A reader of The Magazine of Santa Clarita wrote in with this question about breaking into voiceover and I promised to lay out over the next few months the skill-sets that most people in the areas of stage, film and television, singing, instructing, public speaking and on-air talent possess, and show how they do and don’t apply to voice acting. Last month I talked about singers. This month I’ll talk about instructors.
Q: I’m a public speaker, and wonder if I could be successful in voiceovers. I speak in front of large and small audiences, I’m behind a microphone and entertain and deliver my subject matter well. My stage-actress wife and my film actor brother-in-law wonder whether they might be good candidates for voiceover work. Any ideas whether we could be successful? — Jack W., Valencia, CA
A: Good instructors have a great way of getting concepts across in an intelligible way, and never talk down to their students. They’re able to grasp the big picture of an idea or ideas and make sense of things to the listener. They’re able to take their students through a series of facts and string them together so they’re understandable. And they’re able to articulate all of these elements with enthusiasm that keeps the listener engaged and, hopefully, inspired.
Voice actors do the exact same things when they’re telling a story. When they’re performing fiction, they bring all their acting skills to bear. However, narrators who are not great actors but are solid in their articulation and interpretation are quite adept at doing non-fiction material (instructional material like e-Learning modules, CD-ROMS, telephone messaging, etc.). So an instructor, who speaks clearly and intelligently, even though he or she isn’t an actor, has a good chance of being successful in voiceover, particularly in the non-fiction areas.
Next month I’ll explain why public speakers also have a lot of the skill sets necessary for a successful voiceover career.
Cashman Commercials © 2009
Marc Cashman creates and produces copy and music advertising for radio and television. Winner of over 150 advertising awards and named by AudioFile Magazine as “Best Voice of the Year,” he instructs voice acting of all levels through his classes, The Cashman Cache of Voice-Acting Techniques in Los Angeles, CA, and does one-on-one coaching via phone and the Internet.
He can be contacted at cashcomm@earthlink.net or his website, www.cashmancommercials.com .