We recently put thousands of dollars worth of upgrades into each of the seven studios here at ProComm Voices. Yet with all the added processing power, sound cards and plugins, you could make the case that the most important piece of gear in each studio is still the telephone. It’s the connection that brings our clients in on the process to hear their words come to life.

Directing voice overs via phone patch has many advantages. For one, you hear the voice talent perform your script live, as it’s happening. There’s no need to worry about the possibility of missed pronunciations or incorrect interpretations. You are there to make sure every syllable is right on.

In addition, you have the opportunity to work with voice talent from across the country and around the world, all without ever having to leave the office. Or if you so choose, you can direct without ever having to go into the office in the first place. I was once in a session with a director who was on a ski lift!

As convenient as it is to conduct your virtual recording session over the phone lines, there are some things to keep in mind to make sure the experience goes smoothly.

Speaker Phones

Going hands free is great (especially if you’re one of those people who talks with their hands) but there are a few things you should know before you hit the ‘speaker’ button on your phone. First, in order to keep speaker phones from creating feedback, they are set up to provide one way communications. In other words, when you talk into a speaker phone, the speaker itself is muted. This means that if you are listening to a voice talent perform a read and you cough or make any other noise that the phone might pick up, you will temporarily cut off the voice talent. This doesn’t cause a problem in the actual recording, but if you hear drop outs it may be because of this issue.

For this reason it is best to set yourself up in a quiet room. Try and keep conversation to a minimum once the voice talent begins their read. Alternatively, you may want to get in the habit of using the mute button. This will allow you to talk freely during the take without disrupting the talent or causing drop outs in the audio. Just be sure to un-mute when you are ready to give feedback to the talent.

Trust Your Engineer

Listening to a voice over recording via phone patch allows you to hear the most important elements in the performance, but because phone audio is not full fidelity, it’s possible to miss some of the nuances. This is why it’s important to have an audio engineer you can trust to do the recording for you. Having an extra set of ears helps to ensure that there are no plosives on hard consonants like P, T or B. Also be aware that S sounds can sometimes get lost over the phone lines as well.

The More the Merrier?

Sometimes it’s necessary to bring multiple people in on a voice over session. Getting together on the phone is generally easier than getting everyone in the studio at the same time. But beware of the ‘too many cooks’ scenario. Directions to the voice talent can end up being contradictory or confusing if multiple people are giving their feedback. Consider having one director responsible for communicating the group’s thoughts to the talent, to avoid causing confusion.

It’s also important to understand that conference calls can have some technical limitations. Multiple conference call connections can sometimes cause a loss in signal strength making it hard for parties on the other end to hear the voice talent. At ProComm Voices, we find it works best when we initiate conference calls, or when they are set up through a third party conferencing system.

Take these tips into consideration the next time you set up a voice over session. You’ll have more confidence in the read and end up with better voice overs.

1. Choose Wisely - Who you choose to deliver your message is the first and possibly most critical decision you’ll make. The voice talent should personify the attitude and style of your company, product or character and should relate to your target demographic. Keep in mind that the talent should be able to communicate your message quickly and efficiently. Choose a voice talent who can deliver your copy with few mistakes or pickups. Just because audio editing is easier and faster than ever, doesn’t mean extensive editing should be required to get the result you want.

2. Check Your Script – Before your session, read your script out loud and use a stopwatch to time it. This process will help ensure that you’ve fixed any mistakes, grammatical errors and any other stumbling blocks that the voice over talent may encounter. Using a stopwatch while reading aloud will prepare you for the possibility that you may need to cut or add copy to fit your message within the time limits required for radio and TV commercials.

3. Formatting – The way your script is formatted plays a big role in the ease in which it can be read. Double spacing allows room to make copy edits when necessary. Use of punctuation is a must. Also be aware that WRITING IN ALL CAPS IS MORE DIFFICULT TO READ. Only use ALL CAPS, bold type, italics or underlines to indicate emphasis.

4. Numbers - Using actual numbers (1,2,3) rather than writing numbers (one, two, three) is helpful. However, in the case of a monetary value that is complicated to say or that can be said multiple ways, writing the number the way you would like it said is best.

