Welcome to episode 43 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!

As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:

http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast

This is the final part of my interview with my good friend and commercial voice over casting director, Juan Carlos Bagnell. You can find more of his insights on his blog at www.someaudioguy.com.

To wrap up our discussion Juan explains how to handle seemingly contradictory directions when voice acting in commercials. He stresses the importance of working with what’s actually in the copy and not trying to second guess what you think the producers are looking for. He also explains how to take advantage of the current trend of using celebrities in voice over and how understanding the appeal of celebrity branding can help you position yourself as a voice actor. I’m sure you’ll find it helpful!

Thanks for listening!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #43 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 42 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!

As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:

http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast

In this episode, I continue my interview with my good friend and commercial voice over casting director, Juan Carlos Bagnell. You can find more of his insights on his blog at www.someaudioguy.com. In this segment, we discuss some of the most common misconceptions about commercial voice over and how to avoid them. Including:

• The “quality” of your voice is not as important as having a business mindset.
• Does your plan for getting into voice over pass the “bank loan” test?
• There is no sound bite solution to becoming successful in professional voice over.

Later, we talk about Juan’s approach to teaching how to succeed in commercials, including his method of analyzing scripts and the importance of understanding the advertising mindset. It’s very insightful!

Thanks for listening!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #42 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 41 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!

As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:

http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast

For this episode, I’m going to be interviewing my good friend and commercial voice over casting director, Juan Carlos Bagnell. Juan is perfectly positioned to give some amazing insight on what it takes to be successful as a voice actor in commercials. He started working at Abrams Artists, one of the top voice over agencies in Los Angeles, and then became a casting director at one of the top voice over casting offices in LA, the Voicecaster in Burbank. Juan has worked with some of the most talented voice actors in the business and he’s fantastic at articulating his ideas and advice on voice acting. I’m honored to have him on the podcast, and I hope you enjoy hearing from him too!

One of the best things you can do to improve your chances of booking a voice over job is to understand the mindset of the people producing and casting a project. Juan has been part of that process thousands of times and has learned his lessons in the trenches. His knowledge of the current trends in commercials comes from hands-on experience. He also runs a fantastic blog on voice over at www.someaudioguy.com. You should definitely check it out! In the next interview, Juan and I will address some common misconceptions about commercial voice over, and we’ll discuss some important ideas to keep in mind as you approach commercials.

Thanks for listening!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #41 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 38 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!

As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:

http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast

For this episode, I thought I would play another of the voicemail questions that I’ve been getting from my listeners and do my best to answer it. For those who don’t know, in past episodes,  I’ve given out a phone number where you can call in and leave me a question as a voicemail. From time to time, I’ll pick the most relevant questions I receive and answer them here on the podcast.

For this round of Q & A, I answer a question from Charles of Reno, NV. Charles wants to know how to find reputable coaches and classes who can help him develop both his voice acting craft and his knowledge of the business, including information about demos.

Charles may not have realized it, but his question speaks to the emotional core of why I created this blog and podcast in the first place. I’ve been fortunate enough to have a number of amazing teachers in my life to whom I am eternally grateful, and as a teacher myself, I take the student-teacher relationship very seriously. If an earnest, sincere student comes to a teacher for guidance and training, then I believe it is vitally important for the teacher to do their very best, using whatever skills they have, to help that student grow as much as possible. So I spend this episode answering Charles’ question in detail. I hope you and the many others I have encountered who have asked this same question will find my response useful.

In this podcast, I not only explain how to find coaches and classes, I also outline 4 criteria for evaluating them:

1. Does the coach work in the field you’re pursuing?
2. Does the coach’s teaching style appeal to you?
3. Do other people recommend that coach?
4. Be wary of all-in-one courses that offer you a demo at the end of the course.

I think you’ll find my in-depth explanation of these criteria very helpful.

As a reminder, the number where you can call in and ask your question is:

323-696-2655.

Please don’t forget to include your first name and what city in the world you’re calling from. I’m looking forward to hearing from you!

I also reference a number of websites in my podcast. I’ll list those websites here:

Voice Over Resource Guide (VORG): http://www.voiceoverresourceguide.com
Internet Movie Database (IMDB): http://www.imdb.com
Voice Acting Alliance (VAA): http://www.voiceactingalliance.com
UPDATE: It has been brought to my attention that the Voice Acting Alliance is no longer functional. However there is a new message board called:
VoiceActing.Space: http://voiceacting.space
Voice Acting Club (VAC): http://www.voiceactingclub.com
Voiceover Universe (VU): http://www.voiceoveruniverse.com

Thanks for listening!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #38 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 32 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!

As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:

http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast

For this episode, I thought I would answer some more of the voicemail questions that I’ve been getting from my listeners.

For those who don’t know, in episode 28 I gave out a phone number where you can call in and leave me a question as a voicemail. From time to time, I’ll pick the most relevant questions I receive and answer them here on the podcast.

For this round of Q & A, I answer two of my listeners, Taylor from Bardstown, KY and Beau from Soham, England.

1. Taylor asks me what should she put on her first demo, original characters or pre-established ones that agents are familiar with?
2. Beau asks me what do I do when I have to play a character and I don’t understand the story?

I think you’ll find the answers very helpful.

As a reminder, the number where you can call in and ask your question is:

323-696-2655.

Please don’t forget to include your first name and what city in the world you’re calling from. I’m looking forward to hearing from you!

Thanks for listening!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #32 Here (MP3)

Welcome to episode 28 of the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with yours truly, Crispin Freeman!

As always, you can listen to the podcast using the player above, or download the mp3 using the link at the bottom of this blog post. The podcast is also available via the iTunes Store online. Just follow this link to view the podcast in iTunes:

http://www.voiceactingmastery.com/podcast

In this episode, I want to talk about voice over demos. Demos are one of the most important and at the same time most misunderstood components of a voice acting career. Your demo is important because it represents you as a voice actor. It’s your calling card in the same way that an on camera actor uses a headshot to represent him or herself. However, many people, especially those just starting out voice acting, misunderstand what it takes to make a good demo and end up falling into at least one of the following 3 major demo mistakes. Let me help you avoid those pitfalls.

Here are the Top 3 Demo Mistakes:

1. Making Your Demo Too Soon
2. Submitting Unprofessional Demos to Agents
3. Not Leading with Your Strong Suit in Your Demo

I expand in detail on each of these three subjects in the podcast episode. You may find the information surprising!

I hope you enjoy the episode!

One other thing. I’d like to make this podcast more interactive, and I’d like to hear from you, my listeners. So I’ve decided to give you a chance to get heard on the Voice Acting Mastery Podcast! I’ve created a phone number where you can call in and ask any questions you might have, or leave any thoughts or thank you messages you feel inspired to record for me. Just leave me a voice mail with your first name, what city in the world you’re calling from, and your question or message about the podcast. I’ll do my best to pick the most relevant questions or comments, play them on the podcast and respond to them.

The number where you can call in and ask your question is:
323-696-2655.

Please don’t forget to include your first name and what city in the world you’re calling from. I’m looking forward to hearing from you!

Download Voice Acting Mastery Episode #28 Here (MP3)