Vox Talk

VOX Talk PODCAST: EPISODE 35

Salutation:

Hi there, I’m Stephanie and welcome to VOX Talk. In this episode, we’ll hear a humorous piece from Betty in Boca, talk about Microsoft Vista, and an interview with Everything Acting’s Darbi Worley. Before we get into all that, let’s take a look at the voiceover news.

The Loop:

Josh Keaton voice of Spider-Man

In animation news, Marvel Comics is coming out with a new Spider-Man cartoon series called “The Spectacular Spider-Man”. Josh Keaton has been cast in the roles of Peter Parker and Spider-Man. Josh, though new to the role of Spider-Man isn’t a stranger to the Spider-Man franchise. He has also voiced the role of Harry Osborn in two Spider-Man video games.

To learn more about Josh Keaton, you can visit his website, JoshKeaton.com

News #2

Tiger Woods the New Celebrity Spokesperson of GM OnStar

In the world of athletics, in Golf to be specific, Tiger Woods is the man to beat. It now appears that he is also a regular on the automotive advertising A-list. Shortly after his spokesman stint with Buick, Tiger is now on par with GM OnStar, featured in a new commercial promoting the product.

To watch Tiger in action, go to YouTube.com and search for Tiger Woods.

News #3

Is Internet Radio Doomed?

A dark cloud is hanging over Internet Radio stations as the US government deliberates on whether or not to raise the fees of royalties owed to recording artists represented by AFTRA. The decision to raise royalty fees will effectively shut down nearly every Internet radio station in the country and the community is in an uproar, demonstrating with a day of silence. Is Internet Radio Doomed?

Add your comments on the Voices.com Biz blog at blogs.voices.com/thebiz/

The Biz:

Today in The Biz, Betty in Boca cracks a joke on-air with some unsuspecting radio personalities.

Well done, Betty! Thank you for presenting us with that hilarious air check!

Tech Talk:

This week in Tech Talk, David Ciccarelli chats about Vista, Microsoft Vista, that is.

Thank you to David, Geoff and of course to Blair for helping us out! If you’d like to know more about Microsoft Vista, go to Microsoft.com/vista

VoxBox:

In the VOX Box today, I’m pleased to bring you this special interview with Darbi Worley, host of the Everything Acting Podcast. Darbi, thanks for coming by! How are you doing today?

Darbi: Well, I am fabulous, thank you very much, and how are you?

Stephanie: I'm great thanks. I'd like to start off by asking you about how you came to co-host the Everything Acting Podcast with Roz. Could you tell us a little bit about what inspired you to start Everything Acting?

Darbi: We started the podcast for a number of reasons, of which was kind of altruistic and one of which is very selfish. The first reason was because it just seems like everyone is always asking the actor for money. Everyone is trying to sell us something and we wanted to bring something to the community that was free. The second reason was because there’s still casting directors here that I don’t know and there’s still people I want to meet and this gives me an excuse to call anybody I want in the industry and introduce myself. And to that end, it’s also great to be creating your own work. It’s great to have something going on all the time even if I don’t have auditions or a booking... I always have the podcast to work on. They say that work begets work and I would say that really has been the case with the podcast. I don’t know if it is because my attitude has changed in my auditions, or if it is helping me network, or how it’s working, but I am working more than I ever had since we started the podcast and so has Roz who is on Broadway right now understudying for Tanya Pinkins, so it has been great for us.

Stephanie: How would you describe the Everything Acting Podcast?

Darbi: Everything Acting is a weekly podcast and our mission statement is to inform, inspire and demystify the actors’ journey and we do that by interviewing working actors and various industry professionals.

Stephanie: How do you choose the people you interview on Everything Acting? Which guests have been your favorites so far?

Darbi: So far we’re barely new, not even a year old yet, so we’re still just kind of using out network. We really like to interview actors who are making their own work. We have a segment on the show called “Make Your Own Way” and we really like to get people who are writing their own material and producing their own stuff. And although we’ve interviewed a few quasi celebrities we feel like celebrities get interviewed all the time so we want to interview the rank in file working actor because that’s where most of us are going to end up. I really enjoyed interviewing Aaron Yoo ( Disturbia ) because he’s someone I’ve seen progress from being a downtown theater guy to starring in the #1 movie in America – that was a fun interview. I also enjoyed interviewing Danny Burstein who I met at The Flea, a little tiny theater in downtown Manhattan. I also enjoy interviewing voiceover people because that’s my career focus.