5. Communicate - Communication is what this is all about… right? Let your voice talent know right from the beginning what your ideas are for your script and the approach you had in mind. Most of the time, the copy itself will indicate what approach the voice talent will need to take. Other times several approaches could be considered viable options. This brings us to…

6. Be Flexible - While you were getting ready for the session to begin, the voice talent was also preparing. Professional voice over talent will look over the script, read it to themselves, then read it aloud and anticipate what delivery will be best based on the script, the client, and any written direction that may have been provided. Oftentimes the talent’s approach will be very close to what you were thinking. However, the talent may also deliver something slightly different or even completely unexpected. These differences could lead to results that are better then what you had imagined. Be open to what the talent brings to the table. It’s one of the reasons you chose him or her.

7. Ask For Help - The audio engineers, producers and the voice talent are all there to help you get the most out of your production. Everyone involved wants the production to be a success. If while in a recording session you are not quite sure about direction, script construction, copy edits, or have questions or concerns about the audio itself, then allow the talents and experience of these professionals to help you achieve your goals.

8. Be Specific – Vague terminology is confusing and not very helpful since it often requires further explanation anyway. “Make it blue” is not a clear direction and can be interpreted in several ways. “Bigger smile” and “descend on that word” are examples of very precise directions that the voice over talent can easily understand.

9. Keep it Positive – Everyone appreciates positive feedback. If the talent is communicating your message effectively, let them know it.

10. Make It Fun – The best and most memorable recording sessions are the fun sessions. They usually involve fun, creative scripts and people who love listening as their productions come to life. Even if the script is informational and straightforward, there is no reason the session can’t be fun while the work gets done. Sometimes, it can be so much fun… it seems strange to call it work. How’s that for getting the most out of a session?

Corky Coreson has a big voice! He is an accomplished voice talent, producer and musician. We talked to Corky about his career and his experiences in the voiceover industry. Here is what he had to say:

How long have you been in the voiceover business and what got you
started?

35 years. A friend who was a voice talent discovered he was booked for a session and was also the voice of a competitor so he passed the agency to me. The agency liked my voice so they called me for another spot later. The second spot I did was a national TV. In 1976 I got paid $700 to say “See your local Chevy dealer” …. adjusting for inflation you can see why I was hooked!

How would you characterize your style, sound, or signature read?

“Regular guy with a big announcer voice” Sounds like a conflict in terms but that’s what it seems like to me. I can order lunch and the waitress/waiter will say “You sound like someone on the radio.”
I’m often hired to be the big announcery guy or the “cheesy-50′s voice” or the movie trailer style but what I LIKE to do is the serious gentle hospital commercial type reads or even better … the documentary PBS style narrations. I don’t see my “announcery” voice to be a disqualification as being a “regular guy”  … I really sound like this.

Have you had any interesting, unique, funny or scary experiences
while voicing that you can recall?

Oh man. Where do I start?
I was once hired to do a script for a product called “The Toot Trapper”. Basically you could pass gas into this cushion without fouling the air. I was not at my most professional during that session, I couldn’t stop laughing.

Did a session with fellow voice talent Ike Willis (bassist for Frank Zappas band) for a speech therapist who wanted to help people pronounce l’s and r’s so we did lines like “Larry Logan longs to linger with his friend Ronnie Rogers at Lonnies Rib Roast Inn.”

Do you have any heroes, mentors or others in the business that you
look up to or have influenced you?

Everyone looks up to the great Don Lafontaine, master of the movie trailer. I’m no exception there. I’ve tried to emulate the style of some of the more powerful speakers I’ve heard without considering them as voice talent. Just effective speakers. High on that list are Orson Welles who does a great job of making us low register guys sound good without sounding like an announcer. One other person I’ve always admired the speaking style of is Rod Serling. Instead of projecting into your face, he sort of draws you up close to him. I love how he is subtle and yet powerful, its a magical quality that he had.

What is the best advice you can offer people who are just getting
started?

