Alan Shires

How to Mo’Capture the Job – The Full Story

January 12, 2023 by Alan Shires

The Hustle of Performance Capture

If you have read any of my other mocap or performance capture blogs, you will know by now I am passionate about this area of the industry. Accompanying that passion is the endeavour to ensure that I consistently continue sharpening my craft and learning as much as I can about this field. Any entrepreneur should be looking to become an expert in their field. I think if someone is doing something half-hearted, it really shows, and in entertainment, you do need to give it your everything to book the job otherwise, someone will get it over you. Moreover, if you are down in the dumps when performing, it’s going to set up a poor atmosphere for all involved, so the problem with that is, well… they just won’t book you again, and that is the worst problem you can have in this industry because word spreads fast.

Famous Actor Working in Performance Capture

I met Victoria Atkin at one of my client’s video game events called Get Your Game On, and I loved learning about her journey with Ubisoft, Assassins Creed, and performance capture. Victoria had booked one of the first lead female roles in a video game with her role as Victoria Atkin in the Assassins Creed syndicate. Many actors and voiceover artists work in mocap and performance capture aspire to book these types of roles. Typically, the pay is fantastic, the work is consistent for several months, and you get flown worldwide. It’s an amazing experience.

How Does a Voiceover Artist Book the Biggest of Jobs?

Victoria shared a phenomenal story of where she did a self-tape, sent it over, and then forgot about it. A year later, they booked her for it. Sometimes when we send self-tapes, it can take a while to hear back, so I think the best thing is just to forget about it and move on to the next job. In the meantime, you never know when the return on that audition or self-tape might present itself. We are so used to everything moving a million miles an hour, so it’s pleasantly unique to hear how this works with a massive title like Assassins Creed. The key is to always be ready, be ready to audition and self-tape, be ready to fly, be ready to be called in, and be ready for a call back.

Working with the Great Actors in Performance Capture

Victoria agreed to teach an intensive workshop for the organisation. I think it is essential to work with the people who have booked the jobs you aspire to book, so I signed up for this workshop. It was in 2019, in the early days of my ventures into mocap and performance capture. I am pleased to say I have built fantastic clients and booked excellent jobs since then. The workshop was very informative, and the content available was impressive. Learning from the best brings value because they have the experience of not only the process of booking the job but the knowledge of what it takes to see it through to completion. I used the workshop and the event as an opportunity to interview Victoria and get some powerful content for the readers.

Top Tips From the Best in Mocap

I wanted to know what challenges an actor and voiceover artist may face in mocap and performance capture. Well, the answer to this takes us back to that position we are very familiar with, that being, we are in a heavily over-saturated industry where a lot of the work is hidden behind a small number of agents. So, finding the work is a challenge. Mocap and performance capture is a small-knit community, so networking, building a portfolio, and attempting to be the best you can be is compulsory for success.

The Audition Process

We send in voice demos for a voiceover job and a showreel for the on-screen jobs, but what do we send off for performance capture and mocap roles? Any skills you may have, like parkour and arms usage, must be captured on camera. If you have the footage in the volume against what’s on the screen, then this is good to have (though keep it short), and finally, just deliver something that shows off your skills and unique abilities. What happens after the demo stage? Well, you may be asked to self-tape, and for mocap and performance capture, these range from being random to needing a lot of physical ability.

I have had auditions that required the tape to show a lot of movement in a vast space, I’ve had others that are looking to capture bigger characters with powerful facial expressions and line delivery. The final thing to consider with performance capture and mocap is the prospect of getting called into an audition. Though the world has changed how it deals with the audition process, it is not uncommon to be called in for an audition, even if you have sent demos and self-tapes. Sometimes you might be asked to audition instead of a self-tape, other times, it will be the third step following the demos and the self-tape. Over the years, I have learned to have fun in in-person auditions and try to give something to the casting director that they did not expect but is true to the piece. Don’t worry about what anyone thinks. Give your best performance, and just enjoy the experience. I love chatting with the team during an audition, after all, we are all human, and auditions are great networking and connection-building opportunities.

Voice Over Transitions: It’s all so Alien – The Full story

January 7, 2023 by Alan Shires

When the Voice Actor Meets Despair!

