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Category: Directing

  1. Cultural Context in Voiceovers

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    Hello fellow voicers, 

     

    This week I ended up, as often happens, having a chat with a client that was significantly longer than the voice session itself. I have to say that I really love that part of the job. I love voicing because for those delicious *checks logs - 10 minutes the client and their client are listening to me and my voice only. They are listening with such great attention that I do feel that I am broadcasting to the whole world. And come on, how great is that?!

     

    But then, the bit that always totally makes me purr with pure joy is that bit where I get to chat to the client. In this case, their client had signed off and we stayed online having a jolly good chat. This particular job got us both thinking. Everyone always assumes that being a good voice is just that “BEING A GOOD VOICE” but what my client and I realised is that actually the voice is there to be more than a voice. Yes, there is a lot of character work, ability to improvise, ability to take direction, ability to inhibit different characters and if you are recording from your own studio you are directing, editing, sound engineering, voicing and being an actual person as well. Phew, its making me hungry just thinking about that and I do this on a daily basis. 

     Voices bring more than voice to the table

    But there is something else that the voice brings with them. A wealth of cultural character contextual experience. What’s that then chica? I hear you cry. Well, let me tell you. I work a lot these days as a bilingual and third language voice over. I often voice in my Chilean Spanish accent for clients that want an authentic LATAM accented voice. Yes, I was born in the UK but I am made by my cultural experiences and of those there are many. And because of that my role as a voice becomes bigger than voice, I become an advocate for cultural context. My wonderful client and I chatted so long about this that she recommended I write about this rather niche but very important VoiceOver activity. Thanks Ellie! 

     

    Lorraine Ansell World Dubbing Voiceover Microphone

    We live in a world that many large companies are journeying towards a more diverse and multicultural setting for many of their internal and external operational and marketing components. So we see training programmes to on board and educate staff, adverts and copy aimed at building a connection with people. This copy will often be translated into many languages - big tick! This acknowledgement that staff and clients are all different and diverse is excellent. However and this is where the experience of a multi cultural and bilingual voice comes in, let’s zoom into that cultural context. 

     

    Cultural Context in voiceovers

    I read a lot of scripts written in one language and translated into another. So far so good. Or is it? Actually I would say 99% of the time only a translation has been achieved. But what about context? There seems to rarely be an acknowledgement of actual context for copy or character. I recently had to play “Carolina” (names have been changed to protect the client) and I spoke her words. The end client came and re-directed me and gave me notes to deliver the lines differently. I spoke those lines how they wanted and they loved it. But to me, it felt off. Why? Because the deliver of the copy was for another culture. Specifically American. I didn’t feel it was what my character being hispanic would have done. It would not have been in their emotional or professional wheel house. Now of course “Carolina” may have delivered her lines in an American character way but given that she was still heavily hispanically accented then I doubt she would have grown up in home, school, college environment that would have meant her delivery would have been as the client had directed. 

     

    Another example - I played an American this time for a very big financial company. The copy was written in UK English and I also did the UK accent for it. So when they said “ohhh can you do American” I swiftly delivered my lines. However two words stood out for me and they were “Of course” In all my years working with Americans and the American market and all the training on my American accent I have rarely heard any of them say “Of course” I am willing to be proven wrong on this but what felt and sounded much better was “for sure” The British copy and person would of course have said of course. But in the American accent, the American character it felt odd. I piped up that “For Sure” would be more appropriate for the context. Everyone directing was British so to be honest we really didn’t know. So I ended up recording two versions and yep you’ve guessed it - the American market went with the version with “For sure”. 

     

     

    “How are you? I’m fine, how are you?” Likely that you are a brit reading this and you will recognise this saying. Every conversation pretty much starts like this. This example comes from a German friend who was horrified when she starting working in the UK that she was asked this when she had to phone a supplier. “But this question’ she said her face still a horrified mask on it “it is so personal” I pondered a bit because I raised as a good little Brit saw nothing wrong at all with the question. And then it clicked. My friend had not realised that far from being a personal question it was simply a way of greeting someone. In the UK we would normally get past those social niceties and then get to it. But in Germany I am told that no one goes around asking people how you are because it is very personal and no thank you very much am not telling you about my in grown toenail. This does explain why perhaps whenever I was in Germany before this chat with my mate, people would look at me oddly when I would ask them how they were! 

     

    And one final example. This one I am reliably informed by from some Italian mates who regularly stop and look bemused whenever they come across it. We at Brits hear it quite a lot, summer comes and suddenly advertisers talk about strawberries and cream, gin and tonic and picnics and dining “al fresco”. It’s been used so much that I hear people in town talking about going out “al fresco” and “ohhh time for some drinkies al fresco.” Now while the phrase does kinda mean certain things - fresco for example is fresh or can be cool as in fridge cool. But the phrase “alfresco” means to an Italian “in prison.” Ohhhhhh whoops. Now you will think about dining al fresco in a very different way. 