Stephanie: Do you interview guests in person or do you use tools like Skype or ISDN? I personally haven't tried either, but know that it is a definite plus to be able to connect that way with an interview subject or co-host. Have you had good experiences doing remote interviews?

Darbi: We kind of do both. We interview most of our guests in person and will either cart over a laptop and a microphone or there’s also this really cool thing, I think it’s called an H4. It’s a teeny little digital recorder that records WAV files so it records at the quality level of ProTools, and if you listen to the interview with Scott Wojcik, I used that device. It’s almost too good of a microphone because it really picks up a lot of background noise but it’s really tiny and handy and easy to carry around.

Now in terms of doing remote interviews, the best thing to do is to have each person recording into their own microphone and then have an ear piece in my ear under my headphones where I’m talking to them on a land line where I’m talking to them on the phone but we’re each recording our voices separately and one of us will send the MP3 to the other and then sync up the files. That’s the best recording quality that we’ve been able to accomplish on remote interview, but most of our guests don’t have that so I use a splitter in the phone line then goes in the preamp and records on the same track as my voice.

Stephanie: As podcaster and blogger, I know that receiving comments or encouragement from your audience means the world and also inspires you to keep up the good work. What kind of feedback do you get from your listeners? Is there anyone specific that you'd like to acknowledge?

Darbi: Oh we get great feedback from our listeners. It’s awesome to hear that we’re affecting peoples’ lives and hear things that the podcast has inspired them to do. We’ve heard from a couple of people I know are from Voices.com. Bob Elliott is a listener and Bob Souer has linked to us on his blog and Joe Rodriguez listens to the show. Those are some voiceover guys that I’ve heard from and I’d love to hear from more of the Voices.com community.

Stephanie: Is there anything exciting coming up that you would like to share with us?

Darbi: We do have some exciting things coming up on the show. We’re actually offering our first Everything Acting Podcast Award for the best newcomer and we’ve invited people to send in any kind of file timed at two minutes or less, whether a YouTube video, a video of you doing a monologue, it can be a voiceover reel, it can be a commercial demo and the only requirement is that you have been acting for two or less years and we’re going to evaluate that along with some agents and casting directors, vote and come up with the best female and best male newcomer.

Stephanie: So, how can people find your podcast?

Darbi: People can listen to the show on either on our website EverythingActingPodcast.com but the best thing to do is to go to iTunes and subscribe. There’s a link right on our website to do that at. If you do a search in the iTunes Music Store for acting, we come up as the #1 Featured podcast, so give us a click and subscribe.

Stephanie: Thanks for the tip. I hope you get some more listeners from this interview and wish you all the very best! Thanks for chatting with us today.

Darbi: Thanks so much for having me!

Stephanie: We were just speaking with Darbi Worley of the Everything Acting Podcast. You can learn more about the podcast by visiting EverythingActingPodcast.com.

Farewell:

Well, that’s all for this week! We love hearing from you and thank you for staying subscribed to VOX Talk! You can subscribe to this podcast through the iTunes Podcast Directory, by RSS feed or by email on the VOX Talk website at podcasts.voices.com/. I’m your host, Stephanie Ciccarelli. Take care and we’ll be seeing you next week!

VOX Talk PODCAST: EPISODE 34

Salutation:

Hi there, I’m Stephanie and welcome to VOX Talk. In this episode, we’ll be learning How to Podcast and discover more about the online casting process that voice actor community Darker Projects uses to cast for their audio dramas. But first your voice over news.

The Loop:

Podcasting Week 2007

Podcasting Week is now in full swing here at Voices.com. Learn all about how to browse, listen and subscribe to podcasts as well as how you can start podcasting yourself! There’s a 16-page guide on how to get started as a podcaster available for you at VOX Daily that walks you through everything from pre-production to building an audience. I’ve also linked the PDF from the VOX Talk show notes. Be sure to check it out and download it if you’re interested.

News #2

Awesome reviews for Voice Over Experts Podcast

It’s only been a week or two, but Voice Over Experts is has become the #1 podcast for aspiring talent and professional voice actors alike. Spearheaded by the team at Voices, over twenty renowned coaches from across North America are taking part in this phenomenal weekly podcast. So far, Marc Cashman and Julie Williams have been on the show with Bob Bergen’s lecture on "Preparing for a Commercial Demo" to air next week.

