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Five Voice Acting Tips for Begginners

From animated movies to audiobooks to videogames, voice actors have played a central role in the media we love for just short of a century. It’s no wonder people want to break into the profession! Becoming a good voice actor takes time and practice, but you need to start somewhere. Here are five tips to teach you the basics.

Warm up your voice. Don’t forget that your vocal chords are muscles and need a good stretch before working out. Why strain them when you can get a great performance after a few exercises? Try yawning a few times. It reduces throat constriction, and stretches your jaw. Humming is another great warm up, because it eases your facial muscles and creates a resonant sound. Vocal exercises help with avoiding permanent vocal damage, so do your research and find others that will improve your sound as well. 

Think about when you take breaths. Look over your script for commas and punctuation marks before reading it aloud, because those are when you want to be taking in oxygen. While you’re at it, practice taking in deep breaths with your diaphagm and slowly letting air out. Mastering this will help your line delivery be clear for longer before it turns throaty. 

Put what you are working on in the context of the bigger project it’s part of. Often what you’re reading is only a small part of a larger scheme. For example, when voicing an ad think about how the other advertisements in the series are similar. Make sure that your work mirrors the overarching tone and style of a project. This is especially important when auditioning. Do your homework.  

Meme published on makeameme.org

Be sure to have energy when you’re acting. If you aren’t engaged a performance will come across flat or uninspiring. Even if you’re only performing a few lines. However, voice acting isn’t the same thing as stage acting. Being so energetic that your movements and facial expressions become exaggerated ruins performances. Find the sweet spot between being lethargic and erratic. 

Meme published on Yarn

The last tip I have for you is to stay hydrated. It’s the easiest thing to accomplish on this list, and the easiest to forget. Be sure that the cells in your vocal box have the proper amount of water to be resilient to heavy usage. Without water, your vocal folds get tired faster, and take longer to recover—which means less time voice acting. 

Once you’ve put to use these tips, check out information others have for improving voice overs.