Do you like my dramatic title for this paragraph? What a way to open a blog, right? Well, in this instance, I wish I could say it was exaggerated. ‘It’s all so Alien’ was birthed out of one of the most challenging points of my life because family, work, health, and career all blurred into one for three weeks of my life. And I’m sure it won’t be the last of the life and voice over transitions headed my way.

Leaving the day job and going into voice acting full time

In June 2020, I gave up my final PAYE job and began working independently as a voiceover artist. My wife at the time was 7 months pregnant, and we were decorating the nursery for my new baby on that first Saturday of me being free from work. As I was painting our lodger commented that the paint stunk to which I replied saying ‘’I can’t smell anything’’ oh no, you know where this is going right? Wait for it!

I began feeling more poorly, and this was in the days long before a vaccine was common. After testing, my leave turned into a nice bout of Covid-19, just what every voice actor needs right?

Battling Isolation, Spiders, and Covid Symptoms

Covid-19 hit me hard this first time. I struggled to breathe, eat, and sleep, and had other unusual, weird symptoms. When the virus was in full force, my wife had crossed over from being 7 months pregnant to 8 months pregnant, so we slept in different rooms (don’t worry, we did get the nursery finished!).

There was one evening when everything was a bit of a blur, and I remember hearing a scuttling of wrappers on the floor. (Oh no…) At first, I ignored it! I heard it again… I then decided to turn the light on and look, nothing! I thought, must just be wrappers brushing against each other when I laid back down and alas, I heard this scuttling one more time! Before I go any further, let me just reassure you, I am not a big slog who keeps loads of wrappers on the floor, just during Covid, I did enjoy a few bags of crisps to see me by, and I did isolate in my room, so access to bins was limited!

Now that’s all cleared up, let me get back to the tale! I once more carried my blurry self out of bed and turned the light on and when looking down at the floor laid THE BIGGEST, DIRTIEST, and most MONSTEROUS Spider you have ever seen (in the UK – it wasn’t anything compared to what is out there around the world). Not liking spiders all that much I did think to myself at 00:30am “WHY ME?” Anyway, I got it into a glass, and it went out the window. But in the midst of feeling simply awful that was the last thing I needed.

Voiceover Transitions – Motivated Out of the Fog

Prior to getting sick, I had just auditioned for a new and upcoming animation. A wonderful story promoting good morals. It was both educational and entertaining, and I noticed a few friends of mine were getting cast which was exciting. The email then landed in my inbox that I, too, had been cast! It gets better! I got cast in one of the most prominent roles in the series!

But I was sick!? Well, after two weeks, my sinuses had cleared up a bit, so I was dealing with fatigue and breathlessness. I noticed some clients generally were more sympathetic during the pandemic towards people’s health. They were happy with my pace, and a bit of editing gets rid of those nasty deep breath sounds between the lines.

So! I managed to do the session and get through the job. My first-ever animation booking came in during one of the worst bouts of sickness I have ever had in my life. Now, please do not misinterpret me here. I am not saying if you’re sick, you should work! There were indeed points where I was physically incapable, but I did just about manage to work everything out with enough recovery time to get myself through the session. I remember feeling exceptionally exhausted after it, but I love voice over and I love being an actor. The jolt and thrill it gave me, I believe, helped with my recovery, in fact!

But to summarise – if you are not well enough to work, don’t. But if you want to, then do! I have said it before, but I was so pleased to be a working voice actor who had invested in a home studio years prior because without that, the job would have been impossible for me to complete without the client needing to change their recording schedule.

Voice Over Transitions – It’s all so Alien to Us

The whole world stopped, everything we knew changed, and we had to adapt! Whether it was learning how to do online shopping or getting used to finding stuff to do at home, it was a very alien environment. I fortunately did not struggle too much work-wise as I worked a lot from my booth already. I did miss getting out the house and going to a studio, though, as it is good fun. So, what happened to my wife and newborn? Well, Covid dragged a bit, but I got a negative test 3 days before my daughter was born. So, it was nearly a nasty situation, and no one wants to miss out on their child’s birth, but fortunately, I got better just in time.

In many ways, the world still is and continues to be a bit ‘Alien,’ and accepting the new normal as a little abnormal is a good approach to the ever-changing climate we live in.