    Lorraine Ansell Far Cry 

    So a voice does much more than bring words to life, they bring cultural context to life. Language and culture is as complex as characters and I would say to all clients, recognise such complexities and cultural norms and go from translating to localisaing with real attention to cultural context. That is what my fab client is aware of and what I as a VoiceOver always look out for. Context is always queen! 

     

    Keep talking,

    xx 

  2. What vocal techniques to use as a VoiceOver actor?

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    I get asked this question a lot as a busy voiceover artist. From my recording studio over many years I have taken time to work out what vocal work outs and techniques work for me. Today I shall break a few of them down. 

    Anatomy of my voice

    It has taken me years of experience both as an actor, director and producer to fully understand where my voice works best and in what genre of voice over work. I have worked with voice coaches and well as singing coaches and experts to work out how to exercise my voice. I have picked up a few books and this is one I am revisiting. This is a great book about the voice and is a coherant guide. 

    Anatomy of Lorraine Ansell Voice

     

    My top voice techniques

    1. Breathing - it seems obvious but we often forget to breathe fully and out slowly and deeply. This breathing training works really well and yes practice makes perfect but I love it as it allows me to reduce stress and anxiety as well as voicing long complicated e-learning paragraphs or long narrative dialogue.

    2. Lip Trills - or horse lips, depending on how you prefer to call this technique. This relaxes and wakes up the lips which is how we articulate letters and words. I find them a challenge but works well to emphasise the breathe support we often here in the voice world. 

    3. SOVT - straw - this is a straw that you blow into either in air but I prefer in a water bottle. This helps me with a back pressure which helps strengthen my vocal cords and exercises my support. I have found that the pressure really helps with head voice and opening up my sinuses. Win win all round 

    Lorraine Ansell Voice Director and experienced presenter

    So when you require a voice that works out, then please get in touch. 

    Keep chatting

    xx

  3. My top vocal care tips for VoiceOver

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    Your voice is unique and amazing. It really is. It is a tool, an instrument and a way to communicate with others. And like any other instrument care needs to be applied. But what sort of care do voiceover artists need to be mindful of? Well check out my top 5 vocal care tips.

    Lorraine Ansell voice actor with Cans in the studio

    Top Five Voiceover Tips

    Chatting away all day in the booth can be exhausting and I like to prepare by having a good sleep, good diet and good fun. But let's get down to it. These are my top five tips for caring for your voice. 

    1. Exercise - both generally corporally and then specifically your mouth, larynx and tongue. Exercising is a great way to keep in over all good shape and mental health which is why I dance, do cardio and strength classes and do daily mouth warm ups with my SOVT straw. 

    2. Practise - yes practise makes perfect. So whether it is an accent for an anime character or a song for an audition, make your training count and work towards your goal. It does take practise and effort and time.

    3. Hydrate - talking is hard, thirsty work and spending hours in the booth or not means you will expel water vapour. Your layrnx like your monstera plant loves to keep moisture and regulate itself so keep drinking, eating lush food and enjoy your water!

    4. Research - take the time to find out about what you and your voice can do and can't do. Take time to know what you like to do and want to do. There are over 20 genres of voiceover so which ones do you want to work on. Read, talk, ask questions to find out. 

    5. Be your best - simple as. Whether it is an audition, a chat, an email, a job in the recording studio, simply be your best. And remember that we are human and not machines so some days we will be smashing it all over the place and others, we'll be in bed watching TV. Both are fine, we need both to be who we are. 

    Lorraine Ansell goes live in the booth

    What skills do I need for voiceover work?

    There are lots from acting to knowing how to edit audio. These can all be learnt from courses online or asking others for help and resources. But voice work is more than skill and talent. Being a voice actor is knowing yourself, knowing your capbilities, knowing your own voice and work. By knowing this, you know who you are and how unique your are. 

    And always remember to make it fun, voice jobs are great when you make that mind set change. 

    Keep chatting,

    xx

  4. Top 2020 Voiceover Trends

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    Let's face it, 2020 has been that buzz on the voiceover sound chain that well, none of us could figure out the source. As with every year there have been positives though very much coated so densly that it has been a struggle to unearth them all. For this final post of the year, I'm going to take a look at a few voiceover trends that I saw and what I hope for next year. 

    Lorraine Ansell-in a recording studio

    How did VoiceOver change in 2020? 

