Vox Talk

VOX Talk PODCAST: EPISODE 1

Intro:

VOX Talk is your connection to the voice industry covering news about voice-overs and voice actors, hot tips on how to grow your voice-over business, technology, and Q&A with the experts at Voices.com.

Salutation:

Welcome to VOX Talk, brought to you by Voices.com. My name is Stephanie Ciccarelli, co-founder of Voices.com and your host for today’s show. VOX Talk is about you! It’s a new podcast that helps you grow in your voiceover career. Each episode will begin with news and current voice-over events in a segment called “The Loop”. Then, we’ll explore business development and hot trends that will set you apart as a professional voice actor. Next on the list is Tech Talk, a segment where our team will review products and guide you through the technological landscape. Lastly, we’ll answer your questions in a segment called “VoxBox”.

Now that we’re ready to go, let’s move on to our first segment!

The Loop:

News #1

You may have heard this already, but Time Magazine says that you are the person of the year! Surprised? During 2006, there was an exponential increase in user-generated content on the Internet, that is to say that people who use websites were actually helping to build them up by creating profiles, commenting on blogs, and submitting information to hubs of virtual activity such as MySpace, Wikipedia and Ask. Through these endeavors, each person who participated became a creator, an author, or an expert, garnering the title of Person of the Year.

News #2

If you’re a reader of the VOX Daily blog, you are also familiar with another list of notable mentions of people, movements, and articles that made an impact on the voice industry this year. One such person was voice artist Sara Mendes da Costa of Great Britain, otherwise known as the voice of the Speaking Clock. Sara was chosen for her warmth and style over 18,000 other applicants. To find out more about the other stories that rounded out the top ten, visit VOX Daily at blogs.voices.com/voxdaily/

News #3

Our last story is about a man who gave millions of people childhood memories that would last a lifetime. Joseph Barbera, half of the infamous animator duo Hanna-Barbera, passed away on December 18th 2006 of natural causes with his wife Sheila by his side. Barbera, known for creating enduring characters such as Yogi Bear, The Flintstones, The Jetsons and Scooby-Doo left behind a legacy of epic proportions. He was 95.

If you have any news or a voice-over related event that you would like to submit, send them to media@voices.com.

The Biz:

This week in The Biz, we’ll be looking at what you can do to find an agent. There is a detailed article about this very subject that you can read on the Ask the Voice Cat blog, so I’ll give you the highlights for now.

First off, if you haven’t been to a voice over coach or taken any lessons, book yourself a session with a coach in your area.

After you’ve honed your skills and are comfortable with reading copy, your voice coach may suggest that you are ready to record your first voice-over demo.

Following that, the key is to promote your demo to the ends of the earth, but before you spend a lot of money on postage, be sure that the agencies are accepting new talent submissions. This may take a bit of research, but the deeper you dig, the better received you’ll be. Be sure to include a brief cover letter and a resume with your CD.

For more ideas and details on how to get your voice heard by agents, go to http://blogs.voices.com/askthevoicecat

Tech Talk:

This week in Tech Talk, we’ll talk about the power of search.

Search engines play a vital role in how we as a people find answers to our questions. If you need to know the score for a sports game, it's online. If you are digging up a recipe that turns all of your leftover turkey into a gourmet delight, you'll find it on the web. Searching for what you are looking for is as easy as visiting a search engine website, typing in your question or keywords into the search bar and clicking on the search button.

But, what about questions about voice overs?

Although many of your questions can be answered at Voices.com, sometimes you'll have questions that are more specific to your location, in which case, it's best that you perform a search via a search engine, including questions like:

1. Are there voice coaches in New York?


2. Does such and such agency have a rep in Springfield?

3. I need to record my demo. Where is the nearest recording studio to my home?

Search engines are truly marvelous tools that help bring information to your fingertips. You just need to know how to use them.

VoxBox:

Welcome to VoxBox! As this is the first show, I’d like to invite you to submit your audio feedback to be included on future VoxBox segments. How do you do that? Simply record your comments or questions and email your MP3 recording to media@voices.com.

Farewell:

Thank you for joining us today. If you just can’t get enough, log on to Voices.com for more information about how our service works and how we can serve you. Until next time, remember to keep hip, happenin’ and hydrated!