Voiceover Home Studios – The Full Story

January 2, 2023 by Alan Shires

What a Voice Actor Needs to Record From Home

The coronavirus pandemic made voiceover home studios more common and acceptable, and despite in-house studios opening up again, I think much of the convenience of having a home studio to record from is still a popular option. During the pandemic, I helped hundreds of artists get set up with tailored setups ready to launch their businesses forward. Effectively all you need is a microphone, an audio interface, a pair of headphones, and a computer. The microphone is an electronic ear, though it is super sensitive and will hear so many sounds we might otherwise not hear. The audio interface takes the sound waves picked up by the microphone and converts them into something a computer can understand. On your computer, you will need to download what’s known as a ‘DAW.’ This is audio recording software. With that said, you are good to go!

Voiceover Equipment

Some equipment works better for some people than others. There are microphones for example, that complement higher-pitch voices and others that complement lower-pitch voices. Some variations in equipment don’t always work as well as others, but I will come on to that a little later. I wrote the intro to 4 equipment spreads in The Buzz magazine to give people a huge range of content, evaluating the pros and cons along with the prices and specs. Vocal booths, microphones, interfaces, and headphones are all things I looked at. A budget set up can be gained for around £200 to $250. This will give you a decent microphone, interface, and headphones to start you off. However, what type of microphone do you need, and where do you record?

Creating Your Space

There are several types of microphones out there, such as dynamic, large diaphragm, small diaphragm, and ribbon mics, to name a few. They all serve a purpose, but in voice over in particular, the typical standard is a large diaphragm condenser microphone. Most agents, casting directors, or clients will be expecting these types of microphones. It is key to make sure that you do not deviate from this as you want to make the experience as easy as possible to book work. There is, of course, the odd exception to the microphone large diaphragm condenser rule, but unless you are at a sound engineer level of experience, it is best to stick to what is normal in this instance.

Mixing Equipment and Elevating Your Performance

Several clients in the video game and anime genres prefer to work with Neumann TLM103s and U87s. A friend of mine said an Aston Spirit was a good substitute for the Neumann TLM103, so I decided to put this to the test. I compared several microphones to the TLM103, and ultimately the TLM103 outperformed in nearly every way, and some of the other microphones in the hustings proved to be better than the Aston Spirit. Amongst these microphones were the Rode NT1a, Imperative Audio Lucent, Vocaster, Aston Origin, Spirit and Stealth, and the Shure SM7b. I was in the process of upgrading from a Scarlette 2i2 to an Audient ID14 MKii.

These tests were conducted on the 2i2, but then I started to repeat the practise on the ID14. It was interesting that the Rode NT1a sounded amazing on the 2i2, yet on the ID14, it sounded ‘okay.’ Conversely, the TLM103 sounded great on the 2i2, yet on the ID14, it sounded exceptional! It does seem that the higher quality equipment does work better together. I can only assume a lower-budget interface with a higher-budget microphone does not pull through all the beauty the microphone is picking up.

Maximising Voiceover Home Studios

People often get concerned about where they are going to record. This can be due to external noise or rented accommodation. Sometimes it can be just down to space! But the good news is that there are plenty of options. Ideally, you want a reinforced acoustically treated soundproof workspace, but if that’s out of your budget or you do not have the price, do not worry. You can get portable vocal booths that fold up so that they can be stored away after use. The additional perk is that you can pack and put them in your car for traveling.

Portable booths range from tent-styled setups using blankets and sticks to rather heavy, thick, and dense materials. So, to summarise, there is the option of portable booths, which are lighter and thinner and offer more convenience, or a larger and heavier booth that sounds much better but is a bit more awkward to move about. Of course, there are products on the market, such as the Isocube and the Kaotica Eyeball, built to cover microphones, creating a decent size chamber that is not circulating the microphone.

Investing in Your Studio Brings Returns

Though the £200 to $250 bundles are incredible, for an extra £75 to $100, you can probably get something more tailored to your voice type and detailed needs. If you’re on the main road, in a terraced house, living with housemates and under a flight path, then you need to make sure you are doing things perfectly and waiting a couple of months to save up that extra couple of hundred pounds/dollars will be worth it in the long and short term. The good news is the home studio setup is always an evolving piece; even now, all these years in, I am still tweaking and changing my setup because it can always be better.

