Learning from the pros to reduce all your lows

VOs vs. VAs

Seems like every time I look for voice talents, they sound all the same. Maybe because the market demand is mostly for commercials? I don't know. But usually what I'm looking for in voice talents are their performance. Not just their vocal range.

I follow Japanese anime voice actors for a long time, and it's kinda my standards in looking into voice performances too. They exaggerate most of the time, but it's really good and really fits the tone of the stories. Don't treat all scripts the same! Commercial performances are intended to relay information, but stories need to as immersive as possible.

Even if it's a monologue or a drama, you have to be in character. Characters are human, they have emotions and reactions. So perform just like a human would, so the audience could relate with the situations.

Don't just READ, PERFORM!

The Universal Theme of Storytelling

Having a good story to tell is important. But I just recently learned that having a universal theme is just as important as having a good story.

In simple words, universal themes is something that people can relate to, be it love and desire, freedom of expression, or family-related themes. These themes are feelings you left people with at the end of the show. Take Disney movies, Lion King and Coco for examples. Both have the same universal theme, which is the importance of family.

And why is having a universal theme important? I think because when the story revolves around the universal theme, it really speaks to us. So when we come to the end of the show, we don’t only feel good, but also emotionally fulfilled.

Preparing that one interview

Asking for an interview with someone you don't know, let alone someone in high ranking official, that's terrifying. But fear not! We all went through this in In-depth. Talking to thought leaders, average citizens, government officials, even the former vice president! It is always tough.

First rule of thumb is, always come prepared. List out every question you could think of and make sure you have it all noted down, even back-up questions that you know they might not answer.

Second, be prepared for disappointment. Most of the time these people are too busy or you could never reach them. This happens to a lot of government officials. They would reschedule and we never actually got to publish the episode. It is upsetting but try to focus on all the stories you could produce and save that one for later.

Third, be human. This is an odd one but being relatable and conversational is not as easy as you think. Sometimes, guests would open up more if you appear more approachable.

Good luck in your next interview and I'll see you in the field

Scriptwriters and Sound Designers Unite

Audio is absolutely integral to every podcast, but it's not solely the sound designer's role to weave sounds into a story. It rings even truer to storytelling podcasts, where the written narrative makes or breaks the entire story. Sound designers and scriptwriters must collaborate closely to create the best, most vivid audio experience, like UX and UI officers in tech. A scriptwriter needs to be aware of how sounds correspond to the scenes they're portraying, from ambience, sound effects, to scores and archrivals, because they know the subtexts and nuances better than anybody. Likewise, a sound designer needs to have a good understanding of the story, because in putting sounds together, they have to be purposeful as well as skillful. The story will be in total sync with the audio, and this will result in a seamless end-product that is sure to spoil listeners' ears.

Use Spoken-Word Performers, Not a Voice Actor for Your Storytelling Podcast

When we began working on our upcoming story-driven non-fiction podcast that relies heavily on research and monologue segments, we needed the episodes to be as engaging as possible. We found that normal voice over methods alone didn’t make the cut. Instead, we looked for spoken-word performers who can make the story their own and give everything they have while storytelling.

Another key component to making this work was to write the episode script using spoken language rather than a written one. The easiest way to test this is to read it out loud and hear for yourself! If you don’t find yourself making abrupt and unnatural pauses between sentences, you’re good to go! In the end of the day, what we all want is to have a performer who sounds natural, so make sure that person has a chance to read and modify the script before recording!