Actors under Siege
We know all actors face tremendous challenges. Acting jobs are too often scant, strung between months of survival
job assignments with no health insurance or other benefits. Theaters barely pay a living wage, are closing or routinely cast
stars to attract audiences. Film & TV jobs are dramatically limited by locality, age, gender, race, beauty, type, you
name it. The commercial VO markets in New York and L.A. are completely flooded,
with almost every actor and singer, it seems, jockeying for position. Having migrated almost completely to L.A, even ADR (aka
Looping) is now an inaccessible insiders club.
What is an actor to do?
Audiobooks and other long-form narration, that’s what!
Why
Audiobooks, Why now…
The audiobook and recorded non-fiction industries are growing steadily (by as much as 13% yearly) and producers
are literally hungry for qualified talent to meet production output. The trouble
remains that everyone thinks they can do it and few really know how to adapt their varied performance talents to the new medium. This translates to a tremendous opportunity for the actors and performers who know
how to deliver in the booth.
What
Producers Want…
Producers and publishers seek narrators who can:
- Tell, not just read a story.
- Engage and connect with the listener.
- Narrate with very few errors (high productivity).
- Stay true to the author’s intent.
- Leave their commercial VO “selling voice” completely
behind.
- Maintain vocal strength and consistency through typically 30-50
hours of recording.
Ways
You Benefit…
ˇ
Pay rates (AFTRA) between $82/finished hour to $158 (minimum)/studio
hour.
ˇ
Health insurance contributions through AFTRA.
ˇ
Flexible schedule-most directors can work around that Law &
Order or Soap Opera booking, your Broadway matinee days, etc.
ˇ
Creative satisfaction-Does “Let me play the lion’s part,
too,” sound inviting? You’ll use all of your acting talents between narrator and characters, and tell the whole
story from cover to cover.
ˇ
Actor Empowerment-Make more of your own creative choices and
achieve some financial independence from your survival job. With narration, your intellectual and creative abilities are not
only desired, but acknowledged and appreciated.