1- Read Dan Friedman’s book “Sound Advice – Voiceover From an Audio Engineer’s Perspective“.
2- Set realistic expectations. You can’t start ANY business and expect great success while you wait for the phone to ring.You have to work at this.
3- Read the Don Lafontaine chapter in “Secrets Of Voice Over Success“. He explains how important it is to understand that you are not the star, the clients wishes are the star. AND, the fact that they may become frustrated when you give them a great read in the first 5 minutes of the session. They know what they are paying you and they just can’t believe its that simple. Its a wonderful read for talent, engineers, agencies, and clients. His experience is worth consideration.

What would you be doing if you were not a voiceover talent?

I’d be playing music in bars at night (Which I already do) and I’d probably still be a DJ even though I gave that up 22 years ago.

What is the most important thing you’ve learned since you started in
this industry?

Doing great work is a part of a good life but it is not life. Nothing around our work is important enough to get upset about. Either you do a great job or you are not right for the job. It isn’t personal. Family and friends are personal. Being asked for a couple more takes isn’t.

Is there anything you would like to add?

The only thing better than the Procomm concept of creating great audio, is the Procomm staff itself. What a great group of people. I feel like all of them are friends even though I’ve only seen them in person once! My admiration for John Brooks and his ability to create not just a product but a life for all these wonderful people is immeasurable. The staff, the voice talent, the clients …. everybody wins!

Your Message

You’re about to direct a voice over session. You may be producing a TV or radio commercial. Maybe you’re producing a corporate presentation or program narration. Whatever the project is, your goal will be to get your chosen voice talent to communicate your message to your audience.  Your message could be many things, but one thing is almost certain… it is probably more than just the words written on the page. Being able to direct your voice talent to communicate both the written and unwritten messages within your script takes skill and flexibility. You must also be certain as to what your message is meant to communicate. Furthermore, it helps to have the ability to communicate effectively yourself, and a willingness to allow your talent and your engineer/producer to help you achieve your goal.

Who Will Deliver and How?

The most important thing to know and understand before beginning is… your message. What do you want your message to be? What emotions are you trying to evoke in your audience? The answer to these questions will determine how you want that message delivered and who will be best at delivering it. Your choice of talent is critical. Often a voice talent with a bold announcer’s voice will be chosen to do a role that would be better suited to someone with a regular-guy/gal voice, and vice-versa. These contradictions make it difficult to hear the message beyond the voice. Simply hearing a nice voice speak your written words is not enough. The emotion comes from how those words are delivered. As the director, you need to determine what voice is right for a role, as well as the type of delivery that will communicate your message and elicit the desired response from your audience.

Professional voice talent should be able to look over your script and know reasonably quickly what type of delivery is required. Most often the words will dictate what the message should be. However, as the talent reads the script aloud, the director should be listening for the nuances in the delivery. There is more than one way to effectively communicate a message and the director should be sure to listen carefully to those nuances and determine which communicates the message best.

Keep it Simple and Clear

When offering direction to voice talent, keep it simple and succinct. The more direction you offer at one time, the less likely you will be to get everything you need or want.

Lots of directions… often lead to contradictions. These contradictions lead to confusion. This invariably means that it will take more time to get your message where it needs to go (which possibly means spending more money as well). Directing a voice talent is analogous to being a passenger in a car and telling the driver where he or she needs to go. If the passenger tells the driver to go both right and left at the same time and at the last possible second, the driver is likely to crash.  Even when the direction is clear, offering too much direction or too much explanation, can also present a problem. Going back to the passenger and driver analogy; if the passenger tells the driver he’ll have to turn right but then continues to explain the right turn or begins to discuss what will happen after that (or really just about anything that takes the drivers attention away from the road), the driver could miss the turn entirely.

Using descriptive and unambiguous terminology is another key factor in hastening your success. Telling the talent to make it “flat”, for example, could mean many things. Does it mean to read without emotion, without inflection, or to simply read the script conversationally and not sound like an announcer? Terms such as: “dramatic”, “forceful”, “proud”, “nonchalant”, “conversational”, with “more/less energy”, or “more/less smile” are much easier to understand. Books about voice over (the same books that voice talent read) can be very helpful when directing. Many offer a more comprehensive list of terms and also explain delivery styles.

