theiasfrequency

[theiasfrequency]

[ENTRY 004] Showcasing What YOU Could Be Known For

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

Before landing a job, when it comes to the creatives, potential clients would usually need to see or hear a demo reel.

Voice artistry is one of these creative fields where demo reels are basically a requirement when trying to land a role or job. 

These demo reels showcase the voice artist's ability—what they can do with their voice best. It's used by potential clients as a basis for whether or not that individual is who they're looking for in creating their project.

It's crucial to note, though, that, in making demo reels, never do voice impressions.

Sure, it's impressive, but impressions of different characters are not something that can help land a job. Demo reels exhibit the variety of a voice artist’s original takes on different scripts.

Keyword: originality.

What good is being able to mimic an iconic voice when you can't use your voice in your own way? 

While it’s fine to take notes on the way different voice artists speak when doing voice overs or character voices, they should never be directly imitated. 

Make your voice your own. If that makes sense.

If we look back on my first entry of my CVAP posts, I talked about one of the things I learned—that being the fact that it doesn’t matter how much you can mimic, it’s how many voices you can make. 

And this is especially true when recording demo reels. 

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

[theiasfrequency]

[ENTRY 003] Getting Through the “Boring Phase”

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

Most, if not all things we get ourselves into are bound to have a "boring phase."

I, myself, have undergone many of these "boring phases." And the reason why I'm well aware of this is because... well, I have an unhealthy habit of being easily demotivated after a few weeks of hyper focusing on something.

It's unpredictable. That, and imposter syndrome have been two of the dangerous adversities I face whenever I tread a path towards something I want to do. I get pulled down so deep that I lose my drive, and sometimes end up forgetting about it all.

I admit, I have this lingering trepidation—quiet, but it's there—that the same thing might happen with voice acting.

But I learned that, while the boring phase is inevitable, there will always be ways to overcome it.

You can try out many ways to get motivated or inspired again: passion projects, doing something for you instead of when you usually do stuff for others (such as clientele); rest is a good thing too, every once in a while, as you think back on your reason for starting down this road.

Another thing I learned, though, that overcoming this phase can be a tough process.

Which is why I'll work hard to put up with it. Especially since voice acting is something I've really been meaning to learn and master.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

[theiasfrequency]

[ENTRY 002] Finding Your Niche: Prioritizing—a Temporary Singularity

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

Voice artistry covers a wide array of careers; from broadcasting to audiobooks and character voicing.

However, during the second session of CVAP Batch 26, I found out that it isn't advisable to cover everything all at once. This is why voice artists identify their niche.

Somehow, this resonated with me outside the field of voice artistry. But we'll get to that later.

Now, a niche was described in the session as something of a "target market"—something on-brand for the voice artist. Generally, they're divided into two: "voiceovers," and "character voices."

Voiceovers refer to broadcasting, public service announcements, and a lot of other things you hear in your day-to-day that have been common enough for some people to likely not pay any particular mind to it. Character voices, as the name states, refers to when a voice artist gives voice to a character in any piece of media.

When stepping into the world of voice acting, you have to figure out what your niche is, so that you are able to better place your attention on it. It's never a matter of how much you can do, but how well you can do one of them.

Admittedly, I've been living with the opposite mindset.

I tend to multitask because I find it easier to pause and figure out an issue with one project later and occupy myself with another. That way, I can at least make do with the time I spend collecting myself before continuing the other task.

And this mindset doesn't just affect how I comply with requirements.

I tend to like exploring new things that pique my interest; drawing, music, acting, et cetera... Which is why I occasionally end up not being able to fully commit to one of them.

While multitasking does promise progress, it will always pale in comparison to when we work one at a time with our undivided attention.

However, I did learn that, if I were to pursue voice acting, I should know to identify and stick to my niche—what I really enjoy about this craft. That I shouldn't just be running around trying to specialize in both voiceovers and character voices.

Fortunately, I'd say I've been quite confident that I've known what that is long before knowing about having a niche.

Whether the performance art involves being onstage or performing behind a screen, it’s always something I enjoy. I’m something of an emotional person, and I like the idea of being able to channel emotions into what I do. And I figured that the best way to do so is to develop my skills in the more artistic fields, such as voice acting.

Or, more specifically, character voicing.

Thus, that’s what I plan on focusing on improving if I am to continue down this path.

Although, I also learned another thing: once you find out your niche, it doesn’t mean you should restrict yourself to just that. You should always be open to dabbling in the other forms of voice artistry, slowly easing yourself out of what could have become your comfort zone, until you find yourself eventually mastering other types of voice acting, sprinkling even just a bit of variety into the mix.

You could say that doing different things at the same time and setting your eyes on just one thing are two extremes, so it’s important to feel around for the middle ground.

── ⋆⋅☆⋅⋆ ──

[theiasfrequency]

[ENTRY 001] Voice Acting: Make, Not Just Mimic

── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──

I was mostly under the impression that voice artists were able to do an impression of at least one existing fictional character.

I’ve heard stories left and right about how people who find themselves developing a passion for this craft tend to start out with impressions of characters in pieces of media they consume.

To say that I have never gone through such a phase would be a bold-faced lie.

I myself did that before (a lot more than I’d like to admit). My mom would sometimes bring up how, about half a year ago, I used to memorize all the dialogue in some films that I’ve watched over and over again. So every time it played on the TV, I’d be mouthing the lines of whichever character as I got distracted with something else, the movie being reduced to mere background noise. Then there would be instances when I would actually say the words instead of just lip-syncing.

Whenever I did that, my mom told me she thought she was hearing the actual character.

Pretty sure she was really just hearing the characters the entire time, considering how I didn’t really turn down the volume to hear myself speak, similar to how you won’t turn down a song you’re listening to even though you’re singing along to it.

I guess it became subconscious, almost—the assumption that being able to mimic voices was a prerequisite. And I felt the slightest bit doubtful of my capabilities in this field.

I suddenly found myself asking that question in my head when the first session of the Creative Voice Artist Program (CVAP) Batch 26 began. The answer I indirectly received when we learned about the different myths and misconceptions in voice acting was very reassuring.

I learned that it was never a matter of perfectly recreating another voice, but that you have enough creativity to come up with new ones. That what was important was singularity, something unique to you in the industry.

After finding out about this, you could say I gained some sort of newfound resolve to develop my singularity when it comes to this craft. A new paint color that I can dip a finger into to write my name on the huge wall that is the voice acting industry.

── ⋅ ⋅ ── ✩ ── ⋅ ⋅ ──