Home | Career
Talk about a day in the trenches...I had all these great ideas for posts to start this article off with, trying to find some fun clips to audio blog, videos, etc. Unfortunately, that all fell apart. What happened you ask?Today happened.A royal schedule-frak of epic proportions. From 9:15am to 7:45pm (with a 30 minute lunch), I was bombarded by a constant stream of talking.While I love my actors, not very many of them were prepared today.See, the thing is, auditions in voice over land work very much differently than auditions in on camera land. Thanks to digital audio, the game moves MUCH faster, so a lot of talent agencies now run their own recording booths (the reason why I have a full time job). Often a job notice comes out with spec for the auditions, then the AGENCY casts the project, the AGENCY holds auditions, the AGENCY narrows the field, and the AGENCY selects the top picks, and then submits the auditions to whoever is running the casting. This process needs to happen quickly as well. There have been times where an audition might go out in the morning, talent has been booked, and is being sent out to record in the afternoon. Pressure.Thats a lot of overhead for an Agency to handle, especially considering that, for the cost involved, the agency might only make say...$40 booking a client on a radio spot (after taking the time to audition maybe 15 people for the same role).So what does this business breakdown have to do with why I had such a crappy day? Well, the Agency in-house audition process creates a second problem.Actors.When an actor goes out of house to audition for something, they have to be prepared. They have to be warmed up. They have to be on their best behavior to maintain a good working reputation. They know they arent going to get lots of do-overs for their audition, and they know that they might only get a slate to show off their own personality.When an actor comes in house to record an audition, they know its in the Agencys best interest to send an audition which best represents the Actor AND the Agency. They know we arent going to let them leave with a poor take, however unprepared they might be when they show up, because we BOTH need to look good.Now, those that really work in voice over understand the business margins above. They arent about to waste our time or their own time. They come in prepared, just as they would for an out of house. They are easy to work with, and REALLY help move the day along, which is probably a major reason why they work in voice over, and book jobs regularly.Those actors that do take up time range the gambit from newbies that dont know any better all the way to the self obsessed.Now an extra minute here or there doesnt seem like it would be such a huge deal, but multiply an extra minute or three by the ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY times I pressed record today, and we now have hours of wasted man hours piling up over the course of the week.So, whats the moral of this little story?Actors, if youre lucky enough to have a good voice over agent, someone pitching you and sending you auditions, prepare your copy, warm up, run a few articulation drills, and stretch, BEFORE you enter your booth. Also, give your booth director a big ole hug.He probably needs it...Talk about a day in the trenches...I had all these great ideas for posts to start this clause off with, stressful to find some fun clips to audio blog, videos, etc. Unfortunately, that all fell apart. What happened you ask?Today happened.A royal schedule-frak of epic proportions. From 9:15am to 7:45pm (with a 30 second lunch), I was bombarded by a constant watercourse of talking.While I love my actors, not very many of them were fain today.See, the thing is, auditions in voice over land work very much differently than auditions in on camera land. Thanks to digital audio, the game moves MUCH faster, so a lot of talent agencies now run their own transcription booths (the grounds why I have a full time job). Often a job notice comes out with spec for the auditions, then the AGENCY casts the project, the AGENCY holds auditions, the AGENCY narrows the field, and the AGENCY selects the top picks, and then submits the auditions to whoever is running the casting. This process needs to encounter quickly as well. There have been times where an auditory sense might go out in the morning, talent has been booked, and is being sent out to memorialize in the afternoon. Pressure.Thats a lot of command processing overhead for an Agency to handle, especially considering that, for the cost involved, the representation might only make say...$40 booking a node on a radio spot (after taking the time to audition maybe 15 people for the same role).So what does this business breakdown have to do with why I had such a crappy day? Well, the representation in-house audition outgrowth creates a instant problem.Actors.When an actor goes out of house to audition for something, they have to be prepared. They have to be warmed up. They have to be on their best behavior to maintain a good working reputation. They know they arent going to get lots of do-overs for their audition, and they know that they might only get a slate to show off their own personality.When an actor comes in house to record book an audition, they know its in the Agencys best interest to send an audition which best represents the Actor AND the Agency. They know we arent going to let them leave with a poor take, nonetheless unprepared they might be when they show up, because we BOTH need to look good.Now, those that really work in voice over understand the business margins above. They arent about to waste our time or their own time. They come in prepared, just as they would for an out of house. They are easy to work with, and very help move the day along, which is credibly a major reason why they work in voice over, and book jobs regularly.Those actors that do take up time range the ploy from newbies that dont know any better all the way to the self obsessed.Now an extra second here or there doesnt seem like it would be such a huge deal, but multiply an extra minute or three by the ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY times I pressed commemorate today, and we now have hours of wasted man hours piling up over the feed of the week.So, whats the moral of this picayune story?Actors, if youre lucky enough to have a good voice over agent, individual pitching you and sending you auditions, prepare your copy, warm up, run a few articulation drills, and stretch, BEFORE you enter your booth. Also, give your booth director a big ole hug.He believably needs it....
Article Source: http://blisspublisher.com
Please Rate this Article
5 out of 54 out of 53 out of 52 out of 51 out of 5
Not yet Rated