Trust Your Engineer

Some voice talents respond very well to concepts. They may want to know who the audience is or what the setting will be. Others need details, such as simple directives about inflections or emphasis on a line or word. Usually a combination of these things will be most effective. If you do not have experience directing or are unfamiliar with a particular voice talent, the engineer or producer can be a tremendous asset. Allow them to help you. One of the great things about working with an engineer or producer who is experienced in voiceover is that they often work with many of the same people on many different projects. They get to know the talent well and know how each responds to different ways of directing. If you are having trouble explaining what it is you want to hear, the engineer or producer may be able to interpret your needs and convey them to the talent in a way that the talent responds best.

Line Reading… The Last Resort

Still not able to get what you want from your voice talent? As a last resort… offer a line read. It is rarely a good idea to start a recording session by offering a line read. Line reading is usually unnecessary and can be misleading. After all, the talent was hired for more than just their voice. They were also hired for their interpretation skills. William Shatner famously coerced a director to line read for him after the director gave Mr. Shatner several unnecessary directions about his delivery. Needless to say, the director couldn’t begin to deliver the message like William Shatner, and Mr. Shatner was quick to let him know it.  That session is legendary in the voiceover community and the audio is available here.

This director surely learned that line reading can lead to big problems. Thankfully, most voice artists will not be as brazen as Mr. Shatner was with this particular director on that particular day. Many voice artists will kindly ask for a line read after they’ve made several attempts and still aren’t delivering a line the way you hear it in your head. Most voice talents are very appreciative to have been chosen to deliver your messages. They are more than willing to do what is necessary to give you the read you want. That being said, it is still a good idea to save line reading for small parts, pronunciations and when all other methods of communicating your needs have failed.

Directing a voiceover session can be the easiest and best part of your workday. If you understand your messages and communicate them to the talent and the engineers/producers as simply and clearly as possible, you’ll be able to sit back, relax and allow the talents of your chosen voice artist communicate your message to the world.

For more information about Dan Friedman visit soundadvicevo.com

Happy New Year from ProComm Voices!  Without question, the first viral video to hit the web in 2011 is voice over related.  Ted Williams, a homeless man in Columbus, Ohio, holds a sign on the side of Interstate 71 that says he has a “God-given gift of voice.”  In a deep announcer voice, he recites a few lines on the spot for the cameraman.  He has the “golden” radio voice!  The video racked up over 4 million views in the first 24 hours.

Mr. Williams has become an instant celebrity:  with an appearance on The Early Show and voice over job offers from the Cleveland Cavaliers, NFL, MTV, Kraft and more.

www.youtube.com/watch?v=R7K_UnDkpY8

Want to make your voice talent happy? Want to make your next voice over session go more smoothly, perhaps saving you some money in the process? Take an extra minute and examine your voice over script. Following a few simple rules can make your script easier to read, easier to interpret, and ultimately get you better reads in less time from the voice over talent you have hired.

White Space is Good

Voice over scripts come in all shapes and sizes and can often vary depending on the application. Some include visual cues and storyboards. They can have lots of instructions for interpretation or none at all. No matter the format, the first rule of voice over script formatting is to allow plenty of white space. Always send scripts to voice talent double spaced to give room for pencil edits in the session. Make sure the type size is large enough to read comfortably, preferably at least 12 pt. If possible, simplify scripts that have video information included. While it’s helpful to know what the visuals are, when a :30 TV script comes on 3 pages it makes it harder for the voice talent to follow.

Don’t Go CAP CRAZY

Capital letters in the online world signify raising your voice or yelling. In the voice over world they can show the talent points of emphasis, but you may not realize that a script written in ALL CAPS is harder to read. We tend to see words as familiar shapes more than individual letters. Scripts are much easier to read and perform when you use capital letters only at the beginnings of sentences and for proper nouns. This is especially true when cold reading a script that comes right at session time.

Punctuate Please

A script without good punctuation is like a road without traffic signals. Sure, you can get where you’re going, but the likelihood of crashing and burning goes way up. Without proper punctuation in a voice over script it becomes impossible to tell where thoughts begin and end and can drastically change an interpretation.