To learn more about Voice Over Experts and subscribe for free, go to podcasts.voices.com

News #3

Randy Thomas VO Workshops

Florida-based voice over coach Randy Thomas will be conducting two workshops this month for voice actors, one for established talent this weekend and another for those starting out on Saturday, June 30, 2007, from 9:30 am - 6 pm. Cost is $150. To learn more about Randy’s classes, go to http://www.randythomasvo.com or contact Caryn Clark to register at caryn@carynclark.net.

The Biz:

Today in The Biz, Elie Hirschman is going to reveal how he and his team at Darker Projects cast for their radio and audio dramas.

Thanks for that peek behind the casting curtain Elie ☺.

Tech Talk:

This week in Tech Talk, David Ciccarelli teaches you how to podcast.

Thank you David. It’s always a pleasure to have you on the show. If you enjoyed David’s segment, let him know by sending him an email to david@voices.com. Again, if you’d like to download the Podcasting Kit, you can find it at VOX Daily as well as in the VOX Talk show notes.

VoxBox:

As I mentioned earlier in the news, we’ve been receiving some amazing feedback and compliments about our newest podcast, Voice Over Experts. I’d like to share a few comments we received this week about the podcast to you.

This one comes from Brian Haymond for Marc Cashman:

“Marc, this was delightfully insightful. Thank you!”

Voice Over coach (and Voice Over Expert) Elaine Clark was equally impressed by Marc’s lecture, commenting that it was wonderful.

On VOX Daily, Bob Souer and Cookie Colletti both congratulated Julie-Ann Dean on hosting the podcast.

Well folks, keep those comments coming! It’s always nice to be encouraged and acknowledged for your hard work and contributions to your community. A quick comment given in gratitude does a world of good ☺

Farewell:

One more thing before we go! If you live in North Carolina, don’t forget to show up for the voice over gathering at 11 a.m. in Winston-Salem on June 23rd. For more information about lunch and bowling, go to Bob Souer’s blog and search for the key word “bowling” at bobsouer.com/blog/

Well, that’s all for this week! We love hearing from you and thank you for staying subscribed to VOX Talk! You can subscribe to this podcast through the iTunes Podcast Directory, by RSS feed or by email on the VOX Talk blog at podcasts.voices.com/voxtalk/. I’m your host, Stephanie Ciccarelli. Take care and see you next week!

VOX Talk PODCAST: EPISODE 33

Salutation:

Hi, as Matt Williams just said, my name is Stephanie. Welcome to VOX Talk! Julie Williams and Adam Fox are on the show today with a guest appearance by Julie-Ann Dean in the VOX Box. We’re going to hit everything from the Apple iPhone Voice Over Controversy all the way through to Voices.com voice actors on CNN! Let’s get this party started.

The Loop:

Apple iPhone Voice Over Controversy

When you hear the word iPhone, the first thing that should come to mind is Apple. When you hear the words iPhone Television Voice Over, it’s a bit more ambiguous! Some sources say that the voice actor is none other than John Krasinski from the hit NBC sitcom “The Office”, however, no one knows for sure who the voice actor is!

I called Apple’s Corporate Office and asked them if they could confirm the identity of the voice actor, and I’m sorry to say it’s under wraps. Who do you think did the voice over for the Apple iPhone?

Take an educated guess and add your thoughts to the VOX Daily blog at blogs.voices.com/voxdaily/

News #2

CNN Voice Actors

Speaking of voice actors, several Voices.com voice talent were mentioned in an article published by CNN International on June 11th, 2007. Kara Edwards, Moe Egan and Michiru Yabu contributed their thoughts on the voice acting business and what the future holds. The article is about getting started and entering the voice over industry.

To read the article, Google “CNN and Voices.com” or visit VOX Daily for more details.

News #3

Social Media Week

In closing, a number of great articles introducing you to the wonders of Social Media have been published at VOX Daily. Join us this week as we explore services such as Digg, StumbleUpon, Facebook, Technorati, and del.icio.us.

To find these articles, go to blogs.voices.com and click on the VOX Daily feed.

The Biz:

Today in The Biz, Julie Williams shares tips on cold calling and how you can introduce yourself to any company with confidence.

Those are some fabulous tips on how to cold call without being invasive. Thank you Julie, you’ve given many people the inspiration to reach out and get more work.

Tech Talk:

This week in Tech Talk, Adam Fox asks you how you do what you do. Take him up on his offer – it’s pretty cool.

