Selecting Sample Scripts For Potential Voice Actors

While you can learn a lot about potential voice talent through face-to-face interviewing and listening to demo tapes, you will also need a sample script that will help you gauge if an applicant is the right fit for the job. With a well-chosen sample script, you can get a sense for the tone and style of the voice actor or actress you are interviewing, and hear an example of the kind of work they do.

You don’t need to give applicants too long to prepare for a sample script reading, as there is generally no line memorization involved. The applicants can make use of the script as they perform their reading, so they should only need an hour or so to get comfortable with the script before going into the studio.

Many companies struggle with determining what type of tone and style they are looking for. The best way to start is to narrow down who you are marketing to. Learning the demographics of the target market will help you narrow down the different types of voices that would be most appropriate for your advertising or other promotions. This approach can also help eliminate most of the voice over talent applicants during the initial stages, making your hiring process much easier.

Regardless of exactly what it is that you’re marketing, you’re going to need several different scripts in order to judge the nature of a particular actor or actress’s talents. Think about what your company is trying to produce. Are you looking to create an informal, humorous advertisement, and therefore seeking a voice that will make your audience laugh? Are you trying to create an air of journalistic integrity, necessitating a more authoritative-sounding voice? The tone that you ultimately want in your finished product will serve as the basis for your sample script.

To find a suitable script, all you really need to do is log on to the Internet. The databases available (often for free) online invaluable resources, and you can perform searches based on subject, theme, or keyword, to find exactly the script you need. With these resources at your fingertips, you’ll be able to find a sample script that matches the tone and style of your marketing, as well as selections that will challenge your potential hires. Don’t discount the helpfulness of online resources if you have elected to write your own, original script; you’ll still find plenty of useful scripts that you can reference as you write.

Last of all, you are going to want to obtain a demo script of each applicant. These demos should allow yourself to compare and contrast the performances of the applicants side by side. To this end, you shouldn’t just have your potential voice actors read one script; have them real several, with varying tone and subject matter, so that you can judge the versatility of your applicants, and the styles to which they are each uniquely suited. If you do not want to record these demos in your studio, you can request that applicants submit them with their initial applications.

Author Terry Daniel is a Professional Voice Over Artist from Minneapolis, MN and Has Provided the Voice Talent for Dozens of Projects and Advertisements Since 1991.