Entries Tagged as 'voices.com'

happy boxing day, canada and happy anniversary to a proud canadian blogger

December 26th is Boxing Day in Canada (and the U.K. too as I recall).

December 26th is NOT the anniversary date for the start of Voices.com’s VOX Daily blog. That I believe was December 20th but since Stephanie Ciccarelli forgot the anniversary date too I guess I can also be forgiven.

voices.com finally honors the apostrophe

I can’t remember when I first signed up with Voices.com but I think it was 2004….pretty early into their creation. I tried it for a couple of years and then went back to my free listing. I wonder if they will be starting an old timers or founding members club soon? 6 years is like 60 years in web years.

All along the way, the company has always worked hard on their customer service. And über-web geek David Ciccarelli (co-owner of the company with his wife Stephanie) has always tweaked and improved the site.

But alas, the software program they were using had conniption fits if I tried to use an apostrophe in my last name or my company name on a title page (some computers and web browsers even today show a diamond with a question mark where apostophes should go…makes me think no Irishmen or Italians were involved at the start of the internet). David himself some years ago tried a work around with me on that challenge but no go with that software version.

Instead of O’Connell, it might be listed as the very inelegant OConnell or even worse Oconnell (ugh!). And did you ever watch somebody try to pronounce audioconnell? As audio’connell they seem to have a better time with it. Certainly not end-of-the-world stuff, all this, but it still makes you wonder whose alphabet and symbols these early web lords were using when they started the interweb? Oy!

Well I was on the Voices.com site recently and low and behold I saw some OConnells WITH apostrophes in their names! As I am not a paid subscriber I wouldn’t expect to know of any such updates when ever they happened (maybe they themselves missed that minor update tweak) but I did get on the phone to Voices.com make sure I could make the update with no problems.

I had the good fortune to speak with Scott at Voices.com who (true to company form) was very helpful in making sure there wouldn’t be any computer glitches. He could not have been nicer.

So NOW when you search Peter O’Connell on Voices.com I’m the first listing. When you search O’Connell on Voices.com I am the LAST listing (although I am ((puff, puff)) the most often listened to of all the Voices.com O’Connells) but I think my last place listing there is because mine’s just a free listing which is understandable.

I even tried using the K. as in Peter K. O’Connell in the listing change with Scott, which is what I use professionally, but we went back to just Peter O’Connell in the page title because the upgraded software evidently didn’t like middle initials or periods and dropped my search results way down in both types of searches.

Whoa is the poor period! Flummoxed is the lonely middle initial! What ARE the Peter K. O’Connells, the Michael J. Fox’s and other short, middle aged voice actors to do?!

Work around it like we always do! But at least I got my apostrophe. Alls right with the world.

3 thoughts on voice over technology – iAudition, do you?

Like all things gadget and quasi-technical, I think it was Dave Courvoisier who first posted something about the new i-phone application called iAudition which promises: “You can record, edit and send your auditions from wherever you are, without the need for a recording studio or computer!”

It dices, it slices it even make julienne fries! But wait, there’s more!

Well then George Washington, III chimed in with his experience on the device. As I am not nor really ever been a pioneer on technical items, I figured now that these two fellas had tried it, maybe for a penny under $5 I could try it for my iphone.

So I pinged in Facebook that I had done just that and one of the comments I got in response to that post got me to thinking.

Facebook friend and voice talent Don Capone opined “bottom line… it maybe ok for a quick edit or to… but lets be real…the audio recording quality is hideous… but i guess if its a must have situation and u need to do a quick audition…”

I love comments like Don’s because they start me thinking and in this case three thoughts popped into my head.

1. The technology boat will leave with or without us
It is pathetically obvious to even the most unengaged user of technology that as soon as you buy the newest computer at the store, it’s outdated in some aspect of its internal technology. Beyond computers, it the tech sectors business model – always be improving so customers will buy your newer stuff.

This is, to my knowledge, one of the first apps of its kind for iPhone and it’s very specifically targeted my area of business. Obviously my biggest concern with something like iAudition is audio fidelity and quality…so will Don be proven right? Will I hate it?

I won’t know unless I try it and at under $5, I can roll the dice on this technology.

2. As technology changes, so do people’s expectations
As an example: black and white TV’s died when a successful color TV model was invented. HDTV is having the same effect on analog. People expect better.

BUT sometimes people’s expectations for quality can be lowered and those lower expectations become acceptable. One example I site is this: I remember, growing up, that people always dressed up when one flew on an airplane; jackets and ties were the norm. Now it’s just nice if people keep their flip flops on during the whole flight.

In voiceover, the same thing has happened whether we like it or not. Recording studios and their amazing acoustics have given way to home studios where voice talents manage their acoustics with bed foam and moving van blankets…the clients know not the the recording room difference most times when they listen to the finished file.

Remember when voice over agencies ruled the business? Most professional voice talents signed with an agency and the agency did all the marketing for the talent (one might even go to the agent or the client’s office to audition). Now the Voices.com and Voice123’s of the world have changed that dynamic. And while some of their clients offer fine quality audio recordings and performances, some are pathetic in both those measures. But because those lesser talents will work for pennies on the dollar, they get work.

Sacrificing quality for lower cost is an American retail tradition. Which led me to think…

3. What is the tipping point for “acceptable” audio fidelity on auditions?
Whatever it is today, I think it will be different tomorrow. In much the same way America had recording studio quality standards years ago, today radio stations will seemingly broadcast almost anything for ad dollars and I can’t blame them. And video not audio has always been a prime focus for television ads as anyone who has ever watched a local cable ad can attest.

