2008 May | Dave Courvoisier's Blog

Latest Digital Edition of E Q Magazine

May 31, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

The latest digital edition of EQ Magazine is out, and I again stress what a cool online tool nxtbook.com has put together for reading an online zine.

This is not just another web-page with information in a column format and then CALLED a Zine or a Magazine by its authors.

This looks like a magazine. You click on titles on the cover, and it takes you inside. You can flip through the pages one at a time. There are a host of other methods for searching, reading, and browsing the actual magazine, as if it were in your hands.

EQ magazine itself is mostly designed with production houses, producers, musicians, and studio managers in mind, but as I've mentioned before…much of what you'll read is applicable to voice-actors. Many of the articles are reviews of pre-amps, mics, and other electronic hardware.

Give it a gander, and I think you'll come away with something useful.

Click HERE

CourVO

Filed Under: Equipment Tagged With: EQ, EQ Online Magazine, EQ Zine, nxtbook.com, voice, voice actor, voice actors, voice over, voice overs voice-overs, voice talent, voice work, voices

What a Party!

May 30, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

How many voice-actors do you suppose are out there right now? Hundreds? Thousands?

Thousands probably. Not getting into a deep definition of what a voice-actor is….

'No way to know to know all of them, and I had never heard of Rick Party until a couple of weeks ago. 'Course my own myopic view of voice-acting is mostly centered around the VO-BB and it's cheery, supportive subscribers who number in the hundreds. Maybe a solid core of, say, 100 make up the heart and soul of that online community.

But NOW….sheesh!…open up the flood gates on .ning, and see the 'party' flood in!

71 Days….But Who’s Counting ??!!

May 28, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

VOICE 2008 is gaining momentum.

The "Advance Team" (sounds important, doesn't it?) had another phone conference call tonite, and while there are some incredibly COOL things planned that I cannot yet tell you about, it almost doesn't matter, 'cause what's already announced is awesome.

Just a few things you should know:

Hartford, CT; V-O Capitol of the East

May 28, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

'Noticed a lot of goings-on as far as voice-over training in Hartford, CT these days. Nice town. I used to live down the street in New Caanan, CT. But why THAT place for VO workshops? Does it have some nice studios or sumpin'?

Anyway, the latest coach to head East is Pat Fraley. He e-mailed to say his next session there is in June.

Click HERE to see the details. 'Not sure what he's charging, but whatever it is, it's worth every cent!

CourVO

Filed Under: Training/Education Tagged With: Pat Fraley, voice, voice actor, voice actors, voice over, voice overs voice-overs, voice talent, voice work, voice-coaching, voices

Got Spine?

May 27, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

One of the recurrent themes on the VO-BB in 2008 is that this is the "Year of the Spine". In other words, as voice-actors, we're going to swallow hard, and stand up for the pay that we think we're worth, and not just "settle" for what clients WANT to pay.

It's an admirable goal, which I fully support, and try to live by myself. Sometimes that means turning down work…especially pro-bono stuff for what's considered to be "exposure" for the supposed valid reason of being heard by the right people, or being able to get a demo from the right source….or
( fill in the blank )

Bob Fraser, who is an actor, writer, director, and producer recently wrote in an online forum for voice-actors a wonderful substantiation for this point of view, which I excerpt below. After that, you'll see a quick bio on Bob. I've quoted Bob here before, and find his point-of-view to be most helpful. (Click below to read on)

Ruminations

May 27, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Well….hello there sunshine! So, your work-week is just starting, is it?

I can always tell when weekends and holidays are around, by a significant decrease in e-mail traffic. Monday, it was dead. Las Vegas was not, and neither was I.

I anchored 4 newscasts (one by myself, meaning no co-anchor)…shot, wrote, produced, and voiced a 2-min. Wed's Child video for our news later in the week, and here it is 2:30a Tuesday, and I've just finished a website narration in my home studio.

[Read more...]

Filed Under: Op/Ed Tagged With: voice, voice actor, voice actors, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voice work

Voice Invoicing

May 26, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Surprisingly — and despite serious threadjacking attempts — a recent voice-over forum thread on Invoicing had real legs.

I’m going to re-cap the hilites here, and to protect the innocent, I’ll leave out the names…but you know who you are!

Original post:

Just curious…what program do you use for invoicing? I’ve used my own concoction which has proven woefully inadequate. Lately I’ve been using Simple Start from Quick Books, but I’m frustrated with the lack of ability to reconfigure (I guess that’s what you get for free!) I’m close to purchasing the Quick Books upgrade but I wanted to check to see if there were any other recommendations.

Who Charges What / Rate Sheet / Rate Survey

May 24, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Some weeks ago, I posted a query on several voice-over bulletin boards and forums asking for people's feedback on what they charge their clients for voice work. The request also appeared in this blog.

Although I was waylaid by a funeral, TV ratings pressure, and only a modest response, I've finally collated the input I rec'd back.

Some responses were antagonistic…they didn't want to share. Others sent tables, formulas, math computations, their philosophy, and their rationale. It's good..,.and I think there's something in it for most of us to learn, or at least find perspective.

I had asked for non-union rates, but I got some union rates anyway…the responses run the spectrum.

I greatly appreciate you if you responded with some thoughts, no matter how large or small.

The MS Word 97-2003 .doc file is 12 pages…but some 7 of those pages are taken by a wide-spaced table. No names mentioned, and I did little editing….taking out only hello's and goodbye's and some personal comments. It's pretty much as-is… with dividing lines between each entry.

Click HERE to download the document.

Let me know if you find something valuable.

CourVO

Filed Under: Business-end-of-things Tagged With: compensationvoice, rate card, rate sheet, voice actor, voice actors, voice over, voice overs voice-overs, voice talent, voice work, voices

Re-inventing the “re-”

May 23, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

The other day I mused about V123′s glut of “re-invitations” (click HERE for that short post) for projects that apparently had drawn too few responses, or too many rotten auditions.

Does anybody know what’s going on over there?

I met some of those folks at VOICE 2007, and applaud their enterprising spirit, and their fortitude in the face of heavy criticism. Their recent changes in how they assign projects…their policies and formulas indicate to me some hand-wringing in the back room. It’s gotta be tough trying to please everybody — voice seekers and voice talent — and still build a profit and good will, and move forward with an ever-changing business plan.

But I wonder how well they’re hitting the mark.

Now they’ve re-named their re-invitations as re-minders (er, reminders, that is). Ridiculous?

What’s been your experience — if you’re a subscriber — and do you plan to stay with ‘em?

CourVO

Filed Under: Subscription Services Tagged With: V123, voice, voice actor, voice actors, voice over, voice overs, voice talent, voice work, Voice123, Voice123.com

The Most Difficult Role For Any Actor To Play

May 21, 2008 By CourVO Leave a Comment

Bob Fraser has written an article that — as far as I’m concerned is a MUST READ for actors, voice-actors, entrepreneurs, freelancers, and whiners in general. I gleaned it from an online forum for voice-actors, and re-purpose it here for your benefit. It’s good. Thanks, Bob, for setting the record straight.