Types of Voice Over Jobs

So many people hear “oh you have such a great voice, you should do voice over”.  Others hear, “you’re in voice over? What cartoons do you do?”.  Voice over is VAST and whether people know it or not, they hear it every day, everywhere.  Because of the vastness of the Voice Over arena, you may well have an opportunity to be part of the voice community but remember, a great voice means nothing without understanding acting skills, technique and where you fit in.

Few people realize that VO is in TV, Radio, telephone, internet and computers, even at work.  What about when you walk through a store and hear an announcement about specials, or a kid’s toy that speaks?  Yup, Voice Over.

Here are what may be considered the most common categories of Voice Over.  They really can cross over into eachother but this will give an idea of how many opportunities there are for aspiring Voice Talent.

Narration is a funny thing.  It’s not a dry talk-at-you read anymore.  It is about a real person speaking to and connecting with a person. (yes a person not an audience) As with all VO it’s far from as easy to do as it sounds. So where do we find narration?  Television, such as Discovery Channel, movies like Planet Earth.  We hear them in corporate videos, books on tape and instructional videos for products which are often on DVD or online.

You’ll notice a pattern here.  Many categories exist within other categories and the lines blur quite frequently.

Commercials are the true Bread and Butter of the VO industry.  You hear them everywhere.  Radio, TV, Stores, Internet, your cell phone.  You pick a place, you hear commercials there.  One day no doubt, even on the top of Mt Kilimanjaro. When you break into commercials there are a million niche markets divided by voice type, sex, age, and conventional, unique, styles.  The more styles and range you have, the more you hone your craft, the more you’ll work.  This is another category that blurs all the lines because as stated before, commercials are everywhere.

Promos and Trailers are the Holy Grail of the VO world to many.  Promos are about TV spots.  They “promote” an event or show.  Every commercial break in TV includes several to pitch the upcoming show or one in the lineup for the week, maybe a new show “coming this fall”.  A very small elite market that is not impossible to break into but it takes TIME, networking, lots of study and practice because while it sounds easy it is unconventionally difficult.  You need better timing than in any other type of VO, you need inflection like no other and you need the drive to succeed that is unmatched.   Trailer: everything said, about Promo multiply it by 10.  Trailers are for movies.  You see them in the previews and on TV, even hear them on the Radio. BIG money, so you know it’s hard to get but again.  Another market in trailer is video games. Marketing them seems to have swung towards treating them like movies. It makes sense when you see them and while they are not as high paying, still really great street cred if you can get them.   Not impossible.

Ever hear of Radio Imaging?  Neither had I until I really got serious about learning about VO.  So you are listening to your favorite radio station.  When they break you hear this high intensity, sound effects laden spot talking about “y-107 07 07 07…” in a funky format of echo and distortion.  This my friends is radio imaging.  The people who do it, understand editing software like Pro Tools because if you are going to make it in imaging you not only need the voice but you need to know your market and you need to be savvy in audio processing and mixing.

Animation to many is a life pursuit.  People think of Family Guy and the Simpsons. While these are great examples, they are anomalies and the majority of animation jobs lay in an austere, very narrow and limited audience.    BUT, do well and you will live a life of work because as with all VO it is a specialty.  Training and education are paramount.  While you need to have a spectacular, wild, wacky fearless approach to character development acting skills are never more important than in excellent animation voices.  Animation has a million subsets as well.  From Anime to children’s programming it is an endless sea of opportunity for those with range and energy that few have.

Video Games,  OH BOY.  You want to see someone get so excited they lose control?  Get a gig in Warcraft, Street Fighter or Grand Theft Auto.  This stuff is CRAZY.  Like animation there are thousands of places to go but few that will get you notoriety and fame.  When you land roles in this stuff you actually end up in a tour, a circuit of conventions world wide.  It may not make you rich to get one game but work this field in an ongoing fashion and no kidding, you’ll be flying around the world and riding in Limousines to these conventions catering towards gamers.

Audio Books are a funny breed.  Categorizing what read you need is simply impossible.  What can be said about Audio Books is you need to be super focused have the stamina of a marathon runner and be able to maintain the same energy, same character and same vocal quality for HOURS at a time.  Audio Books come naturally to some.  They can pay well but with so many companies producing them the pay rates vary and like all jobs, can be challenging depending on who you are working for.  You don’t want to jump into Audio Books without real training.  There are too many ways to stumble and fall if you don’t know what you are doing and know how to avoid the stumbling blocks.  You need to understand characters, how to switch reliably between characters

Internet sort of belongs in almost every category as well.  TV is now melding with internet.  Even those nutty little pop up ads with sound? Voice Over.  So just remember, Internet is the device really which carries media of all formats it is a radio, a television, a phone and just an overall, do-all communication device.  Podcasting though fits squarely in the Internet genre.  People use podcasting for anything they want.  There is money in it though.  Use it to promote your business.  Use it to tell the world about you.  People run businesses based entirely on producing and interviewing others for other businesses.  People actually become professional podcasting hosts.

With all the categories mentioned here there is not magic trick.  Simply identify which suit you best.  Believe me just like a physician can change directions in residency so can your desire and focus in categories of Voice Over.  Keep listening to all you can and see how your voice fits when you “mimic” what you hear.  What interests you?  When you feel that out then GET HELP!  Read, study, practice and take the classes with experts in your field.

Want to know more?  Feel free to contact me at andrewheyl@andrewheyl.com and feel free to check out my website at www.burgerpalaceaudio.com..  Now go out and break a lip!