A Live Directed Voice Over Session It’s Easier Than You Think!
This article is meant for anyone working directly with a voice over talent, either with or without a creative agency, so you can be comfortable with the process and come out the other side with a great voice over track for your project.
A few weeks ago, I was working with a client that owns a small mechanics shop, to create a video about his specific area of expertise with older cars. He worked with an online company to create an animated video that would live on his website, YouTube and other social media. We were going back and forth a lot with the script and voice over for changes so, I suggested we do a live direct session. It’s always better if the word comes from the horse’s mouth. He was a little reticent at first, insisting that he didn’t know a thing about directing but as it turned out, he was great, we both enjoyed the session and he got the perfect voice over for his animated explainer video.
There is nothing complicated or scary about directing a voice over talent live, even for the layperson. Creative Directors and Producers are old hands at it, but if you are a small business hiring a voice over actor for the first time, it might seem a little intimidating. You don’t have to be an experienced creative director or producer to talk a voice over talent through reading copy for your commercial or company video. You are the business owner, you know what you want, you know how you want your message to sound.
Live direct sessions can be fun, and they also allow the VO actor and the client to bond and be on the same wavelength. This can be really important, especially if you plan to use that voice actor again for future projects. Voice over talent actually love a live direct session, because we don’t have to guess at what tone the client is looking for. We are trained to look at a script, delve into the bones of it and produce a voice track with our interpretation, but this happens faster if you can listen and give feedback, thus avoiding a cycle of guessing and revising sessions through email or individual phone calls. The live direct session is a golden ticket for a VO talent and the client as well.
Let me take a moment here to say that experienced Voice Over artists are familiar with Live Direct and Phone Patch sessions, so if your VO artist refuses or tries to steer you away from a directed session, it’s time to find a new VO talent.
- A typical session would begin with the VO talent taking a first run at the script you have provided. While they are narrating, the client takes notes but allows the VO to read without interruption.
- When they complete the first run, it’s the client’s turn to share the notes taken so the VO can make changes on their script and have another go at it. They will be expecting your thoughts and opinions. Don’t worry about offending them, they are used to doing it over many times, if that is what it takes for their client to be happy and excited with the final voice over.
- After the first run through, it’s your time as the client to jump in. It’s ok, go ahead, ask them to stop at points where you want a word emphasized or pronounced differently. You may ask them to slow down or speed up. If it’s something you just want to try… let them know that so they don’t make it a solid change until you’re ok with it.
Let’s get technical and talk about the different easy ways a live direct session can happen for a client and VO talent. There is of course the option for you both to be in studio together but these days, that is rare since many VO talents work from their own well-equipped studios.
I’ll keep it as simple as possible and just list the most common ways clients and VO talent can connect to each other via phone patch. We call it a phone patch, although it’s an outdated way to describe the new ways used to connect which may not even involve a phone.
Here are some FREE and easy methods to connect for a live direct session with your VO Actor.
- Cell phone – Call the Voice Actor at a scheduled time and they will use their speaker phone or Bluetooth headset to listen to your comments as they record the session on their DAW or editing software. Be careful of hidden charges if you are speaking internationally. It might be better to use What’s APP for international calls.
- Zoom – https://zoom.us This free app can be used on your phone, computer or iPad/tablet. You or the VA initiate a Zoom meeting and you can choose to use video or just sound if you aren’t comfortable being “on camera” and proceed with the session while the narrator records your script. There can be multiple people on the session which is great if you are working with a team but only ONE person should be giving direction to the narrator. Zoom caps sessions with three or more participants at 40 minutes, so keep that in mind. Easy and fun.
- What’s App – https://www.whatsapp.com/ This free app is a real gift for people that need to work and talk to each other internationally. Download the app and you both can connect with just a click.
- Skype – https://www.skype.com This is probably the most commonly used app for hooking up clients with a VA as it’s been around the longest, it’s owned by Microsoft and it’s free to use as long as it is a Skype to Skype connection. There are small fees to call from phones and you can get a dedicated Skype number to share for a really modest price if you want. It’s also very easy to connect with multiple people. A couple of warnings about Skype: 1) ALWAYS test it before a session because it’s forever updating, and you don’t want to have to wait on it to start a call. 2) Sometimes the connection can be a little sketchy.
- Google Voice – https://voice.google.com It’s free, you get your own number and can call anyone in the world. You can even choose to port your own number in or can choose to use a dedicated google phone number and redirect that number to your phone.
Now that the mystery of doing a live direct session with a voice over talent is over,
- Agree on one of the great choices above
- Schedule a session time
- Jump on a live session to help your VO Actor do what they do best, get the best voice over project recorded for their client done exactly the way they want it
If you have questions, please feel free to pop me an email, I’m always happy to hear from you. Have fun out there!
