Welcome to episode 89 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’d like to talk about a skill that is crucial to becoming a better voice actor: Critical Listening.

I touched on this topic briefly in my interview with Edward Bosco and Kimlinh Tran back in episodes 33, 34 and 35 of the podcast. When I asked Kimlinh what advice she would give to aspiring voice actors, she explained that the best thing they could do is to develop their Critical Listening Skills. I agreed.

If you’re going to pursue voice acting professionally you need to be able to listen to an actor’s performance, understand what acting choices they made, and then decide whether or not those acting decisions are the best ones to serve the character and the story. Until you develop the ability to listen to performances critically in both other actor’s work and in your own acting, you won’t know what you need to do to improve your performances. So let’s spend this episode talking about what it takes to develop your critical listening skills.

I hope you enjoy the episode!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #89 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 87 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 continue answering questions from my podcast audience! For those who may not be as familiar with the podcast, in past episodes, I’ve given out a phone number where you can call in and leave me a question about voice acting as a voicemail. From time to time, I’ll pick the most relevant questions I receive and answer them here on the podcast.

For this round of Q & A, I answer questions from Justin from San Diego, CA and Tina from Chicago, IL.

Justin wants to know if it’s possible to shadow or apprentice under working voice actors in order to learn about the industry.

I understand and applaud the idea of apprenticeship. I think it can be far more educational to work with someone who actually makes a living in your field of interest than to simply study that career from a distance.

However, there are some unique challenges that arise from trying to shadow people who are working as voice actors, especially in the world of animation and video games. I explain those challenges in detail and offer an alternative that might be more productive: internships.
 

Tina wants to know what a normal schedule for a full-time voice actor would be on a daily basis.

Tina asks a great question. The problem is there is no simple answer. With most traditional professions where you are required to go to an office or some other place of work day after day, it is possible to describe what an average work day might be like. This is not the case with voice acting. Voice actors can have very inconsistent schedules, which makes it difficult to describe a “typical” workday for a voice actor.

While I don’t know if I can tell her what a typical voice actor’s day might be like, I can share with her how variable my schedule as a voice actor tends to be.

I hope you find the answers useful in your own voice acting endeavors!

If any of my listeners would like to call in with your own thoughts, thank you’s or questions, the number is:

323-696-2655.

Please don’t forget to include your first name and what city in the world you’re calling from. I’m looking forward to hearing from you!

Thanks for listening!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #87 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 85 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 is the third and final part of my interview with the wonderfully talented Scott Menville.

Scott is probably best known for his portrayal of Robin in the animated series Teen Titans and Teen Titans Go!, but Scott has been working both as a voice actor and an on-camera actor since he was 11 years old! Scott brings a wealth of experience to our discussion as well as an amazingly positive mindset, and I’m thrilled to have him on the podcast.

In this episode, Scott and I wrap up our discussion by talking about the times in voice acting when things didn’t seem to go our way. However, in the midst of such adversity, Scott and I both learned powerful lessons. Often you learn and grow more from your “so called” failures than your successes. After all, a failure is just an opportunity to learn something new on the way to your future success.

At the end of our interview, Scott was kind enough to share his advice for aspiring voice actors. His insights are useful and encouraging, and I’m sure you’ll enjoy them.

In the next episode, I’ll continue answering more questions from my listeners. For those of you who don’t know, I provide a call-in number where any of you can leave me a voicemail with your own thoughts, thank you’s or questions. Then, when it’s time for me to do a Q&A episode, I choose the most relevant questions and answer them for you here on the podcast. The call-in number is 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 again for listening, and I’ll see you in the next episode!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #86 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 85 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’m excited to present to you the second part of my interview with the wonderfully talented Scott Menville.

Scott is probably best known for his portrayal of Robin in the animated series Teen Titans and Teen Titans Go!, but Scott has been working both as a voice actor and an on-camera actor since he was 11 years old! Scott brings a wealth of experience to our discussion as well as an amazingly positive mindset, and I’m thrilled to have him on the podcast.

In the previous episode, Scott and I both emphasized how important it is to have passion for the career you decide to pursue. While this is true in almost every field, it is especially true in the world of voice acting where there are so many people who are deeply committed to becoming professionally competitive as voice actors.

In this episode, we explore exactly what steps Scott took once he made the decision to pursue voice acting, not just as a hobby, but as his vocation. Here’s a hint: improvisational acting training played a vital role in Scott’s development as an artist. Improv still informs Scott’s performances today, as he is often called upon to use his improvisational skills during recording sessions! Hearing about his experiences, and the experience of other actors using improv to explore new possibilities in the booth, is both enlightening and inspiring! I’m sure you’ll enjoy it!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #85 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 84 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’m excited to present to you the first part of my interview with the wonderfully talented Scott Menville.

Scott is probably best known for his portrayal of Robin in the animated series Teen Titans and Teen Titans Go!, but Scott has been working both as a voice actor and an on-camera actor since he was 11 years old! Scott has performed in such high profile shows as Ben 10, The Avengers, Scooby Doo, Batman: The Brave and the Bold, Avatar the Last Airbender, the Grim Adventures of Billy and Mandy and many more!

Scott brings a wealth of experience to our discussion as well as an amazingly positive mindset, and I’m thrilled to have him on the podcast. What makes things even better is that Scott is actually an avid listener of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast, and I was honored when he approached me one day to thank me for making it. That great interaction was part of what inspired this interview, and we spend some time recounting it for you in this segment. Chatting with Scott was a great pleasure, and I’m excited to share his insights and experience with all my listeners.

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #84 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 83 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 last episode, I talked at length about agents and managers. Specifically, I explained how to build a fruitful relationship with an agent by understanding what is their responsibility as your representative and what is your responsibility as their client. I also discussed the differences between agents and managers to ensure that there was no confusion among my listeners about the different jurisdictions and approaches of these two kinds of professionals.

In this episode, I’d like to talk about how best to interact with Producers and Casting Directors. I want to help you understand the mindset of producers since they are the ones who usually have the final say about who does and does not get hired to play a voice acting role. This may come as a surprise to some aspiring voice actors who might think that this decision gets made by a show’s voice director. While a voice director’s creative input is definitely considered during the initial casting stage, it is almost always the producer who finally decides which actors will play which characters.

Sometimes, producers will hire an industry professional known as a casting director to help with this process. A casting director can save a lot of the producer’s time by helping them narrow down the number of auditions submitted by actors. The casting director serves as a filter, listening to hundreds of submissions and bringing the producer only a final few to be considered for each available role. Even though it has become more common recently for producers to approach actors’ agents directly in order to solicit auditions, a good casting director can still play an important role in bringing actors and producers together.

Both producers and casting directors have a problem, one that only you can solve! Check out the episode to learn how best to help them!

Thanks for listening!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #83 Here (MP3)