Go Easy on the Text Formatting

When used sparingly, Bold, Italics and Underlines can help the voice talent see the most important points in your copy. But be careful. It’s easy to go overboard. Most good voice talent will be able to interpret which words deserve more weight. Giving too many signals in the script will limit the range of the read and may lead the voice talent to make unnatural points of emphasis!

Numbers and Symbols

Often times scripts come in with numbers and symbols written out as words, which is important if you’re using word count as a guide to script length. Most voice talent, however, prefer to see such items written as the numbers and symbols themselves for performance purposes. It’s much easier to process and read a phone number when it’s shown as 123-4567, rather than one-two-three-four-five-six-seven. Same goes for dot-coms (.com), monetary figures ($) and symbols (%).

Is it Ralph LAUR-en or Ralph Lau-REN?

Look your script over for words that might present questions on pronunciation. This might include localities that an out of town voice talent might not necessarily know (for instance, Worcester MA, is Wʊs’tər, not WOR-chester) or people’s names (It’s LAUR-en, btw). For technical or medical scripts, consider printing out phonetic spellings to save time. If you don’t know how to pronounce some of the words yourself, there are plenty of handy websites to help out.

.doc vs .pdf

Many sessions have copy changes that come on the fly. Often voice talent read scripts directly from their laptops or computer screens in studio. Word documents allow them to type in changes as you go. Sure, you can copy and paste the text from a PDF into a word doc, but that’s one more step that might be on your dime if the session has begun.

The voice talent you hire probably is not going to complain about how the script comes in too often. They’re probably happy to have the gig, so even if you send it hand written on a napkin, most are likely to just go with it. But if you take a few extra minutes to prepare your script properly, you’ll avoid wasting precious studio time.

Recently, ProComm helped produce a fun series of spots as part of Subway’s “Brinner” (“Breakfast right on through dinner”) campaign in North Dakota.  These creative spots were written by Lee Ziegler @FlintGroup and featured ProComm voiceover talent Joshua Swanson & Jaz Adams, with John Oliver as the announcer.  Apparently, you can get breakfast all day in your dreams…

Subway Brinner spot 1
Subway Brinner spot 2
Subway Brinner spot 3
Subway Brinner spot 4
Subway Brinner spot 5
Subway Brinner spot 6

The ability to use proper microphone technique to bring out the best in your voice is indicative of a true voice over professional. Learning and utilizing proper microphone technique is incredibly helpful when it comes to editing, mixing and producing great voice overs. For a voice talent, knowing how to: avoid plosives, adjust for dynamics, and “work” the microphone so that it will enhance the emotion of the delivery are essential skills. Expertly applying these skills helps a recorded voice track fit into a mix almost effortlessly.

General Mic Positioning

Your proximity to the microphone, how near or far you are to it, affects the microphone’s frequency response. Your axis to the microphone – how centered or off center you are to the diaphragm – affects frequency response as well as how well the microphone captures your voice depending on its polar pattern. Naturally the dynamics of your delivery affect the microphone as well.

Note: “Frequency response” refers to the lows and highs in the tone of your voice (like bass and treble on a stereo) and “Polar pattern” refers to the space around the microphone’s diaphragm that picks up sound. A microphone for voice over typically (although some are adjustable) utilizes a cardioid polar pattern. Imagine a space the size and shape of a large pumpkin around the grill of the microphone: this is a cardioid pattern. “Dynamics” refers to how loud or soft your voice gets while reading a script.

Each microphone, no matter what type you are using, has a sweet spot. This is the place in proximity to the sound source where the microphone generally sounds its best. In large diaphragm condenser microphones the sweet spot is generally about 6 to 8 inches away from the diaphragm (fig. 1). This is often where your voice will sound its most natural relative to the ability of the microphone to reproduce that sound accurately.

(fig. 1)

When using a large diaphragm condenser, position yourself about 6-8 inches away from the microphone with the diaphragm slightly off center (left or right, whichever feels comfortable – fig. 3) and above your mouth (fig. 2). If your voice sounds too “nasally” try moving the microphone lower or higher. Tilt the microphone slightly backwards so that the air coming from the mouth and nose doesn’t hit the microphone’s diaphragm directly, but at an angle. Tilting the angle of the microphone helps to diffuse the impact of the air which helps to avoid plosives. This initial position will work for more common voice overs such as straight-forward announcer, narration, and promotional reads.