As I learn and technology evolves, I want to stay up to date with the latest tips, tricks, and trends, so I sound fantastic and competitive. Sometimes that super awesome sound might just be what gives you the edge. The good news is nothing is lost! If you upgrade, the old kit now happily resides in your travel kit bag or stands as an alternative should your client want to try a different sound or one of your components break. To close on that note, I always recommend two inputs rather than one for your audio interface because if one breaks, at least you have a second one to lean on.

Have fun building your studio. Make it personal to you; make it yours!

Lockdown Legends – The Full Story

January 1, 2023 by Alan Shires

Thriving and Evolving Voiceover Artists

Remember being in lockdown during the coronavirus pandemic? Wow, what a weird time that was. It sort of feels a bit surreal thinking back, doesn’t it? Well, I wrote this article during the pandemic at a time when hundreds of countries globally locked down and entertainment production got put on the shelf. I found a lot of opportunity was birthed this time from a self-investment perspective. More people than ever who hold a significant presence in the industry were free to share what they know in the avenues of workshops, webinars, and interviews. That accompanied by talent saving money from not going outside meant they were able to branch out into new avenues enjoying workshops in genres they have not experienced before. As evolving voiceover artists they also spent time sharpening their skills in familiar areas.

Proactive Actors Artists

I certainly took a few more workshops but another phenomenal opportunity was to think outside the box and ask the question “how do I network when locked down?”. The world quickly adapted, and we saw socials appearing online, more social media chats and groups than ever before and finally a real dedication to connect. It was lonely at times, right? We had never experienced this before and we delt with it however we could. The networking point is an interesting one, the truth was that people were freer to have a chat and a lot of people including myself used this as an opportunity to connect and make some new friends and contacts.

Evolving Voiceover Artists Coming Together

I wanted to help people as much as possible utilise their time and energy in a productive manner. The pandemic saw a rise in mental health challenges, divorces, and suicides. The change in routine, the intensity of relationships with untapped issues and the feeling of isolation and loneliness presented a challenge to millions of people. The key was to channel this productively, not just as a distraction but as a means of building something fresh and new that paves the foundation to a better tomorrow. With that said I decided to write this piece bringing in a few of my voice actor friends.

A Global Community

The article had four contributors aside from myself and most of them I had not met in person before. We were strictly connected via the internet and began developing relationships, sharing tips, and working together during the pandemic. Two of them reside on the other side of the world in fact – how crazy is that? What I did notice though from chatting with these four wonderful artists is that they all brought something wonderfully unique when it came to marketing and networking during the pandemic. They all had their own bit to share which I will share now because ultimately, these tips are tips for life not just during a pandemic, these marketing skills are things we should have been doing anyway and are simple! Most importantly they are transferable to everyday life.

The Busy Voiceover Artist

Jeffrey shared that when the lockdown hit, he endeavoured to create more content than ever before alongside investing into training. He made parodies which he shared online and in networking groups and they were seen by hundreds. He brought a great deal of entertainment to all involved which showcased him in a hyper professional way. He wasn’t scared to try something new and to begin developing something new. The time was available so why not? I think this is a phenomenal approach and the idea that we can do things in these situations that we wouldn’t otherwise prioritise time for I think is genius. So, the top tip is, what can you be doing to invest into yourself and what skills can you be getting out there? Dedicate a bit of time to do this and you will see it soon mount up.

Making the Situation Your Own

Karis who worked a great deal on screen recognised that this was stopping and instead she ensured her voiceover setup and home recording abilities where top-notch. She invested more into her voiceover business than ever before and facilitated imaginative means of collaborating with her on-screen clients too. iPhone cameras used at home became common pieces of technology used when filming upcoming productions. Savvy companies also used the online meeting style to advertise their products during the lockdown. We were all used to the multiple faces on the screen in their own rectangular shapes, so that’s what a lot of companies displayed with their advertisements too. Top tip for this one, always make sure your home set up for both voice and on-screen are top notch!

Finding the Balance in Evolving Voiceover

Ian had two massive projects on the go which all the sudden did not need to drag on but instead could be managed quicker and more efficiently. Fortunately, this was a catalyst to a greater display of work-life balance in his life. Work-life balance is massively important and without it, exhaustion will display itself through your work. Things will seem rushed, small mistakes will be made, or your exhaustion will be picked up by peers and clients. Top tip, make sure you make time for yourself to rest. Plan your working schedule and commit to it.

