Voiceovers at SunSpots Productions
  Tips on Becoming an ISDN Voiceover Talent
 
  "Being a voiceover talent is the best job in the world!"

Tom Cassidy-Voice Over Talent

 


Please DO NOT CALL our offices


 

If you're interested in becoming a talent with SunSpots,

please email talent at mysunspots.com

Our talent onboarding coordinators will reach out to you asap.

Please do not call. Thanks for your understanding!

 


 

Sorry, but please don't call us asking how to get into the biz. (Can you tell we receive lots of calls?) There's plenty of informative web sites, forums and blogs about this subject. You can also find out more on our site too. Just click here for some tips. We wish we had the time to take your call and discuss your vocal qualities, but due to our dedication to our clients and our voice talent it's prohibitive.

Also, remember that unlike many pay-to-list sites we do not charge voice talent a fee to join SunSpots roster. However, due to the competitive nature of the business we only accept those talent who fit specific niches with us. You may be a wonderful working professional voiceover talent, but we may have a large group of people with us already who have a similar sound and therefore not being taken on. As a licensed talent agency we work for you and try to make every session a win-win situation.

How can I learn how to do voice overs?

Voiceover talent Emma Myers

Maybe you've been told what a great voice you have or saw an article about being a voice talent or have a friend who's done it and wondered how you can do it too.

First off, and probably a little surprising, is that you do not need to have a big, booming, voice if you're a man nor do you need a sexy, low, voice if you're a woman. If your dog can sound like that...well...that IS something and should be explored later but not right now.

It's true, to be a profitable, working, voice over talent today you need to be able to, above everything else, ACT. Successful voice talent are voice actors.

"Years ago they liked the big booming voices for guys. Now, if you can do multiple styles and really know how to bring copy to life naturally you'll be a success."
Tom Cassidy-Voice Over Talent since 1986
Listen to Tom Cassidy SunSpots Voice Over Demos
 

Here's the Top Ten Things You Can Do To Learn How To Do Voice Overs:

  1. Study audio media, what you hear on radio, tv, the web-whatever you hear read aloud. Listen to it critically. Think of what makes it different. Tone? Pitch? Delivery? Is it real? Excited? Intimate?
  2. Practice reading out loud. Read billboards aloud when you're driving. Read text out loud at home.
  3. Use your closed captioning and a vcr/dvr/Tivo to record tv commercials for review.
  4. Transcribe recorded tv commercials and read those aloud along with the original voice over.
  5. Record yourself reading those commercials.
  6. Listen to playback of your recording and listen critically. Does it sound anything like the original voice? Find your own voice and make the spot "yours".
  7. Talk to working voice talent and have them evaluate the recording.
  8. Find voiceover groups on the web and ask professional voice-over talent to evaluate your recording.
  9. Keep practicing recording your voice with different commercials and voice styles.
  10. PRACTICE MORE and read up on the subject.

You can also take classes for learning how to do voice overs. Pick a class that is selective in who they chose as students. It's very important to choose your voiceover instruction wisely. If you have a strong dialect you'll have to learn how to remove that, which will take a few years to have it removed completely. Classes are a great way for some to get a jumpstart into this lucrative career. Search the web for voice over classes and you may find something in your area. You should also visit voiceover talent bulletin boards and voiceover resource sites that give tips and advice to those starting out in the voice acting business.

When you think you're ready to pursue the voice over career follow these steps to voice talent success:

  1. Send your demo out to EVERYONE that accepts free-lance voice talent demos.
  2. Beware of companies who want you to be exclusive to them without a guarantee of payment or salary. Some talent agents and studios require you to be exclusive to them preventing you from working. You want to be available to everyone, so why exclude yourself? We believe that the more you wor,k the more you enhance your voice over skills.
  3. Complete auditions as requested including labeling your files as the studio or agent requests. Don't add introductions or comments beyond what the studio wants you to do for labeling of your audition.
  4. Be early for your sessions. Be courteous, cheerful, helpful, thrifty...hey, wait a minute...that's the boy scout code. But you get the idea. The bottom line is simply to be a professional voice talent.
  5. Do not call the studios or agents asking why you are or are not working. Keep doing auditions and sending out demos. Stay positive and move forward.
  6. Ensure your demos are up to date. For example, if you're a child talent and your voice changes get a new voice over demo made. Same concept for adults applies. You should always be adding material to your demo. Here's a special note about SunSpots and voiceover demos: Send us your best work regularly because we take snippets of those cuts and add them to our exclusive EZCast™ search engine. The more snippets you send in to SunSpots, the more chances you have of getting more voice over work.
  7. Keep good records of the work you've done. Find an accountant to take care of all things financial. Software such as Quickbooks and MYOB can help if you want to manage your own financial affairs.
  8. Ask the studios for copies of your spots. They may not be able to do it right away, but a good studio or agent that wants to see you succeed will give you copies of your recordings. Also realize that often the studio may not be allowed to release a copy of the work you've done due to the client's confidentiality or general request. The audio production you've voiced is our client's and not ours.
  9. Let the studios or your agent know in advance when you're on vacation or off for any reason.
  10. Make sure that all your voice over booth equipment works and that you understand its operation. That means everything from microphone, amplifier, board, mixer, computer, email system all the way down to the fax machine.

NEWS/Noticias:
SunSpots needs Spanish speaking voice talent immediately. We're seeking out the best Spanish voiceover talent in the Americas and Europe for all dialects. Our clients need Hispanic talent to voice:

  • Spanish Radio Commercials
  • Spanish TV Commercials
  • Spanish Web Content
  • Spanish Instructional DVD's and more
  • Spanish Voiceovers in general

Send your Spanish demo to the address listed above.
Please DO NOT CALL.

Good luck, we wish you the best with your voiceover career!


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