Getting a foot in the door
There are so many different thoughts around how to break into the industry and where to start. Most will say start with coaching and acting classes and work on your technique. But once you feel like you’re ready, how do you look at getting your first gig? This was one of the first big questions I had and was also the one with the most divided opinions.
Some said get your demos recorded and start approaching agents straight away.
Others said start small with unpaid fan projects
Some said to dive right in and drop a fee for some of the larger pay to play sites.
I decided to go with option B… mainly because I had no money, but also because I wanted to get a taste for what this industry was all about before committing to a large expense I might later regret. After doing a lot of my own research, I came across some great sites for things like fan / indie projects (I’ll list these below) that meant I could go through an audition process without the pressure of having to appear like I knew what I was doing! Some of the sites allowed you to listen to others’ auditions and everyone was open about whether they were just there for a hobby or if they were total newbies. It was a great way to get my feet wet and see if it was something I really wanted to do. Most of these jobs had little to no pay, but the excitement of auditioning really gave me an appetite branch out.
Some more searching led me to a few freelance sites (I’ll also list below) that didn’t require a large fee and just took a percentage of your earnings after each gig was complete. Now, a lot of established voice actors will tell you not to touch these with a barge pole as the rates are terrible and it can tarnish your reputation just by being associated with them. Although I can’t disagree completely, I couldn’t resist the idea of earning real life monies for something I was enjoying so much!
So I signed up, but I did it using a slightly different name so if I did want to go for this as a career, I had nothing to worry about further down the line. I think the thing to remember is, if you’re starting on a low budget with cheap gear and no sound treatment, you’ll be putting out sub-par audio, which you might not want your name attached to. After all, once it’s out there, there’s no getting it back!
I was using these sites for around a year and they taught me a lot about being a ‘professional’ in the industry. Yes the pay was terrible, but what I learned and gained in experiences was priceless. I learned time management for my recording and working to deadlines, how to take direction and re-records. I learned how to build relationships and even how to deal with some difficult clients. All these things gave me the confidence to believe I could make this into a career so even though it was hard work and meant working a LOT of extra hours around a full time job, for me, it was totally worth it. Just remember, a lot of the time, there’s no right or wrong way of doing any of this. it’s just about what works for you on your own journey.
Sing too loud, talk too much and take care x
Fan project sites
Freelance sites