The difference between a professional voice actor and an amateur voice actor is not the paycheck. So I wanted to address some basic qualities that professionals have that anyone at any level can incorporate.
DEADLINES
Yes, it’s hard when you aren’t getting paid as a V.A. and still have to work a day job to make ends meet. But a true sign of professionalism is finding ways to make your deadlines regardless. If you’re lucky enough to start getting auditions for paid roles, especially in commercials, your turnaround time is crazy quick. There is no room for your schedule. You are on casting’s schedule. Because they are on production’s schedule. And you snooze, you lose. So get into a good habit of jumping on recordings as quickly as you can. **Helpful hint** Create your recording space so you can easily set it up and hop on mic. Whatever that means to you in your space. That will save you time and be easier for those deadlines.
STRONG CHOICES
In professional V.A. auditions, casting will give you the sides of the script and the breakdowns of the character. You will have to make your own choices with often very little information. Train yourself to make choices without expecting anyone else to answer your questions. And it’s not about guessing what casting wants, it’s about making a strong choice and committing to it. This can play into audio drama performances as well, especially if you are recording alone remotely. Certainly ask for any clarifications with the director, but know that they can’t hold your hand through recording. And PLEASE do not turn in your recordings and then say, “Can you listen to it to make sure you like it?” Imagine a full cast audio drama and every actor turning in all of their takes. It’s literally hours of material. The director cannot dedicate time to sitting down and listening to every person’s raw recordings. They will be sifting through it during editing. And if they need pickups, they’ll let you know. **Helpful hint** As above, if you have an easy space to set up for recordings, doing pickups won’t be a hassle!
DO YOUR HOMEWORK
Read the whole script. Can I repeat that? READ THE WHOLE SCRIPT. Unfortunately it is a very “L.A.” thing to only focus on your scenes and your own character’s lines. But a script is a full product. If the writer is worth their salt, the parts come together as a complete story. Just because your character isn’t in a scene, doesn’t mean there isn’t information about your character in the other scenes. How often do characters talk about another character who isn’t present? You can learn a lot about your own character by what others say about you. In my case of comedy writing, I often put in running jokes. You won’t know it’s a running joke if you didn’t read the previous or upcoming scenes that also reference it. And then you’ll miss out on how to deliver the joke.
CLEAN UP YOUR TAKES
You want to REALLY come off professional? Before you submit your recordings to production, tighten up the file. Pick the best takes and have them all in a row with space between each take (editing needs spaces!), but not giant hunks of time before the next piece of dialogue. A ton of dead space makes files longer (and thus larger) than they need to be and burdens production. Also, take out all of your “Oops! I read that wrong, let me try it again!” No editor wants to be weighed down with the V.A. talking to themselves. Then, when you feel like the file is ready to go, grab your script one last time and follow along with your lines. You do this, and you won’t accidentally skip any and be forced to do pickups later.
FOLLOW DIRECTIONS
Lastly, follow the directions you receive from production. You remember those professional commercial auditions? They state on the breakdowns that if you fail to follow any of casting’s directions, you will be deleted and not considered. So get into the habit of making sure you followed the directions from production. Whether it be what type of file they want, how to label that file, where to send the file, etc. I know every production has their own wants so it can get confusing keeping it all straight from project to project. But that is your job as the voice actor. To give a great performance AND to not burden post production with extra work.
Does this all seem like a lot of work to do when you aren’t even getting paid? Stop thinking that way! You want to get paid, don’t you? Build the good habits now at the non-paying level, and you will be ready to play in the big leagues. Plus, you’ll be remembered for your professionalism, so when a new opportunity comes along, a director, writer, producer, editor might remember you and say, “Hey, this person is on the ball, give them a shot!”