    I remember how we all worried about the Millenium bug about 20 years ago and how that would affect everything from banking systems to university records. This year however it was an all together different bug we all worried about. There have been many facets this year and we have all faced them with (insert your most used emotion here). Times have been hard for many industries and in particular for the creative arts. My heart has broken many times as shows either in theatres or TV have been cancelled or postponed. This year really hit hard. Many friends and colleagues lost jobs, lost survival jobs. A show I was invovled in was postponed and we hope that the show will go back on. While I could spend hours commenting on many aspects of the year instead I am going to concentrate on how I saw the voiceover world ebb and flow in the current of COVID-19. 

     

    The voiceover first quarter was strong 

    In the first quarter, voice over trends seemed to be following the usual pattern. Back to work and projects with industries working with their creative agencies to push forward. So far, so normal. Productions had a normal pace to them maybe even a slight swagger as we carried on as usual. I found that bookings were the same and projects and productions with longer outlooks still looked good. Voices that were popular including youthful urban voices full of millenial promise. I particularly like the cadence and musicality of this voice and that almost throw away ending of sentances. 

     

    "We'll get back to you in a few weeks"

     That was the first real inkling of change. The emails and phonecalls were starting to sound familiar with this phrase and then....Then we all went into lockdown and that was when the emails, phones, messages stopped. It was quieter than a long pause in the voiceover recording booth waiting on direction and notes, nervously looking at their copy. 

    Here while clients went quiet and we all scratched our heads a bit, actors and creatives went into pre-production overdrive. Many of them turned to the jolly art that is voiceover work in hopes of getting work. I took many calls from voices (new and old) looking for advice, reassurance and maybe a bit of a hug. At that point all from afar. 

    Are there any voices out there?

    And then, slowly the tide turned. Clients sprung back to life as we realised this was no "two week" or "month long" break. This was now our, (pausing for dramatic effect), the new normal in unprecedented times. Yes, many of us have repeated that phrase a few times in the home studio. And now, the voices chosen were for more public announcements and they were usually male, older, with a strong air of authority. Taking their cue from Mark Strong's vocal gravitas, adverts became more about staying safe than playing. So in the UK marketplace, campaigns in times of crisis seem to go for this character of voice. 

    Christmas at sea

    As the summer crept by, work picked up and those shelved projects were dusted off and off we went again. I found myself with a few jobs coming in, truthfully far less than the usual jobs at this time of year but still grateful that my clients were still trading. And as we heading to Christmas, jobs and copy while tinged with a safe messaging were more upbeat. The "family" of voices came into play much more with diversity being key and with advert copy trying to bring hope into things. The usual Christmas adverts focused on family and the voices I heard were wonderfully diverse. This mix I feel, will continue well into 2021. 

     

    Me in the booth with microphone

    2021 voice over artist hopes

    My personal wish is that our wonderful creative industry picks up and runs with it (all from our home studios of course). Or even from a studio further afield once tier levels even out. I hope to direct more voiceover projects, ensuring copy is tight and delivered well. As ever the e-learning trends remain strong simply because more people are working from home and zooming in and out of meeting is tiring. Maybe more audio based training will mean less fatigue. I hope that diverse voices remain a key factor. And I hope that more production companies realise that need for audio as a way of connecting us all together when we still remain very much enable to connect physically. 

    I look forward to working with creative clients globally, with dedicated and fun voices and with copy that makes me think about things more. 

    May you all have a better 2021!

    xx

  5. How to you voice to a Millennial Audience?

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    “I like it. Kinda. Usually!” This is the phrase that captures the essence of attracting the millennial ear. It is one that I am hearing more and more these days. This new trend is appearing in all sorts of audio productions but mainly in commercials and corporate voiceover productions. Voiceovers by their very nature are no stranger to trends and over the decades we have seen the move from big bold advertising announcements proclaiming the benefits of a brand, product and service to the witty/sassy mood of the nineties to the sharpness of the naughties and finally now to a distracted, yeah whatever type trend. This new trend is what the most amazing Nancy Wolfson has dubbed the “Millennial Float” 

    Lorraine Ansell Voice over Artist

    Over the past year and certainly in the past month I have been in many sessions where the end client has sought something less “sales-y” – it is hard at times to decipher what clients want but suffice to say that by sales-y they are usually not wanting to impress the sales patter tone onto the audience. It also means they don’t want an announcer style voice. Now we have long been used to offering an authentic voice and the melodies and volumes that go along with that.

    Millenial Voice Trends

    However the trend seems to be a call for a voice that is quite flat, with little or no colour and rather “meh”. It also calls for a slight vocal fry to add to the laid back nature of this voice. I am unsure as to where it first started to trend but I am finding more and more clients asking for this laid back approach to voicing. Voiceover follows the trends and I am inferring that this is what clients feel that their target audiences (usually the young that have access to disposable income) are speaking and so identify with. i.e. the millennials – the terms refers to people born between 1981 – 1996.

