About a year ago my acting teacher told me I was probably too old to get started in the Voice-Over business (even after I told him I had work on several projects in Canada). I took his Voice-Over workshop anyway. After the workshop, I felt insecure and wasn't sure I wanted to pursue a career in Voice-Overs. He kept saying a large sum of money was needed to record a demo otherwise no agancy would take me on without a very expensive demo (which of course he would coach me and charge me an arm and a leg to do ). I decided to go ahead and listen to the voice inside me telling me "maybe there is a place in this business for me"; and that I have a unique quality about my voice.
Almost six month went by; I was at an audition here in LA and ran into another Canadian actor who told me he was with a Voice-Over agency in Toronto and did everything from his home by sending all recordings and auditions as MP3s to his agent in Toronto.
I immediately contacted my old agency VOX Talent in Toronto and told them I was planning on getting a small home studio set-up and get the ball rolling again.
I speak fluent French and all work done in Toronto has to be in both French and English. That's Unique enough right?
Once everything was set-up with the agency, it only took only a couple auditions that I started doing work in my home studio (or should I say "my closet"). A simple $500.00 investment at Guitar Center, plus using Garage Band on my mac and Voila!! I was ready....
After the first job, I got another booking and then several other bookings followed. Hopefully many more will keep coming. These types of job can vary from radio ads for the new Blackberry 10, to introducing the Governor General of Canada for a TD Bank convention, all the way to videos about the closing of the Canadian embassy in Syria.
It can be very challenging at times, but I love the process.
What I enjoy the most actually, is the fact that I don't have to worry about how I look. Everything else I do in this business is based on how I look. There are time where I have to go to an actual studio to record; this happens when the client wants to listen live or even have a SKYPE type meeting.
I love when I get to go to a studio to record and could care or less if I have not shaved or if I'm going in wearing flip-flops, shorts, a T-shirt and an a ball cap on...All that matters is my voice and the fact that I can deliver the material. No one cares how I look.
Some sessions can be very long at times; so I then have to pay a studio and have an engineer help me. Los Angeles is full of recording studios. I found one right around the corner from my house who is very flexible and does great work at an affordable price.
After a couple weeks of starting with my Toronto agent, a friend recommended me to her Los Angeles agency called Synergy Talent. I did a couple auditions for them and after a week of auditioning and being on "Avail" for the very first audition I did for them, they asked me to join the agency.
So here I am with an LA Voice-Over agency for the first time in my life.
Almost every day I get to audition in the comfort of my home; whether it's for my LA agent or Toronto agent and I love every minute of it.
I am planning on taking more classes and workshops to get some experience in the animation and video games field. Video games are also a huge part of the Voice-Over business and would love to join that fascinating world.
To listen to my voice, just click on the link below:
http://voice123.com/claudeknowlton
