Voice actors typically provide voices for animated films or television programs, documentaries, and television or radio commercials. If you enjoy performing and have a unique voice, this could be the career for you. You need to hone your fundamentals, get your voice heard, and go to a lot of auditions. This is a very competitive industry and it is difficult for someone without ambition to become a voice actor. But as long as you persevere, work hard enough, and master relevant professional skills, you can successfully embark on the road to becoming a voice actor.

Develop Your Voice-over Talent

Reading aloud is very important for dubbing, especially for work that requires the use of electronic teleprompters or scripts. Read books, magazines, or news aloud often to make yourself more comfortable with this state. Spend at least 30 minutes every day reading aloud and practicing your pronunciation and intonation. Try changing your voice as you read aloud to add a little more difficulty to the exercise.

• Read a variety of materials to improve your voice. You can start with children’s literature, then try novels like The Hobbit, and then try poetry. Reading aloud is not just as simple as reading aloud, your voice should be as good as a performance. Your job is to bring words to life.

Try reciting a monologue or script and recording your voice. Listen to your recording and get a feel for what your voice sounds like. Write down the problem so you can correct it later. The sounds in the recording may surprise you because they are different from what you hear every day. Make a note of these changes and slowly adapt to the sound of your recording so that you can better express your voice through the microphone.

When listening to your voice, think about whether you are speaking with your nose, mouth, chest, or diaphragm. The nasal sound is not only unpleasant to listen to but also has a crying sound. If you pronounce it through the mouth, the sound will appear a bit thin. Pronunciation with the chest sounds pleasant, but pronunciation with the diaphragm is the strongest and sounds best. To become more vocal with your diaphragm, practice taking deep breaths and watching the rise and fall of your abdomen. Your diaphragm is used when you laugh or yawn. Find this feeling and practice using your diaphragm to make sounds. After you master your vocal skills, you need to maintain them. A voice teacher can teach you to use your diaphragm to produce your voice.

There are exercises that can help you control and improve your voice. Many of these exercises are based on breathing. You can try blowing through a straw and humming a full scale. A straw can help you control your breathing. You can lie on the ground and inhale deeply, exhale deeply, and make a “shhh” sound when you exhale.

Impersonate the voice of a famous actor or a fictional character. Mimicking someone else’s voice can make your voice more flexible and make you realize you’re a comedian, but being able to change your voice always helps. Not only does it make your voice more versatile, but it also helps improve your performance skills. You have to imitate not only the person’s voice but also their personality so that you can bring your character to life rather than just imitating the voice.

Improvisation is an important skill for voice actors and is something directors expect of you. With this ability, you can truly interpret a character, think what he thinks, and feel what he feels. After you enter the character’s state, tell a joke on the spot as this character. If you need help, ask a friend to ask you questions and answer them from that character’s perspective. For example, if you want to imitate Crayon Shin-chan, you can make up a story about Crayon Shin-chan.

Take acting classes or find an acting teacher. They can help you develop your acting talents. Although the voice actor never appears on screen, each voice actor is a talented performing artist to better interpret their lines. You have to know that dubbing is sometimes more difficult than other forms of acting because you don’t have any actors to act with, and the audience can’t see your expressions, gestures, or movements. There are no props to rely on for your performance. All of the character’s emotions and personality can only be conveyed through your voice.

• If you are still in school, you might as well take more drama courses in school, as well as audition for any plays or one-act plays. If you’re not studying anymore, go to some community theater performances.

Taking regular voice lessons can broaden your vocal range and give you more control over your volume and timbre. You may want to take lessons from several voice teachers and see who is the best fit for you. A good voice teacher can not only teach you powerful techniques and control but also help you recognize your unique voice.

• A good voice teacher will teach you how to warm up your voice. There are many ways to warm up your vocal cords. First, try blowing your lips to make a sound like “bah”. Then he opens his mouth wide and yawns, laughing and sighing to stretch his jaw.

Actively Promote Yourself

When voice actors are looking for work, they need to rely on demos to showcase their talents. This sample can be your original work, an imitation of a character, or an interpretation of an existing script. It is important to prepare a high-quality sample that is representative of you and demonstrates your range of abilities and your skills. You can make the samples yourself, or you can ask a professional to help you. If you are making your samples, pay special attention to the quality of the sound and ensure that you record in a noise-free environment. There shouldn’t be any noise in the sample that will interfere with your sound.

