It’s 2020 (an election year) and I think it’s safe to say that the demand for political spots will increase. By that I mean there will be more radio & TV electoral campaign and issue ads being produced than ever before which will require voiceover talent. That’s us!
One of my 2020 goals is to explore a new genre and Political Spots is one of them. My dear friend and fabby voice talent Liz de Nesnera had her demo produced at Adrenaline Studios in Las Vegas and it’s great. I encourage you to listen to the demos posted there to get a better understanding of the Political genre and the elements of a quality demo.
I also bring this up because I was talking to a student recently about last’s week’s blog and she asked why I didn’t mention that Mrs. Maisel objected to doing the Phyllis Schlafly political spot. I wanted to focus on the “always read the contract” tip and there’s only so much time to address so any issues in any given blog entry.
TIP OF THE WEEK
Last week’s Tip was “read the contract before you agree to sign it”. This week’s Tip is “read the script before you agree to narrate it”.
It is okay to turn down a gig because you object to it for political, religious, or adult content reasons. It is NOT okay to accept the gig without asking good questions or reading the script then balk after you’ve committed to the project. You must due your due diligence and try to get the script in advance.
This happens frequently with audio books. If it’s a romance novel, crime thriller, murder mystery, erotica, etc. you can and should ask if there is rape, human trafficking, pedophilia, or other behaviors you find objectionable.
Remember, you’re a professional as well as a human being with a moral ecology. Be true to both.
NEWS AND NOTES
Saturday, February 1st, 2020 @2PM PST: I will be speaking at the Voice Actors Studio in sunny Las Vegas this weekend! The topic is “THE VOICEOVER BUSINESS AND HOW TO ACT LIKE IT”. If you missed my “Get Your **** Together in 2020” workshop, it’s the same content plus a little bit more. 🙂 This workshop can be attended online or in person and will be recorded so if you can’t make it for the live workshop you can watch it at your convenience. Click here to sign up!
Thursday, February 20th @8PM EST: My next Edge Studio Business and Money 201 webinar will be ‘Time Management’. In this one-hour webinar, we’re going to talk about how to keep your voiceover business on track on a daily basis. Click here to sign up.
Thursday, February 27th @8PM EST: My next Edge Studio Marketing 201 webinar will be ‘Brand Yourself’. In this one-hour webinar, we’ll talk about the basics of telling the story that is your voiceover business. Click here to sign up!
The VO Atlanta X-Session registration is OPEN! I’m leading two X-Sessions this year…
Thursday March 26th @9:00 AM EST: (PRE-CONFERENCE X-SESSION) Learning to do eLearning
Friday March 27th 6:30PM EST: eLearning Script Writing & Performance Intensive
These special workshops carry an additional fee on top of the VO Atlanta registration fee BUT you don’t have to attend VO Atlanta proper to sign up for these workshops. Click here to see the full list of X-Sessions offered.
November 6-8, 2020: the Mid-Atlantic Voice Over (MAVO) conference in Herndon, Virginia. I have the honor of presenting yet again! In addition to the regular sessions (which will be announced soon) I will also be leading a special 3-hour Mastery Session. The topic: ‘Manage Your Money Like a VO Pro‘. These sessions fill up quickly so make sure you get your spot! Click here to sign up now!
HAPPY HAPPYS
Happy Australia Day and Bubble Wrap Appreciation Day!
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
Tom Dheere is a 20+year veteran of the voice over industry who has narrated thousands of projects for hundreds of clients in over a dozen countries. He is also a voiceover business & marketing consultant known as the VOStrategist and produces the comic book “Agent 1.22”.