Thank you Adam! Again, send Adam a clip of about 15 or 20 seconds of audio that he can use in his next segment. You can reach him at Adam@DefiantDigital.com

VoxBox:

Today in the VOX Box, I’d like to introduce you to the very talented Julie-Ann Dean of the United Kingdom. I’m pleased to announce that Julie-Ann is now the voice of a new podcast from Voices.com; it’s called Voice Over Experts! Let’s listen to Julie-Ann now.

Play audio

We’re ecstatic about Voice Over Experts and the voice coaches involved are just as excited. So far, we have 16 coaches who have committed to being a part of this new podcast.

To learn more about the Voice Over Experts podcast and subscribe, visit podcasts.voices.com

Farewell:

One minor programming note before we go. We’ve changed the location of the VOX Talk blog to podcasts.voices.com. We’re moving all of the podcasts to that sub domain so that it will be easier for you to enjoy all the podcasts you want in one place.

Well, that’s all for this week! We love hearing from you and thank you for staying subscribed to VOX Talk! You can subscribe to this podcast through the iTunes Podcast Directory, by RSS feed or by email on the VOX Talk blog at podcasts.voices.com. I’m your host, Stephanie Ciccarelli. Take care and see you next week!

VOX Talk PODCAST: EPISODE 32

Salutation:

Hi there, I’m Stephanie. Welcome to VOX Talk! We’ve got some interesting news for you this week and great tips from Betty in Boca, David Ciccarelli and Jesse Springer. But first, the news!

The Loop:

Voice Coaches Advanced Marketing Expo

In the world of voice over, sixty fortunate people gathered at the Voice Coaches Advanced Marketing Expo in Albany New York last weekend to learn about marketing their voice over businesses through traditional methods and on the Internet. Guest speakers included Jay Silverman, Stacey Nooney, Warren Garling, Overit Media, David and Stephanie Ciccarelli of Voices.com, Super Agent Billy Serow and Heather Frenz with Jim from Media Logic, Bob Souer, David Bourgeois of Voice Coaches and celebrity guest Evan Farmer of the TLC home improvement show “While You Were Out” joining the expert panel.

To read more about the lectures and meet the people who made it all happen, visit the VOX Daily blog or go to VoiceCoaches.com

News #2

eBay and Bid4Spots

In business news, eBay has joined forces with the company Bid4Spots to compete with the Google Audio Ads program. eBay aims to offer unsold radio advertising inventory from 2,300 U.S. radio stations for sale on its site, through its partnership with Encino, California-based Bid4Spots. This may prove to be interesting. The Internet is all a buzz with the Wall Street Journal leading the pack.
To read the press release, simply visit the VOX Talk show notes.

News #3
Shrek the Third

In closing, Shrek the Third has now been in theatres for a few weeks and we’d love to know what you think about the film! I emailed Kari Wahlgren, a voice actor with a role in the movie, and hope to hear from her soon so that I can give you an inside scoop on Shrek the Third from her perspective as someone involved in the animated film as a voice actor.

Keep your eye on the VOX Daily blog for updates and leave a comment with your thoughts ☺

The Biz:

Today in The Biz, Betty in Boca shares a story that you might be able to relate to. Ready for it?

Thanks Betty. If you liked Betty’s segment or can identify with her, send her a quick email at bettyinboca@earthlink.net.

Tech Talk:

This week in Tech Talk, David Ciccarelli delves into the crazy world of Google and provides insight on how to make the Internet giant work for you.

Thank you very much David! For those of you who were at the conference last weekend, you were privy to our presentation on this topic. We’re planning a more extensive webinar covering Voice Over in the Google Era and will let you know more soon!

VoxBox:

Today in the VOX Box, Jesse Springer, a 19 year old voice actor, discusses what it’s like to be in the biz straight out of high school and how he’s been doing so far.

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Thank you for sending in your reflection Jesse! If you haven’t already been to the VOX Daily blog, go checkout a video interview called “Behind the Mic” featuring voice over star Ben Patrick Johnson produced by Jesse Springer.

That link again is blogs.voices.com/voxdaily/

Farewell:

Well, that’s all for this week! We love hearing from you and thank you for staying subscribed! If you haven’t yet subscribed to VOX Talk, you can do so through the iTunes Podcast Directory or subscribe to the RSS feed by email on the VOX Talk blog at blogs.voices.com/voxtalk/. I’m your host, Stephanie Ciccarelli. Take care and see you next week!