Voice actress

[Koneko-chan]

I would really love to work as a voice actress, and I would like to work at Funimation in the future ^^ but I don't live in Texas DX.
I was wondering if you had any tips or advice for becoming one and is there another Funimation studio in LA or close to that?

[Crossfire]

You're not the first person to ask about becoming a voice actress, and I'm sure you won't be the last. While I don't have specifics regarding Funimation, the most common advice is to get invested into the trade/hobby as soon as possible. What I've done (and I'm by no means a pro when it comes to acting) is write a script, and record myself acting out the lines with a program such as audicity. Practice this until you feel confident enough, and then post it on youtube or a similar service. If you get noticed, it can do wonders for a future career.

[Koneko-chan]

Yeah, I'm gonna try practicing first because, I wanna see how well I can do voices. Like Aaron Dismuke, I've been told you have to read really well, I absolutely love reading and have no trouble pronouncing words. I don't have a microphone which doesn't help, I mean if my mom buys it and it turns out I'm not so good, it'd be a waste of money, But I think I'm pretty okay.

[goldenspines]

Learn how to act, take classes on it (stage acting especially). Not even kidding. It will help you with voice projection and getting into character. Not only that, but having previous acting experience will look a lot better on your record for a voice acting job.

[Crossfire]

Hrm, I'm assuming you're pretty young then. In that case I wouldn't get too into it, as you might have a sudden change of career planning. At this rate I think it should be treated more of a hobby, rather than training for a future job or something. But yeah, as Goldy said, if your school has some sort of drama club or course, you can earn credits and gain experience.

[Koneko-chan]

Yessss, I'm 13 and have a passion for writing and voice acting! ^^That would be a problem.
I'm homeschooled so.. I'm in a dilemma there lol.

[mechana2015]

BangZoom Entertainment.
They're in Burbank and they publish the 'adventures in voice acting' series and workshop series, and work with most of the major industries that use VA's including localization of anime and video games.

http://www.adventuresinvoiceacting.com/
http://www.bangzoomentertainment.com/

[Koneko-chan]

I know this is weird, but I want to work at Funimation only really. Most of my favorite voice actors that have inspired me to do this work there. ^^

[mechana2015]

Many voice actors actually cross between companies on a regular basis. I recommend at least talking to BangZoom, whether you want to work for them or not because they're local and do training regularly at their headquarters, and will give tours to people interested in voice acting, just so they can see what the workplace is like and the environment you'll be working in. Voice acting is something that needs training and as far as I know, they're the ones that do the most about that. They'll teach things like flap-synch, taking direction from a VA director, how to work with click tracks and the general language of the industry, which you'll need no matter where you end up.

[Crossfire]

Besides, you need to build up a resume (which probably means little to you at age 13) if you expect to follow a particular career choice. Since BangZoom is close to home, it's a great opportunity.

[AndrewinIce]

Get with a parent/guardian, if that is required, and do research on the internet. You can find out different ways to change your voice, and learn what you will need to know, how to do it all, etc.

And, go here http://www.voicestarz.com/ It should help. Best of luck!

[Atria35]

^ I'm going to echo Crossfire. If Funi doesn't hire you off the bat, then you should take what you get and build that resume so they can see that you can do good work professionally. Most places with limited employment opportunities - and quite frankly, the reason you hear the same voices over and over and over in anime is because they don't hire a whole lot of people - only hire people they can count on to do good work and have done it professionally before. Funi is no exception to this.

And you're counting on Funi still being there when you reach employment age. They might be, but nothing in life is certain. Don't put all of your eggs in one basket.

For acting, I'd say if your community has a local play group, see if you can't get into that somehow. You'd get experience, and might pick something up from the people who've been in it before.

[Koneko-chan]

I'm not in such a rush. I'm just saying, this could be a cool and great job opportunity for my future, thank you guys a lot for advice, it really helped me a lot. Now I have somethings to consider and think about and research ^^ I will also consider other companies then Funimation. <3 Thanks again!

[A_Yellow_Dress]

I can't offer too much advice in regards to voice acting, as my voice is pretty monotone but the Voice Acting Alliance has a lot of fan and original projects that are always looking for voice actors. It makes for a good place to practice your skills.

[Crossfire]

Heh, I might check that out. I've applied for VA positions before, but all of the projects I was accepted into ended prematurely. Though the last time I actually tried acting was well over a year ago...

[SierraLea]

This has been a dream of mine for so long, but I don't know how I would get into the business. I think I would be especially good at reading for those books on tape or CD and dubbing stuff since I have a good sense of rhythm from all my years of dance and music.

[minakichan]

Re: voice acting for Funimation in Texas, recording is all done in house, and there are several actors who fly in to record, but these are all veterans with a track record; lots of them lived in Texas originally at any rate. It's pretty impossible for a newbie if you aren't local.

(I'm in the DFW area and have a friend who's auditioned for Funi voice acting before.) If you ARE in the DFW area, pretty much anyone can actually audition-- there are occasional open auditions, and auditions for specific shows. You can sign up to be on the list via email, and they'll email you to have you set up a time once in a blue moon, but the waiting list for people with little or no experience is a mile long. It's not impossible to get called in randomly and then wow the directors with a stunning performance, but your chances are definitely higher if you have way more experience than others, or an audition tape-- and plenty of people on that waiting list will have high school and community theater, so having this experience only makes you on par with them; it doesn't make you stand out. You're also likely to be auditioning right before or after someone who's worked for Funi before and is friends with people in the building, so there's that.

Act a lot, have demo tapes, and consider at least minoring in acting I suppose? But really, connections and locality go a long way... At any rate, breaking into North American dubbing is still dimensions easier than doing the same in Japan, so it's not like it's totally hopeless, I suppose.