How to Make a Voiceover Reel

Making your characters come to life is an important part of cartoon voice acting.

Make a voice-over demo reel if you're interesting in becoming a voice actor and working on cartoons or advertisements. Voice-over artists are used in many different mediums, including radio and television advertisements, computer games and cartoons. Many different types of voice-over exist, but they can be split into the instructor, real person, spokesperson, narrator and announcer. Demos are used to show prospective employers what you can do as a voice actor. Learning how to make a voice-over reel requires planning, writing a script or finding a script, practicing your performance and actually recording the demo.

Instructions

1. Decide which type of voice-over artist you wish to be. This depends on the sort of work you wish to do. If you want to work primarily in advertising, you will have to tailor your reel to that purpose. Likewise, cartoon voice actors need to show that they can do lots of different voices and understand characterization. Make this decision as soon as you can, so you can focus your work. You can choose to span different types of voice acting if you wish. Most work either requires an instructor, real person, spokesperson, narrator or an announcer style voice.

2. Devise five or six segments which demonstrate your voice acting ability. Use different vocal tones and show your range as much as possible within the confines of your chosen fields. For example, if you were planning on becoming a voice-over actor for advertisements, show that you are capable of fulfilling various different advertisement roles. Show that you can be a charismatic spokesperson, or a believable "real person." Try to advertise different types of product, for different target audiences. Aim to make your demo between 30 seconds and 2 minutes long.

3. Write or locate scripts. The writing isn't necessarily the important part of a voice acting demo, but you should ideally devise a good script with friendly, conversational language that shows you can speak to different audiences. Find old scripts online or at a local recording studio if you aren't confident in your writing ability.

4. Find a recording studio. Ring up any local recording studios that may be suitable for recording your demo. Ask them about hourly rates, what type of microphone they have, whether they have any voice-over demo scripts and whether they have a library of sound effects. Phone at least three studios before you make your decision. Book a recording slot, giving yourself plenty of time to practice.

5. Act out your script. Practice is important if you wish to record a good demo. Not only will it give you time to practice different segments and show the most variability in your voice, it will also save you time at the studio. Push yourself to pull out the most engaging voices you can. Identify with the character you are playing and understand the audience and intent of any script.

6. Perform your script at the studio. Use musical cues to break up different segments. Open with a brief introduction, around 5 seconds in length, before starting your segments. Finish the demo reel with contact information and a website address, if you have one.

References

• Voices: Plan Your Voice Over Demo
• Voices: Record Your Voice Over Demo
• Voices: Voice Over Experts: 10 Voice Over Tips for 2010