(fig .2)

(fig. 3)

Getting Creative

For more creative script scenarios, treat the microphone as you would someone’s ear. For a voice over that is intimate, don’t be afraid to move in closer. Getting closer to the microphone will enhance the lower and higher frequencies of your voice, which is perfect for whispery, breathy, romantic or seductive reads. For reads that require projection, such as a shouting car spot or a voice over where you are supposed to sound as though you are calling out from another room, it is best to turn away or increase the distance between you and the microphone. In this type of scenario, creating physical distance during recording makes the scene sound more natural when mixing. In some situations, you can even move to the back side of the microphone.

Avoiding Plosives

One basic but very important element to good microphone technique is being able to restrain plosives. Hard consonants such as “t” and “p” can cause the diaphragm of the microphone to “pop”. At worst, this “pop” can potentially damage the microphone and at best it is a guarantee that another take will have to be done. Plosives can also occur at the ends of words where a consonant requires an expulsion of air such as with “f”. Tilting the microphone backwards, as previously described, can help but there are also several other techniques and tools for avoiding plosives such as: skewing your mouth or head away from the microphone, understating the consonant, using a “pop filter” (fig. 4) and/or using a “wind sock”. Be aware that when using a wind sock (this is a foam cover that goes over the head of the microphone), the sound of the microphone can be somewhat altered. High frequency response and sibilance is often diminished and therefore proper technique in combination with a pop filter is a much better solution.

(fig. 4)

Good technique takes practice. Record yourself reading various types of copy from various distances in proximity to your microphone. By doing this, you will learn how your microphone is affecting your voice under various conditions and how it improves, or impairs, your ability to communicate the intended feeling that goes with the message.

Every now and then a commercial comes along that hits the air and captures everyone’s attention. Right now, it seems like everyone wants to know who provides the southern voice behind that charming-but-a-little-ditzy pothole in the latest GEICO commercial. It turns out it’s Dayci Brookshire, a SAG/AFTRA actress who hails from North Carolina but currently resides in New York.

….love that voice – nicely done. Now, the only question is whether she’ll get an extended 15 minutes of fame like the GEICO Cavemen?

The internet is a wonderful thing. (Stating the obvious is a strength of mine, btw.)

But seriously, we take for granted the fact that any question or random curiosity that pops into your head at any given time can probably be answered with a couple keystrokes. This comes in handy for just about any business and the business of recording and producing voice overs is no exception.

The other day, I was thinking about some of the sites that I use on a regular basis for voice over sessions and thought it would be useful to share, and perhaps find out what sites others rely on. I also took an informal survey from some of the other engineers here at ProComm to see what sites they use in the voice over studio.

One of the biggest time wasters in the studio is having to track down or verify pronunciations for unfamiliar words. That’s why I always have a link to Answers.com handy. You can look up any word and hear it’s correct pronunciation with a click. it also includes some other useful tools such as a Thesaurus and Encyclopedia.

A site that Dan Friedman likes to use is Dictionary.com. It offers similar features and also includes a translator which can come in handy on those foreign voice over sessions.

Another reference for finding out pronunciations is a site I came across the other day – ForVO.com. It bills itself as ‘All the Words in the World. Pronounced.’ Might be a bit of an overstatement, but the unique thing about this site is that it’s wiki-driven. Users can contribute their voices to pronounce words that might be missing and fill in the gaps. The drawback to that is you get contributions that may or may not be verified and you also get regionalisms. Try ‘aluminum’. The gent from Spain appears to be trying to make a point:)

Have an international ISDN session coming up? you may want to have this link to TimeandDate.com handy. It gives quick answers for international dialing codes to any country.

Youtube comes in handy when the client wants the voice talent to sound like that guy/girl/talking Chihuahua in that movie/TV show/commercial/viral video. Another good character reference site is Hulu.com

ProComm producer Bob Peck likes to visit the websites of the companies for whom he’s producing voice overs, to get a feel for their brand and style.

These are some of our ‘go to’ sites. Do you have a favorite site that you rely on in the voice over studio?