of performing! She’s worked on-camera, as a voice actor, as a stunt performer and most importantly for our conversation, as a motion capture actress in video games! We’re very fortunate to have America talk with us about what it takes to succeed in the developing world of motion capture.

In the last episode, America helped define for us what motion capture is and how it differs from the more recently coined term, performance capture. She also explained how her experience as an on-camera actor and stunt performer informs her motion capture work. In addition, we discussed some of the most common practices in the world of motion capture.

As we wrap up our time together, America explains how she creates a character physically when she has very little information to work with. This is a common occurrence in video games where actors are rarely given an entire script from beginning to end to study before they are asked to perform. She also stresses the importance of using your imagination when performing motion capture. The MoCap volume is basically a big empty space that requires you to fill in the details of the world around you with your own creativity. We also touch on how America’s knowledge of geeky subjects like comic books can be both helpful and a hindrance when approaching her work.

Make sure to check out America’s movie, The Concessionaires Must Die!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #119 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)

Welcome to episode 118 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 the multi-talented America Young! America has had experience in almost every aspect of performing! She’s worked on-camera, as a voice actor, as a stunt performer and most importantly for our conversation, as a motion capture actress in video games! I was eager to talk to America so she could share her insight with us about what it takes to succeed in the developing world of motion capture.

We begin our discussion in this episode by defining what motion capture is and how it differs from performance capture. We then explore how America’s background in acting and stunt work helped her when she had the opportunity to audition to be a motion capture actress for a Spiderman game. After that, we go into detail about some of the most common practices in motion capture and what you can expect when when find yourself on a motion capture stage.

America has a wealth of information to share so listen closely! You’ll learn how important it is to have a solid background in acting before attempting to perform as a physical character in video games!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #118 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)

Welcome to episode 117 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 a woman who seems to have so many different abilities that it’s difficult to know quite how to categorize her! America Young has worked as a voice actress, an on-camera actress, a commercial actress and a stunt performer in addition to directing and producing her own films! She’s been working in the entertainment industry in one form or another since she was 6 years old! Her breadth of experience is truly astounding and I could spend multiple episodes just talking about the various projects she’s worked on. However, for the purposes of this podcast, I decided to focus on America’s voice acting resume and how she was able to translate her theatrical and stunt experience into becoming a motion capture actress.

One of the most interesting developments in the entertainment industry in the past decade or so has been the incorporation of motion capture performances into films and video games. Motion Capture, also called Performance Capture, is a means of recording an actor’s performance not on film, but digitally inside the virtual 3D space of a computer. This allows animators to then manipulate that performance and use it to bring characters to life in films and video games.

Motion Capture is utilized extensively in the video game industry to help animate characters for gameplay. It’s also used to create in-game cinematics. More and more actors are being asked not only to voice a character in a video game, but to supply a physical performance for that character as well. Since this is such a new and developing niche, I felt it was important to share with my audience what it takes to work in the world of Motion Capture.

While there are certain techniques specific to motion capture that you definitely must master in order to be successful, motion capture is still acting; it requires the same solid acting skills that any performance medium does. Therefore, in the first part of this interview, America and I discuss her background as a performer. We cover what inspired her to pursue acting, what challenges she faced early in her career, and how she was able to break into the industry. Following America’s journey towards becoming a professional actress in film and voice over is very enlightening. It will help you understand the foundational skills you as a voice actor need to develop in order to be an effective Motion Capture performer. That way you can be prepared when the opportunity arrises!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #117 Here (MP3)