What's the HR-X? I auditioned for it today.
08-07-2006, 09:11 PM
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What's the HR-X? I auditioned for it today.
I auditioned to read for Mazda today (I do commercial voiceovers on the side) and the script was about the HR-X. So I just searched "HR-X" and I see it's a hydrogen concept car from the early 90's.
Hmmm… wonder why Mazda's referencing it in a commercial (or an industrial) now? The script is written in present tense—it's not referring to the HR-X as something from the past.
Hmmm… wonder why Mazda's referencing it in a commercial (or an industrial) now? The script is written in present tense—it's not referring to the HR-X as something from the past.
08-07-2006, 09:26 PM
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08-09-2006, 12:20 AM
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Well, first thing you should know is that it looks easy—and it's not! Everyone and their brother is trying to "do" voiceovers these days.
That said, you have to put together a "demo". A demo is you reading scripts from a bunch of radio commercials (called "spots" for short). Don't worry about the fact that you've never actually done them—your first demo is just you reading them—it doesn't matter that you didn't read the actual spot that was on the air. (It's the equivalent of auditioning for a play. Most people who audition have never been in that play before.) A demo should only be about a minute long, so you only read maybe 5—10 seconds from each script. The reason there's several scripts in a demo is so that you can show off what's called your "range" (serious, funny, sexy, playful, etc.). Some voiceover people have wide range; others who are successful have more limited range (but what little they do, they do very well).
In NY, LA and Chicago, voiceover people are usually actors—some famous, most not—and voiceovers is just one kind of acting (along with on-camera commercials, stage, films, industrials, etc.) But there are also people who just do voiceovers and no other kind of acting. Regardless, in NY, LA and Chicago, at least, it's really not so much how good your voice is, but how good of an actor (using just your voice) you are.
In smaller cities like Portland I imagine most voiceovers are done by local announcers from Portland TV and radio stations. So you probably can't get those voiceover jobs unless you become a local on-air personality. But it's quite possible that there are also voiceover actors in Portland who do some work, too.
In NYC and LA there are many audio studios that, as a sideline, coach voiceover and will put together ("produce") a demo for you, including music and sound effects (SFX). They'll help you choose scripts best suited to your voice and personality. I'm going to a meeting tomorrow (voiceoversunlimited.com) and I'll ask if anyone knows of any voiceover people in Portland who do that sort of thing.
In the mean time, I'd start by contacting local audio studios and asking them what programs, if any, they have for starting out in voiceovers and putting together a demo. Here's one I just found from googling:
http://www.voicehunter.com/index.htm
Sorry for rambling—hope this helps a little.
That said, you have to put together a "demo". A demo is you reading scripts from a bunch of radio commercials (called "spots" for short). Don't worry about the fact that you've never actually done them—your first demo is just you reading them—it doesn't matter that you didn't read the actual spot that was on the air. (It's the equivalent of auditioning for a play. Most people who audition have never been in that play before.) A demo should only be about a minute long, so you only read maybe 5—10 seconds from each script. The reason there's several scripts in a demo is so that you can show off what's called your "range" (serious, funny, sexy, playful, etc.). Some voiceover people have wide range; others who are successful have more limited range (but what little they do, they do very well).
In NY, LA and Chicago, voiceover people are usually actors—some famous, most not—and voiceovers is just one kind of acting (along with on-camera commercials, stage, films, industrials, etc.) But there are also people who just do voiceovers and no other kind of acting. Regardless, in NY, LA and Chicago, at least, it's really not so much how good your voice is, but how good of an actor (using just your voice) you are.
In smaller cities like Portland I imagine most voiceovers are done by local announcers from Portland TV and radio stations. So you probably can't get those voiceover jobs unless you become a local on-air personality. But it's quite possible that there are also voiceover actors in Portland who do some work, too.
In NYC and LA there are many audio studios that, as a sideline, coach voiceover and will put together ("produce") a demo for you, including music and sound effects (SFX). They'll help you choose scripts best suited to your voice and personality. I'm going to a meeting tomorrow (voiceoversunlimited.com) and I'll ask if anyone knows of any voiceover people in Portland who do that sort of thing.
In the mean time, I'd start by contacting local audio studios and asking them what programs, if any, they have for starting out in voiceovers and putting together a demo. Here's one I just found from googling:
http://www.voicehunter.com/index.htm
Sorry for rambling—hope this helps a little.
Last edited by New Yorker; 08-09-2006 at 12:27 AM.
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