You generally need work experience to find a job, so it may be difficult when you first start out. Maximize your experience as much as possible so that your resume can be richer. Take acting classes, participate in dubbing workshops, create original videos on YouTube and other platforms, serve as a school announcer, present e-books, or find anything else you can do related to dubbing. Anyway, find ways to enrich your experience. Not only will this show the casting director that you have experience, it will also improve your voice-over skills.

Find a talent scout or agent. Like any other kind of actor, having an agent can be helpful in a voice actor’s career. Your agent can tell you about local audition opportunities and help you find the right job. They’ll help market you, manage your career, negotiate your salary, and earn agency fees from your work. They know some jobs that you can’t find on your own. So send your samples and resume to local agents and choose someone you trust and are comfortable with.

Send your demos and resume to the recording company. Find out what recording companies are available in your local area and send them your demos and resume. If you don’t mind traveling out of town, you can even send your samples and resume to companies across the country. Be prepared for a long wait for a response and crazy rejection. Recording companies receive hundreds of demos, and you may or may not be what they’re looking for. Just because they don’t get back to you right away doesn’t mean they aren’t interested in you. Maybe they don’t have a suitable opportunity for you right now, but they like your samples very much and may consider you if the opportunity arises in the future.

Create your online portfolio. Well-done online work can help advance your career. You can create your webpage through platforms such as WordPress to showcase your talents on Weibo or use social media webpages to create a dedicated account for dubbing. It is increasingly common for casting directors to use the Internet to find candidates. If someone hears about your work, you certainly want them to have no trouble finding you and seeing your talent. Having a page dedicated to showcasing your sound work can help you market yourself.

If you really want to make voice acting a career, you may need to live somewhere with a strong voice acting industry. Although the web has reduced location constraints, it still helps to be in a city that is a hub for the industry.

Audio Test

Even if you don’t have an agent and haven’t heard from any recording companies, you can still audition through open auditions. Open auditions mean everyone can audition. So be mentally prepared, there will be a lot of people auditioning, and the time you can present will be very short. Even though your chances of landing a role through an audition are slim, it’s still a great opportunity to get used to auditioning and get yourself seen by casting directors.

Voice acting can be done with just a microphone, so you can even complete your audition at home. There are all kinds of dubbing jobs online, you might as well check out websites like “Dubbing Circle”. The online market is slowly changing the format of casting, and online auditions are a great option when you live in a city where the dubbing industry is less developed.

Some people say that an actor’s real job is to audition because the film and television industry is a very competitive industry. The same goes for voice actors. You may have to audition countless times before you get a role. After you complete a job, you need to audition again immediately. So you have to learn to accept the audition process and attend as many auditions as possible. This way, when you do get the job, you can always remain alert and sound qualified. The more auditions you do, the better your chances of landing a job.

• Even if you come across a role you’re not sure you’re right for, don’t give up on auditioning. You never know what kind of voice the casting director is looking for.

Warm up your vocal cords in advance and be sure to add enough fluids to your body. Be sure to familiarize yourself with the script in advance and figure out how to interpret your lines. Some auditions may only ask you to say one sentence, so understand that you have plenty of time to prepare. This can relieve your tense nerves from the high pressure of auditioning. In addition to the required script, prepare an extra line of dialogue in case the casting director asks you to perform something else.

• Try to get into the character and don’t just stick to the lines. Who is this character? What is important to them? Why do they say these things? Write down your thoughts about the character to clarify the important aspects of the character. This will help you live out the role.

Be sure to be on time for your audition. To avoid being late, arrive 10 to 15 minutes early. This gives you time to catch your breath and even read the script again.

Although there are no requirements for appearance in voice acting, the overall impression you give is crucial. So dress appropriately. Don’t wear a tattered T-shirt. Try to look as professional as possible and try to fit the role you are auditioning for.

Tips

• Don’t smoke. Staying hydrated can help keep your throat healthy.
• Give your voice a good rest every once in a while. This helps maintain vocal cord health.
• Be sure to agree with your broker on the commission. Some brokers or brokerage firms may have relatively higher commissions.
• Competition for voiceover acting is fierce. To choose this career path, you must have a unique voice and great acting talent.
• If you start early, like in childhood, you have a better chance of establishing yourself in the industry.