So what about when auditioning? Will clients and production houses sacrifice pristine audio quality on auditions since they are only auditions? Shouldn’t the audio quality of the audio represent the level of the finished product should that voice talent get the job? Or will the client assume that can all be fixed in post?

It’s an evolving answer but as our national consciousness seems to be focusing on faster and easier more so than better and quality, I think this debate in the voiceover industry isn’t but a year or so away from getting a clearer answer.

guest blogger – stephanie ciccarelli of voices.com

Stephanie Ciccarelli of Voices.com

Editors Note: When the content merits it (or we’re just feeling too darn lazy to write our own stuff) voxmarketising welcomes guest bloggers. Today we welcome Stephanie Ciccarelli, Co-Founder, and Chief Marketing Officer of Voices.com, who blogs today about how handsome and talented I am.

Social Media for Voice Talent from a Casting Perspective
by Stephanie Ciccarelli

Social media is fun, it’s free and generally the return on investment is exceptional… but what happens when you’re tweeting or updating your status on various properties about auditions, experiences and information that might be considered classified by those in casting circles?

Most of us have pretty good manners and keep details about gigs with non-disclosure agreements off the social media circuit, but what about grey areas such as auditions or jobs before you’ve signed an NDA?

What’s off limits and what isn’t?

Perhaps the thought hasn’t even crossed your mind. For many, it doesn’t. A perfect case in point is when the celebrity cast of a certain animated feature film decided to tweet about their involvement with the project before the PR department at the production house gave the official okay to shout their joyous strains from the rooftops. Needless to say, the cat had been let out of the proverbial bag and the actors were reprimanded in some capacity for tweeting about it.

What are producers doing about this?

According the Hollywood Reporter new artist contracts are now drawn up with special clauses that pertain to social media with the purpose of obtaining a commitment from talent to not leak juicy details or the like when signing on to work with companies such as Disney. Disney’s contract has a clause forbidding confidentiality breaches by way of “interactive media such as Facebook, Twitter, or any other interactive network or personal blog.”

How has this played out in practice? Cameron Diaz and Mike Myers are said to have both signed DreamWorks contracts with anti-Twitter clauses prior to the release of the newest Shrek movie.

While many celebrities declare that their tweeting days are numbered, others opt to honor their contracts and use their Twitter accounts in relation to a given project when and if appropriate.

To ensure you don’t get into a situation, check with the producers you’re working on projects with to see if there are any clauses that might affect your ability to publicize your involvement and or experiences. It also may not hurt to check with those who didn’t make you sign an NDA and see what their preferences are with regard to social media and their project in development.

Although sharing insider information can make you feel like you have a special currency with the public, beware! Releasing behind the scenes features, dev journals and the like usually fall into the realm of the companies themselves. Does this mean you can’t write about or share your own experience? More often than not you’ll meet with a positive reply, but ask before you post, tweet or speak.

About the Author
Stephanie Ciccarelli is one of the most connected people in voice overs, a sought after industry expert and respected blogger. In 2003, she co-founded Voices.com, the voice over marketplace, and has been actively engaged in the voice acting community ever since. Mrs. Ciccarelli graduated with a Bachelor of Musical Arts ’06 from the Don Wright Faculty of Music at the University of Western Ontario and is also the author of many eBooks, including the Definitive Guide to Voice Over Success, editor of the VOX Daily Voice Actors Blog and also shares her insights and unique perspectives via podcast.

you may have missed this too…

When it comes to viral videos and such, I’m always behind about 1,000,000 people in learning about them. Maybe it’s work or kids or travel but I never know about these things early on.

So to find Stephanie Ciccarelli’s post today about a viral video wedding announcement brilliantly crafted as a movie trailer that has been on morning shows and blogs for a while now, I thought why should I bother posting it?

Then I realized, there are more “me” types out there than there are viral adopters so you may not have seen it either.

Sometimes I give these things too much thought – just watch the darn thing 🙂

And congrats to voice talent Larry Wayne for getting the gig and going viral.

moving day for voices.com

voicesdotcom_logo

If you’re a member of Voices.com it’s going to be a bit tougher to chat with folks there today because they are moving into their brand new headquarters. Congrats to Dave, Steph and the entire team.

Because of my negative opinion about the pay to play business model in voice over, I’ve been asked by some voices talents why I have spoken often in support of Voices.com. I have no trouble answering their questions – it has to do with the professional and personal respect I have for the Ciccarellis.

While I disagree with the business model overall – a model that is the foundation for Voices.com as a business, David, Stephanie and their team I believe are sincerely committed to helping their listed voice talents build their careers while simultaneously building the Voices.com business. I offer as my examples: the customer service I received when I briefly joined their service when it first started, their corporate openness through their use of a variety of social media tools and my numerous personal interactions with them. They are professional, they are respectable and their business practices as far as I have experienced are completely above board.

It is the model of their business (and those with whom they compete) that I find to be very problematic; briefly stated- pay-to-play voice over sites I believe undermine the quality of the voice over industry. So I don’t pay. It’s up to history to determine if my opinion is right or wrong – ultimately my opinion is only right for me. If one were so inclined to join a pay-to-play site, I would direct them to Voices.com first.

As an owner of many small businesses, a five year mark is an important historic milestone. To have been able to grow their business to a point where they are covering salaries, benefits, rent, etc. every month is a big deal. Being able to move and grow the Voices.com business into new space is pretty amazing as well. That benchmark needs to be recognized and appreciated for every business because it ain’t easy and it ain’t guaranteed for any of us.