Casting, especially in this remote world, can be tricky. These are some of my insights.
CASTING FRIENDS VS. THE UNKNOWN
When I started doing “Madison,” my concept was to try and create an outlet for my actor friends in LA during the quarantine. And I see a lot of indie shows choosing to cast friends and people they know. Casting is an unknown. It’s taking a stranger on faith. Will they do the performance that they gave in the audition/demo? Will their recording set up be as good or was there a “bait and switch”? That happened to me. Girl had recorded her demo with professional equipment via her agent. But her own set up when she recorded for me was an audio nightmare. A lot of actors, especially new to voice acting, don’t have any concept of what it takes to have a proper recording set up. I’ve received recordings on iPhone earbuds, with a baby crying in the next room (oh, you heard that?), or with fans/AC going. (And don’t get me started on room echo) So, yeah, if it’s someone you know, you can be more comfortable talking to them and making sure you get what you need. Additionally, will that unknown from casting actually deliver? Will they meet the deadline? Nothing more stressful for a creator than to be running around trying to track down a voice actor who hasn’t turned in their recordings and now isn’t responding to correspondence!
SIMILAR SOUNDING VOICES
Unfortunately, I have run across a major downside to people casting their friends. The voices often sound similar. Especially if the piece is about a group of people all around the same age. Right now I am trying a new audio drama but the “good guy” couple sound exactly like the “bad guy” couple and if I get distracted for half a second, I don’t know who is talking in the scene. Since day one, I have made a great effort to select actors from my roster whose voices are unique to each other. There should be no question who is talking. Plus, it adds texture to the scenes. A variety of characters SHOULD have a variety of voices. This can be achieved through pitch of voice… high or low? Through texture of voice… gritty, clean, mumbly, sharp? And even accents. Maybe you do have similar sounding ensemble cast who are all the same age. Could one have a touch of a Southern accent? New York? London? or some other locale? You don’t have to make it the central focus on the character. Just a touch. It’s believable because no matter where you are located in the world, you have friends and coworkers around you who came from other places. Use it!
CAN THEY FOLLOW DIRECTIONS
If you are new to the voice acting game, I’ll let you in on a little secret. When casting spells out specific instructions they want the auditioner to follow, it’s not just utilitarian for casting’s audition needs. Giving clear directions and then having an actor not follow them lets casting know this is someone who will not be able to follow directions on set/in studio. There is a presumption of the actor being arrogant. “I don’t need to bother with following the instructions. I can do whatever I want and they’re still gonna cast me.” Or an indicator of not being committed to the work, “I don’t care about this audition enough to follow the instructions, so good luck getting me to care enough to follow the directions for the recording.” Or simply “There were instructions? I didn’t bother to read the whole thing.” In true professional voice auditions, casting will instantly throw away any audition that didn’t follow their instructions. You might’ve been the best one for the role in your performance, but casting is never going to hear it. They’ll move on to the next auditioner who did what they were asked.
MADISON CASTING
If you’re interested specifically in how I have built my roster, as mentioned above, I started with people I know. Actors who I’ve actually worked with, and in many cases directed in my own works for the stage. From there, I have taken recommendations. And when I do add a new actor, I will try them out in a smaller role to see if the audio recordings are good quality, they follow directions, they have a strong performance with minimal guidance, and they “get” the show. I have found a lot of the new actors I have had the most success with are ones who know old time radio, have heard my show (so they know Madison’s voice) and, yes, have good audio recording set ups! Currently I am doing my first push for a large open call. For a leading role! It’s to remaster “The Adventures of Superman” and it is a leap of faith for me. So tune in in February and I can tell you how that story plays out!
