VO-BB - 20 YEARS OLD!

Deirdre

Long Article about the VG VO biz.
_________________
DBCooperVO.com
IMDB

cyclometh · Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 10:11 am Post subject:

That's a great article, some very good stuff there.
_________________
Corey "Vox Man" Snow
http://voxman.net

Bob Bergen · CM Joined: 22 Apr 2008 Posts: 979

Really good artical. Voice actors, for the most part, rarely get celebrity recognition, unless by fans. The fan base for many genres of vo is huge. But industry recognition, or celebrity from doing vo, that is rare unless one is already well known.

Many years ago I was not invited to a film I did called Space Jam because, as my agent was told, "premieres are only for talent."

(sigh). What can ya do??!!!

Personally, I'd trade the celebrity in games for residuals. We get nada. I turn down 9 out of 10 game auditions. Most hurt the voice. And it's not worth damaging my voice, or even risk not being able to audition for a national commercial because I'm too horse from voicing a game. There are a handful of game producers I'll never say no to. But residuals are how we make our living. At least 60% of my income is residuals. No way to make a living on session fees.

AlannaOBrien · Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 7:52 pm Post subject:

I look forward to the day that voice talent get residuals on games.

It's heartbreaking at times- you see great small gaming companies bought out by bigger ones only to have their game concepts bastardized and manipulated for the sake of making more money. I believe video games are an art form. It hurts everyone involved, voice actors included, when bigger companies forget that.
_________________
www.AlannaOBrien.com

Scott Pollak · Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 8:17 pm Post subject:

Space Jam!! I loved that movie!!
_________________
Scott R. Pollak
Clients include Pandora, NPR Atlanta, Wells Fargo, Cisco, Humana, Publix, UPS, AT&T, HP, Xerox and more.

www.voicebyscott.com

Lee Gordon · Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 8:30 pm Post subject:

It's all part of the celebrity culture. Sadly, the "talent" Bob referred to would include Kardashians and Hiltons and their ilk because they're famous. The fact that they're famous simply for being famous has little to do with it.

I have noticed that whenever a TV or movie star -- even a lesser known TV actor such as a Jay O. Saunder -- narrates an episode of Nova on PBS or some similar non-fiction program on NatGeo, Science Channel, History Channel, etc., there's a Narrator credit at the beginning of the show. If the narration is by a "lowly" voiceoverist, even someone well known and respected within the profession, such as a Bill Ratner or Dave Fennoy, his or her credit appears only at the end.
_________________
Lee Gordon, O.A.V.
Voice President of the United States
www.leegordonproductions.com
Twitter: @LeeGordonVoice

heyguido · Posted: Wed Apr 03, 2013 8:36 pm Post subject:

If at all....

Shocked

_________________
Don Brookshire
"Wait.... They wanna PAY me for this?"

Lee Gordon · Posted: Thu Apr 04, 2013 1:48 am Post subject:

I have to make a correction on my earlier observation. Tonight's episode of Nova was narrated by Jay O. Saunders and his credit appeared only at the end. When David Ogden Stiers narrates, he does rate an opening credit.

Apparently, having starred on "M*A*S*H" provides sufficient celebrity cred; having been in the cast of "After M*A*S*H" does not.
_________________
Lee Gordon, O.A.V.
Voice President of the United States
www.leegordonproductions.com
Twitter: @LeeGordonVoice

JoeActor · Posted: Thu Apr 04, 2013 7:14 am Post subject:

Bruce · Posted: Thu Apr 04, 2013 8:04 am Post subject:

Deirdre · Posted: Thu Apr 04, 2013 9:08 am Post subject:

todd ellis · Posted: Thu Apr 04, 2013 9:51 am Post subject:

Bob Bergen · CM Joined: 22 Apr 2008 Posts: 979

You are so correct! We will not be gettin em for games. We lost that opportunity about 10-13 years ago. The game contract came up for renegotiations not long after the commercial strike. Our negotiation team recommended we ask for a tiny residual from only THE most successful games. 99% of em wouldn't have paid a dime. We had no desire to hurt newer or mama/papa companies. But we wanted the opportunity to dip our toe in the gaming residual pool. And, as they grew and got more successful, we would share in the profits. We even had the backing of celebs who were just starting to record games based on their movies and tv shows. And, many celebs get residuals today!!!

More people are working today than ever before in vo. But fewer are making the kind of living that most working voice actors enjoyed before the Internet. I'm blessed that I got into the business when I did. And I agree, most here do not do the kind of work that pays residuals, P&H, etc. But I'm willing to bet they wouldn't turn any of these benefits down if offered. Jussayin.

Deirdre · Posted: Thu Apr 04, 2013 7:24 pm Post subject:

I get plenty of P&H!

And the VO for Video Games is a decent part of it.
And narrations, IVR, etc, at high enough rates to qualify for union inclusion.

It's just a different business model, Bob!
_________________
DBCooperVO.com
IMDB