WOW, all I can say is wow. Today we received a very detailed voice over audition from a relatively new client. For voice over, typically you have the rate, usage, character or role descriptions and the script. For today’s project, not only was the above all listed, but there were two roles with two different usages at two different rates. Then let’s add the pronunciation video for the key words that were in another language, yet the talent desired were American.
Let’s dissect what was received:
- The pronunciation of the key words for these spots were all over the place. It is highly assumable that the majority of the talent did not even play the audio reference link, which could potentially eliminate them from the start.
- The read itself I did not highlight on my end. I did, however, put in a bright colored bolded font at the top of the audition to READ ALL INSTRUCTIONS BEFORE RECORDING. Clearly that did not happen, because the reads that were received were all over the place. The biggest mistake was these were read as a corporate read. The scripts were commercials, not corporate. Within the mass of words for these spots, the two defining words were: American that should be sexy. These were listed under the Specs part of the job description. The scary thing is if indeed all of the talent thought they were sounding SEXY, they need some extreme help in their romance department of their lives.
- In larger bolder print, the instructions stated NOT to mimic the reference video. Many talent indeed mimicked the sound they heard. Only 3-4 talent actually have that smooth, flowing sort of voice. The goal is to make it your own, not to duplicate a specific sound.
So of the talent who submitted for this particular job, maybe 1/2 of the submitted talent were sent to the client. In the big world of voice over, each time you submit, it’s your one chance to win over the decision makers who do the hiring for their brand. Take the time to read everything sent to you and make it stand out. Do not sound like the other 44 people who submitted, make it your own. Think about how everyone else would start out reading the script, and make yours different, a pause, a higher or lower pitch, a smile, anything to stand out from the rest of the crowd. If you need help with your love life to sound sexy, here’s some help: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQEDN98v8pA