Lorraine lost a big job due to the pandemic, the hope of it being sat there waiting for her on the other end was attractive but there was no guarantee. So, what did Lorraine do? She made sure to look after her health, she invested into herself with training, and she got proactive! Lorraine began booking work through other avenues like connections she had made on social media and via friends who were recommending her for known projects that she was a match for. Had the pandemic not hit and the original job not been lost she may not have discovered all these wonderful opportunities. The mindset behind taking a breath and focusing on what you can do and not what you can’t do I think is vital. Top tip, always look for the opportunities, take a deep breath, let go of what’s outside of your control and look after your health.

Voiceover Mindset and Vision – The Full Story

December 30, 2022 by Alan Shires

The Voiceover Artist and The Press

If you have read any of my other blogs before this one, you will know I am super enthusiastic about the press. Why am I so passionate about it? IMDb credits will show the world how good and creditable you are. Your demos and headshots will show the world your range and style. Social media does an excellent job of showing whatever we want the world to see, whether it be humor, business success, family, or anything else. So, what does the press do, and why is it important? The press allows us to put out information that puts us in a place of influence and presents us with the opportunity to support, invest and uplift those who work around us. When we have the press, it shows we are well-rounded with all the above, but it gives us the ability to give back to the industry. Giving away our tips and tricks, sharing our experiences and stories, and putting ourselves in a place of connection helps those around us whilst boosting one’s own profile.

The Voiceover Mindset in the Business World

As a working actor and northern voiceover artist, the business side of what I do is vitally important. It is a core building block of everything I do and the number one opportunity to grow my business and book fun jobs! That said, it requires a different mindset. I must step out of my performer’s mindset for a moment and think practically, following the professionalism and expectations of any business. This is not a moment to be creative but a moment for me to show off my gifts, advertise my services and display my worth. This article was born in a business setting.

The Post-Covid Voiceover Business

I was at a voiceover collaboration meeting in London, looking at ways to support artists more globally. At the meeting, there was a business coach who supported the meeting chair. His role was to look at resource systems and processes to critique them, simplifying them but increasing the impact and audience range. These meetings are so important because modern-day voiceover talent’s trends, needs, and desires change regularly. Take the pandemic as an example. Outside studios suddenly stopped whilst home studios became the new norm. Larger companies were sending their regular talent home studio kits. Interface and microphone companies saw record sales, and all of a sudden, connectivity platforms like Source Connect and Clean Feed made the world a much smaller place, connecting directors, producers, engineers, and talent together under the power of the internet.

Making PR with a Voiceover Mindset and Vision

The coach at this meeting runs his own magazine, and it just so happened his PR manager was present at this meeting as she was supporting with the collaboration of the two organisations. She later began working closely with my client and supporting her with the voiceover magazine. We were on a call discussing the voiceover magazine one evening, and she shared with me how she was delayed in her business clients’ magazine due to an article gap that she was now struggling to fill. I mentioned how often I write content, and she invited me to collaborate with the business magazine after sharing some of my recent business ventures. I kindly accepted this offer. Within the article, I shared the following four key points.

Point 1: Use your Imagination in Business

At this point, being an actor and voiceover artist means you are a business. So, for this first point, let me ask you a question, what do you believe in? What is the natural dream progression for your business? There are common answers to this question. More subscribers, more customers, more clients, bigger clients, all the usual stuff. But let us unpack it more, do you want new customers in specific countries? If so, which ones? Do you want to expand your team or travel the world? Allow yourself to imagine and begin making tiny steps towards this, but most importantly, let yourself just dream and imagine.

Point 2: Think Outside the Box

As a voice over talent, I am constantly having to think about creative ways to find and keep more clients as it is a heavily oversaturated environment and highly competitive. Ask yourself where the work is. I am constantly looking out for where I can help a potential client with a problem. In the voiceover world, I recognise out-of-date or poor voicemail recordings. I would ask for recommendations and testimonials from clients I can share on social media or my website. I would think about investing some more time into my SEO and content. There are always things we can be doing.

