{"id":9051,"date":"2019-06-11T12:30:00","date_gmt":"2019-06-11T10:30:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.voicebooking.com\/blog\/2016\/06\/30\/new-to-voice-acting-heres-what-you-need-to-know\/"},"modified":"2023-10-31T12:24:37","modified_gmt":"2023-10-31T10:24:37","slug":"how-to-become-a-voice-over","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.voicebooking.com\/en\/blog\/how-to-become-a-voice-over","title":{"rendered":"How to become a voice over actor"},"content":{"rendered":"

You have a lovely voice, now you just need to do auditions to find work. Right? In this blog I\u2019ll give you the answers to a number of frequently asked questions from voice talents who are just starting out.<\/strong><\/p>\n

You\u2019ve had this experience, no? You\u2019re at a party and the sound of someone\u2019s voice becomes the topic of discussion. \u2018Wow, man. You should really do something with that voice.<\/em>\u2019 O.K…but how do you go about that?<\/p>\n

First of all it\u2019s important to understand that voice-over work is no different than modelling, the world of football or advertising. You have to be able to do\u00a0<\/em>something special with your talent. Apart from that, a simple search on LinkedIn shows you there are a massive 774,000 people on the planet who claim to do something along the lines of voice over. So, look before you leap.<\/p>\n

What do you need to be able to do as a voice over?<\/h2>\n

The crazy thing about good voice actors is that they talk as if they\u2019re making the text up on the spot. While, in fact, there is a script in front of them that has been worded down to the last letter. An attractive voice alone is definitely not enough to land you voice work. More than anything, it is the way in which you deliver the text. It\u2019s vital that you can easily identify with a script.<\/p>\n

To put it another way: you need to be able to take direction. If a client asks for a business-like but friendly voice, a couple of words to be really accented, a bit more speed in the third sentence, but then again not too much, and then in line five a small pause after the brand name; then a voice actor needs to be able to adapt and deliver on those wishes. If the client then asks ten or twenty times for you to do \u2018exactly the same\u2019 but then \u2018just a little<\/em> different\u2019, you have to understand which direction they actually want to take it.<\/p>\n

You maybe know of the cliche of the voice actor who after fifteen minutes work leaves the studio with bulging pockets. Well, you can be sure that the average client would rather have that than the voice actor, who after an hour and a half of to-ing and fro-ing, still doesn\u2019t get any further than blandly reading out a text that just isn\u2019t coming to life.<\/p>\n

What sort of voices is the client looking for?<\/h2>\n

These days it\u2019s really important that you have a natural sounding voice. As if you\u2019ve just been pulled in off the street. How many of the people that you see on the street really stand out from the crowd? The same goes for voices. How many lovely voices actually have personality and character?<\/p>\n