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Voice Artist Q&A with GARTH

With so many great voice over talent working with us at The Voice Market, we thought we’d take the opportunity to throw some questions at them to find out more about their back story.  How did they get into voiceover work?  What background did they have?  What advice would you give anyone hoping to become a voice actor?  Where do you find voice work out there in the real world?

This should provide some interesting reading if you’re looking to get into voiceovers professionally in the near future.  Hope it helps out…

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First name?  Garth

• How long have you been a professional voice talent?

I studied voice and acting at university years ago, but I’d say I became a professional voice over artist about 4 years ago.

 Describe your voice style… and what would you say are your voice strengths?

Characters are definitely a big strength of mine, also longer corporate and online pieces

How did you become a voice talent?

I worked in commercial radio for about 4 years after which I received a job as a creative writer for radio, when you are writing ads you constantly read them aloud and time them, this really helped me develop and hone my skills and revisit the work I had done studying voice at uni. I sort of fell into it… Stuffing around with my boss and doing silly voices meant I was given more and more internal scripts to voice and slowly became known as the guy who can voice anything, which meant that my boss gave me more and more crazy characters to bring to life, which I didn’t complaining about.

What background do you have that helped you get into the voiceover field?

Studying acting and voice at uni gave me a lot of skills that I now use every day. Working as an actor for a number of years also helped me, not only with character work but also with natural “real” reads and also creating variety and texture in longer pieces.

What three things do you feel a voice talent must possess to be successful in this profession?

Like anything in life, succeeding in the voice over world takes determination and perseverance even more so than talent, if you work hard and don’t stop or give up you’ll go far. You also need patience.

What do you like most and least about doing voice overs?

Most of all I like being able to bring crazy characters to life and the challenges it brings. What I like least is that I don’t often get to hear the fully produced finished product.

What advice would you give anyone hoping to get into voice acting?

Persevere, persevere, persevere, find a mentor – do what they say AND what they do… And practice practice practice, you must read aloud every day.

 

How can you find on going work as a voice talent in Australia (or internationally) – other site names are fine.

With the internet, its easier than ever before in history to communicate and find information. Google away and find Voiceover agencies and websites and introduce yourself, send them your demo. Put yourself out there, what harm can it do? You really need an agent (or two) to get on going work. Don’t be disgruntled if the big players don’t take you on straight away, start from the bottom and work your way up – everyone has to start somewhere!

Can you suggest any resources people can follow up to improve their voice abilities?

Take a voice over class – Adam Whitby is one of the best voiceover artists in Australia and he is a very talented (and affordable) voice coach. Regardless of how experienced you are it’s important to keep training and challenging yourself. Read Cicely Berry “Voice and the Actor” – great techniques and exercises. Yoga is great for breath control and breathing techniques too, so do some yoga. Practice exercises for diction and breathing regularly and read aloud everyday.

 

 

To find out more about how to get into voice overs or to see how things are done here at the voice market – check out the videos on our FAQ – thevoicemarket.com.au