“Voice acting is ACTING.” I’m sure you’ve heard this one before, and I guarantee this won’t be the last time you hear it. It's true for every aspect of voice acting, but it is MOST true for animation/video game/audio drama work. It’s very easy to watch cartoons and anime and think that the voices themselves are doing the heavy lifting; that characters are entertaining or compelling because of how they sound. But a voice is the tip of the iceberg when it comes to voice acting. In my work as a coach, I often hear students who think that a silly or distinctive voice is all it takes to make a character, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. The reality is that every single one of those characters has an actor behind it, making choices and delivering lines that are fully conceived and well thought-out. It’s not just about saying the line; it’s about “how would this character actually say the line?”

What is Voice Acting

Thoughts to consider?

Think about the line “What are you doing here?” How many different ways can you say this line? What kind of scenarios might lead up to someone saying it? How can you change the emphasis to alter the meaning or the subtext? Can you add any humanisms to it? Are you out of breath? Are you stammering? Are you super relaxed? Maybe they surprised you while you were drinking water, and you started coughing. Is this your friend? Is it an enemy?

Its all relative

It’s relatively simple to copy someone else’s delivery of lines.

I often see folks who are new to voice acting do a fan dub of material that already exists.

While that’s a great way to get started, the real test comes when you are given dialogue that has minimal direction, and it’s up to YOU to make it into something that isn’t just a human reading some lines, but something that is REAL.

That takes trial and error, hours of practice, learning to self-correct, and an openness to play.