Point 3: We Need to Adapt to Change

I mentioned the pandemic, but in the acting and voiceover world, we had to adapt quickly or not work at all. Here is the thing, a lot of actors and voiceover artists did start new jobs or not work because of the situation. It was awful! But many managed to scrape new realms of income in the forms of teaching, proactively reaching out to new and old clients, and putting the hustle on the front foot. Many companies used the online world to take advantage of the situation. The open university did an outstanding commercial of a student telling her family online that she was accepted into university. The screen displaying the boxes of the individuals was something we were all familiar with, having suddenly jumped onto Zoom, Teams, and Meets. It was relevant, it was expected, and it was present. But the need to change continues regularly.

Point 4: Work with Conviction and Purpose

With all the above, use the visions you captured in your time of dreaming and imagination from point 1 as your driving force of motivation. What you visualised can be materialised. Spend some time every day doing a little bit to grow your business, whether it is a social media post, a blog for your website, or reaching out to clients – prospective or existing.

The Voiceover Mindset and Vision Today

So, whatever comes our way as actors and voiceover artists these principles will apply. Though the seasons change and the environment is always a little bit unstable. The ability to make a social media post, write a blog, or reach out to prospective or existing clients is something we can do daily. Networking does not stop, whether online or in person, the options are there. Of course, you need to keep your skills sharp with workshops and coaching. Immersing ourselves in new business trends and techniques is a good point. Finally, do something! Do not become complacent because you can rest assured your competition will be proactive.

The Voice Actor Getting Press

Getting press can seem like a tricky task. You might ask yourself, what will I write about? What do I want to share? Who will take this article on? These are all great questions. Before I answer them, let me explain the several types of press. Perhaps you met a celebrity and want to interview them; that is an interview with someone else. Perhaps someone wants to interview you on a role you did, this is an interview on you. Perhaps you wrote something important designed to help others, this is press written by you (articles). Finally, perhaps you found a cool piece of kit or some plugin you have fallen in love with, and write something about that; this would be a review. So, we have interviews with you, interviews done by you, articles, and reviews. All of these work favourably for your portfolio.

So where do you go to get press? Reach out to your local newspaper, they love media-based content. For example, perhaps you just did a corporate VO for Starbucks, the headline could be: ‘Local Business Books for Starbucks.’ You can reach out to your old educational facility, be it a Drama School or University, they are always looking for successful case studies from former students as they can use them in their literature for current and prospective students. Look for relevant publications in your industry field. You will notice in several of my blogs the articles I am writing about are related to ‘The Buzz Magazine.’ The Buzz Magazine is dedicated to voiceover artists and motion capture performers. So, I try to get involved with these guys as much as I can, and occasionally, they get me involved. This, over the years, has built an excellent portfolio.

Press Breeds More Press

So, I frequently mention The Buzz Magazine, but this article is from The Business Club House magazine. So what is that? The Business Club House is a business magazine. You may have recognised from my blogs that I am super enthusiastic about networking and business. A friend shared a mutual client, and we were chatting about shared tasks. During our chat, she shared that she was behind with a publication for one of her other clients. She was the editor for The Business Clubhouse magazine and had to pick up an article due to someone letting her down last minute.

She shared that she was not a fan of writing content, which would take her hours. At this point, I shared a few of my recent wins and business successes with her and she invited me to author the article in her place if I could do it immediately. I informed her it takes me 20-25 minutes to write one page of A4, and with excitement, she invited me to write for the magazine. Thirty minutes later, it was in the final draft. My point with this is networking, and business skills put me in a position to get this piece of press. I knew the person, I was able to help them, and I was able to adapt myself to their publication.

The Voiceover Mindset and Vision in Business

As mentioned earlier, The Business Club House produces the magazine. So for me, as the writer, the content has to be less entertainment-based and more business based. Relatable, generic, and transferable content from industry to industry is vital here, as it is all just business at the end of the day. Whether you are a window cleaner, a voiceover artist, or a stockbroker, you are a business in your own right.