     A great voice actor is one that can appreciate a change in trend and voice what the client is after. Changing the intention is certainly a challenge and I have found it hard work. Why is this? After decades of studying and working, voicing with a bright pleasant and welcoming intention it becomes somehow ingrained and the norm. Now all this has to be unlearnt and the performance must reflect what is happening in the real world. The trend is to be up, but pensive and then well if you want style to it and so I am sure we will find this approach in many audio productions and voiceover recordings as we head towards 2020 and beyond.

    Voice recording in progress

  6. Do you Have Natural Voice Over Talent? See if you Have What it Takes

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    Natural Voice Over talent

    A great voice over has the power to completely transform a video or audio book. Thanks to their speaking skills and acting talents, voiceovers are able to conjure moods, evoke sadness or happy memories, bring characters to life and capture the audience in an almost spellbinding way.

    There are no limits for voiceovers with unique gifts, and with so many types of VO work to choose from in this industry you won’t fail to find a genre you don’t enjoy. So do you have voice over talent that’s worth celebrating? Keep reading to see if you have what it takes.

    Here I’ve put together a list of qualities every great voice over artist should have to succeed in the industry.

    1. Creativity

    A good narrator or storyteller must be able to capture the audience. To do this, you have to enjoy speaking confidently and letting your creative side run wild. It will be obvious to the audience if the narrator is not enjoying themselves because what they are listening to will come across a little lifeless.

    Great voice overs can hold the audience under a spell, taking them on an emotional journey through the highs and lows of the tale. This is where the VO’s creative side comes out too.  You should be able to capture the essence of every character by adding your own inflections to the way that they speak.  If you are unable to imagine what a character may sound like, then you will struggle to bring that character to life.

    2. Good articulation

    There is a fine art to articulating a script perfectly. If a VO under-articulates their words they can sound tired and the performance may appear quite dull. On the other hand, over-articulation of words can sound unnatural, over-rehearsed and generally not believable.

    Good narration calls for finding a balance between the two and adapting the style to suit the script. After all, a character in an audiobook may not require the same articulation as the voice over for an instructional corporate video.

     Much like an actor who rehearses their lines for a play, a professional VO will spend time reading and re-reading their script to ensure they understand what is required of them and what sounds best to fit the story.

    3. Intuitive pacing

    A good voice actor knows how to pace the dialogue to suit the script. For example, they may use subtle pauses for added realism, or they may speed up the dialogue for intense action scenes.

    In an audio book little pauses and breaths can add a human touch to the character, or perhaps extra intensity to a descriptive scene. Alternatively, in a corporate video for instance, the steady speed and slight pauses give the listener time to take in what they have just heard.

    A natural pacing ability can help the VOA immerse their audience in the story while making the characters sound more realistic. A VO that has this talent will know the best times to use these pauses and will know not to over do it. The listener should never be aware of these subtle stops because it should sound natural and be in keeping with the pace.

    4. Knowing the best time to use an accent

    Firstly, it’s not necessary for VO’s to have 20 different accents in their repertoire, but it can help if you can deliver 2-3 different believable accents when required.  But again, this isn’t essential because everyone has an accent of his or her own.

    Good voice actors know when a character or voice over role is suited to them and have the ability to take their accent out of the narration and deliver a more neutral diction when required.

    5. Consistency

    Some voice over work, such as audio book and film narration, can take several days to complete. One of the pressures voice actors have to work with is fatigue or waning concentration, and how this can take its toll on the actor’s voice.

    Being able to provide consistent voice over throughout an entire book or film is a much-admired quality of a VOA. Try listening to a recording of yourself reading a book out loud from cover to cover to see if you have the stamina to produce a consistent performance.

    Do you have what it takes?

    If you have the above qualities and enjoy bringing characters to life through speech, or you particularly enjoy acting and reading aloud, then voice-over work may be for you.

    As I mentioned earlier, there are many different styles of voice acting and productions to get into.  If you are interested in creating voice over work, but don’t know which area is right for you, then here are a few ways to try and find your own sound.

    1. Practice—Read out loud and then read out loud some more. You can never practice too much. Find your favourite books and perform them as if you were producing an audio book. If there are characters, think about their identity and how they might sound. Have a go at creating accents for them and what the pace of their dialogue might be.  

    2. Listen—If you’re interested in this industry then you may already be aware of the amount of voice-over work we here on a daily basis. If not, pay close attention to adverts and online videos and listen to the voice over to get a better idea of how they sound. Listen to the pacing, the articulation and subtle nuances. Click for some of my examples

    3. Record—If you are keen to get into the industry, it may be worth investing in some quality recording equipment. These days, quality recording equipment is readily available at affordable prices.  Start with the basic equipment and practice recording various productions, whether its explainer videos or audio books, then play them back to see how you sound.

    Remember, have fun and enjoy every part you play.