Tuesday VO Tech Tip: In Person Again

In the last couple of months, I’ve had a couple reminders of how things used to be. Any voice actor active during the past few years has likely spent a fair amount of time and focus setting up and tuning their home recording spaces. Since the pandemic hit, those unable to connect to a remote session with quality audio lost work.

Many existing recording studios reacted to those events with amazing speed to create a safe space in which to work in-person. The rest of us began a multi-year process of working from “home”… as in “home studios”. As in alone. 

Even as health and safety considerations lessened in the past year, working separately has felt like a bell that could not be un-rung. Producers and directors now have several years of success with talent working from their own setups. Many agents continue to require potential new talent to be Source-Connect ready. Not leaving the studio is just how a lot of work gets done every day. 

The first reminder came when I had the pleasure of teaching classes during Voice One’s “Summer Fast Track” core VO skills series. Unlike most of the remote workshops I teach, these were in-person, all-day sessions. While they were taxing physically, working with everyone in the same physical space meant a significant amount of energy lifting us all up.

There’s something intrinsically energizing about working with new voice actors who are building skills before your eyes. While everyone has a different tolerance for group interactions, the feeling of support between students and the ongoing positive reinforcement helped everyone to finish on a high note.

The second reminder came from a recent live session. I booked a project that had stated “preference will be given to talent who are able to come into the studio…” to deliver a dialog spot that had fairly tight timing. It sounds silly to say, but I had to really think through things like what to wear, what to bring, when to leave, how to get to the session, and where to park. Luckily, my dormant muscle-memory kicked into gear. I entered an actual studio 15 minutes before call time to find my scene partner and the production team – folks I had not shared a room with for way too long.

It has been a while since I had that much fun. Being in the room with amazing actors and creative folks creates a hypercharged atmosphere of creativity. My cheeks hurt from laughing and smiling. After finishing up, it seemed like everyone wanted to enjoy the hang a bit longer and remember what it is like to have the opportunity to do this for a living.

Even though we still need to have our sound dialed in, those were great reminders how invigorating it can be to work in real time with someone you can see.

Have you tested your studio’s audio quality to make sure it meets professional standards? For a free review of your vocal recordings, please use the upload tool on my Audio Review page.

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