Readers of The Magazine of Santa Clarita always send me great questions about the voiceover business. Last month, a voice actor asked about ISDN.
Q: I need to know some basic info about doing an ISDN session. After they’ve done voice levels on me how will I know when it’s time to start recording, will I get a cue from the engineer? Should I slate my name before I start? Do I then do a 3-2-1- countdown then start talking? What sort of directions should I expect? Will the client (who’s in another state) be talking to me in the studio through my headphones? – Bob J., Los Angeles, CA
A: Bob, an ISDN session is virtually the same as an analog phone-patch session (if you’ve had one of those before), except the client is in one studio and you’re in another, and the two studios (and engineers) are communicating directly via ISDN protocol, where all of the V-O tracks generated in your studio are being digitally “captured” by another studio. Here are a few tips to make sure your session goes smoothly:
1. Make sure you warm up on the way to the session. Stretch and vocalize so that when you arrive at the studio, you can hit the ground running. Drink a lot of water beforehand. They say you should be hydrating at least an hour before you’re in a long session (hopefully, it won’t be too long!).
Over the next few articles, I’ll share all of the tips I gave Bob to make sure his session went smoothly.
Cashman Commercials © 2010
Marc Cashman creates and produces copy and music advertising for radio and television, was named one of the “Best Voices of the Year” by AudioFile Magazine, and will be a keynote speaker and Master Class instructor at VOICE 2010 (in Los Angeles, June 2010). Winner of over 150 advertising awards, and a working voice actor as well, he instructs voice acting of all levels through his classes, The Cashman Cache of Voice-Acting Techniques in Los Angeles, CA.
Marc can be contacted at cashcomm@earthlink.net or his website, www.cashmancommercials.com.