I get inquiries from aspiring voice actors often. I’ve had two just in the past 24 hours, matter of fact. I’m always happy to help, particularly those who have a certain eagerness about them, and an understanding that this isn’t a game.
I think back to when I was getting started (which was SEVENTEEN YEARS AGO… that blows my mind). I was so excited to learn what ever I needed to make a voice over career happen. It was a dream… something I never thought possible. I also wanted to quit my full-time corporate job, so I was motivated to find that something I could do full-time to replace my corporate career.
BTW, I was terrible at voice over. Not at all talented at the onset. I was fired from my first vo job. As in, I voiced the script, and then got a call a couple of hours later I was being replaced. I was CRUSHED, y’all. (If you know me, yes, yep, lots of crying happened.)
But I didn’t give up. I guess I just had this little fire inside of me that pushed me to keep going. I really wanted to make voice over my thing.
And I did.
But y’all, this job ain’t for the faint of heart.
First, it’s an investment of not just time studying and learning, it’s an investment of money in home studio equipment, coaching, marketing, demo creation… you name it. Your studio sound needs to be PRISTINE. And you have to continue learning. I still take classes, have a coach, and have an awesome mentor. When I first got started in 2005-2007, I invested about $10,000 – $12,000 for equipment and training. I studied and auditioned at night, when I wasn’t working my full-time job.
Second, I audition EVERY DAY. Anywhere from around 2-15 auditions a day. Now, I don’t know exactly how many people I’m auditioning with for any given job, but it could be upward of 200-300 people on a single job. Yes, you read that right. TWO TO THREE HUNDRED ACTORS.
So of course, I don’t book every job. And every job doesn’t pay thousands upon thousands of dollars. Matter of fact, most do not.
Basically, I start at ZERO dollars every month, and have NO IDEA how much I will make on any given day/week/month.
Sound fun?
Then this career is for you!
I just LOL’d.
Seriously though, it really IS a wonderful career. And, it is a CAREER. This is not something you can really pursue half-heartedly. You have to know up front, it’s not as easy or fun as it might look. I am VERY BLESSED (#blessed inside joke for some vo’s out there lol) to make a living. This post isn’t to dash your dreams, btw, but to say you CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN, if you really want it to happen. You just have to know, it’s not an easy, get rich quick scheme. It requires persistence, lots of hard work, and talent, and an investment of not only time, but money, for proper equipment, coaching, demos, and marketing.