Voiceover Life and Daddy Dinosaur – The Full Story

December 24, 2022 by Alan Shires

Dad and the Voiceover Life

This has got to be my overall favourite piece of PR that I have ever done simply because my beautiful little girl gets to star in it, and she really does steal the show with her happy radiating face! This article was born in such an unusual manner and addresses balancing the voiceover life. In the spring of 2021, just before the FIFA European Tournament started my phone went off it was a production company that liked my look and asked if I was available to film in Manchester in a few weeks’ time for the upcoming football tournament. I took the job, and shortly after, my phone went off once more!

This time it was a company looking to see if I could do some toy voiceover and facial recognition in the studio, but the problem is it was on the same day as the football job. Weirdly it was in between the two big UK lockdowns, and that was the only time in 2021 I actually went into a studio, whereas I visited multiple filming sets. So, what did I do? Here is the problem – how was I going to do both jobs? I am a voice actor, NOT a magician, I can’t be in two places at once! Or can I? Stay with me! A few days later my phone goes off AGAIN… oh no! I know what you’re thinking! Fortunately, this job was not on the same day but a few days later, in London! This was for a Daddy-Daughter audition for Nintendo.

Dad, Husband, and Voiceover Life ALL AT THE SAME TIME

This particular week was a logistical nightmare with spinning all the plates. All my usual commitments came in to play along with a few extra ones, which all aligned at the same time. In entertainment, it is funny how you can go weeks without an acting job or a voice over job, and then all of a sudden, you have jobs crossing over each other! You can almost guarantee the latter will happen when you are super busy with life. Why can’t all the work come in when we are quiet, right? Learning to prioritise is so important! For me, my faith and my family take the top of my priorities, if those two things are not looked after, then I don’t even think about doing anything else. Good and strong foundations make for a better, more confident, disciplined, and strong actor and voiceover artist/voice actor. So, what did we do with the above situation? I am the dad of a very excitable nearly 1-year-old who was hugely dependent on Mummy (my beautiful wife Molly). The casting director wants me and my daughter Grace to travel to London. Meanwhile, I have other jobs to knock out! So, what did I do?

Making Voiceover Life Work

I sat with my wife and asked her what she thought about taking Grace 200 miles south for an audition. Like me, she was excited about the prospects of a big fun adventure, so I invited her to come with Grace and me to London. Why? Well, the number one reason was to do this together as a family, but number 2 was to ensure Grace was well supported. So going back to priorities, family time and well-being comes first!

We did the trip, had a wonderful time, and it was such a fun audition. Grace and I had a blast, and the casting director and team all adored her. For her, it was just an exciting adventure filled with play, and really, to be honest – she is right! Acting is just an exciting adventure filled with play! Whatever the genre is, we are playing around with our imagination, and we should be having great fun!

So, what about the other two jobs? Oh boy…

On-Screen, Behind the Mic, Balancing Act

I managed to wrangle the two jobs to shoot at various times of the day. I needed to be on set in the afternoon giving me all morning for the voiceover toy job. I had the joy of being a dinosaur, a pig, a dog, a sloth, and a lion all in this morning session. One problem! The tech broke, and the session ran an entire hour behind! They were desperate for me to finish the session, but with the pressure of the upcoming filming shoot, I negotiated with them that I would return after the shoot – like it couldn’t get any worse right?

So, I arrive at the film set for this football shoot, and they are running an hour late! I am face-palming myself at this point, thinking, ‘ARGH, I could have stayed and finished the toy job!’ But this stuff happens, right? So, I did the shoot, it only took a couple of hours once we got on set and got through all the covid testing and paperwork. Again, it was great fun, and I loved having that credit associated with my name.

In a true happily ever after format, I went back to the voiceover/facial recognition job and finished that last character, and that was it, DONE!

All-Around Performer Spinning All the Plates

Though I am a performer, I am not referring to the physical plates but the hypothetical ones describing how we often have a lot going on. The key is to prioritise and negotiate. I first prioritised my family and the audition with my daughter, THEN focused on the two jobs on the same day. Once I got those, I took the TV job first to honor that but managed to organise it around the second, which was a voiceover and facial recognition job. When that one went over, I agreed to go back after filming. So, I really did work and negotiate with both companies to give them what they needed across the available time frame. Of course, we also had to negotiate the cost of going back for that extra session, although they offered to compensate on this rare occasion! That doesn’t often happen, right?

So, to close, make it all about them and not about you!

Family first
Look after the client
Go the extra mile
Oh, and have fun!