10 Tips for Fan Parody Voice Acting [How-To]

I'm not an expert on voice acting in general: you want that kind of advice, go watch MasaVox.  But I do have quite a bit of experience in voice acting for Internet fan parodies, both from the VAing end and from the perspective of a writer/editor having to deal with VAs.  So here are some quick-and-dirty tips for voice acting specifically as it relates to working within the fan parody community.


1.)  Get some decent equipment.

I'm a big believer in making do with what you have, but then, I'm a writer first, an editor second, and a voice actor a distant third.  If you want to make voice acting your main contribution to the fan parody scene as opposed to being a writer/editor who also voice acts, you need professional output, and you can't do that with half-assed equipment.

A full rundown of mic-buying advice could be a whole post in and of itself, but here are the basics.  Most respected amateur voice actors swear by USB microphones, which will give you a clearer sound than the analog kind and don't require anything special in the sound card department (since they bypass it altogether).  If you do wind up using an analog mic, do yourself a favor and don't plug it into an integrated sound card.  Even a cheap $30 Creative card will make a huge difference in clarity, and as an added bonus, it'll make your music sound better and your games run a little smoother too.


2.)  Make a demo reel.

You can find more on this on MasaVox, but long story short, a short (under 2 minutes) demo reel showcasing your best voices is just as useful in amateur voice acting as it is professionally.  Sending someone a text-only message telling them that you'd be perfect for this or that part says nothing: you've got to show them what you can do.  For best results, post it to YouTube and share the link with whoever's doing the casting for the parts you want, and keep an mp3 or wav copy around as well in case you need to email it to someone.

3.)  Know where to look for parts.

This can be the hardest part when you're just starting out.  The most reliable way to land a part is if someone actually announces an open casting call, but this can be rare, especially in abridged series.  Besides keeping an eye on your favorite YouTube channels and abridged series forums for casting calls, two of the best places to look are the Voice Acting Alliance, a resource for amateur voice actors of all stripes (mostly fandubs, but the occasional flash animation or other parody as well) and ToonZone's  fan parody collaboration thread.

The least reliable way of landing a part is to cold-contact a well-known abridger, but if you must, make sure to do it right.  Don't suck up: you're presumably a fan of this person's work or you wouldn't be offering to work with them, but remember that you're approaching them as a potential collaborator, not as a fan.  If you absolutely must gush a little, put it at the end of the message, not the beginning.  Send them a link to your demo reel and ask if they'd be interested in working with you.  If they say no, take it gracefully: many people simply don't work with anyone they don't already know.  If you don't receive a response, wait a week and try again.  If you don't receive a response to your second attempt, that almost certainly means no, so don't bug them any further.

Now that you've landed a part, you can move on to the fun bit, actually working with the writer(s) and editors(s).

4.)  The Golden Rule: The head writer is your boss.

The last six tips I'll list are all from my personal experience as a writer and editor dealing with other voice actors, but that's just me.  If the head writer (usually also the editor) in the project you're working on prefers things done a certain way, do your best to accommodate them, within reason.  Putting these things together is hard work, so try to act professional and don't make it any harder on them.  If you're not sure whether they prefer your lines in mp3 or wav format or whether they prefer that you send your outtakes along with the finished lines, ask!

5.)  Don't be afraid to make suggestions, but don't forget you're not the writer.

This goes along with the fourth tip above.  Sometimes you'll have an idea for an extra line or want to re-word something that sounds a little awkward, and a good project head should always be willing to listen to your ideas, but just because they listen doesn't mean that they're obliged to do things your way.  Once you've pitched your idea, it's up to them whether to use it or not.

Some of the best parts of my own recent episodes have been suggested or ad-libbed by the VAs I've worked with.  There have also been a few suggestions that I haven't used for whatever reason, but I try to make sure they always feel free to bring them to me, and hopefully the writer(s) you work with will be the same way.

Obviously, if you're sharing the writing credit, this might not apply.

6.)  The Rule of Three

The Rule of Three is this: a minimum of three takes for each line, no exceptions.  If you're not sure how a line should be delivered-- if, for example, you could imagine it being said either cheerfully or morosely, and the writer isn't around to ask-- then do three takes both ways.

Going along with tip #5 above, if you feel inclined to reword a line or ad-lib a little extra, do three takes the writer's way, and then three takes your way, and let them decide which to use.  Unless there's an obvious typo which clearly wasn't intentional, you should always give the project editor at least three takes exactly as the line was written in the script.


7.)  Always be willing to do retakes when they're requested.

This should be self-explanatory.  If for some reason-- a mispronunciation, an audio defect, or just a bad delivery-- the writer or editor requests that you redo one or more of your lines, always try to accommodate them.  Maybe it's your fault for getting the delivery wrong, just as often it's their fault for not properly explaining to you what they want, and most of the time it's a little of both, but no matter whose fault it is, both of your names will presumably be on the final product so you both want it to be as good as it can be.

8.)  Use Skype when you need direction.

Skype is a wonderful tool for these kinds of collaboration.  Make sure to use it when you're first developing your voice and any time you just can't seem to get a line right.

I've worked with some writers and editors who prefer to always be present over voice chat when the VAs are doing their lines so they can direct them.  In my personal experience, doing it this way every time is a scheduling nightmare that can slow production down to a crawl in large multi-VA projects, so a good compromise is to use Skype for the first couple of sessions while you're still feeling out your character, and again any time you need to do retakes or if there's a particularly tricky scene.

9.)  Keep organized.

The first part of staying organized has to do with scheduling.  Some writers will send you due dates along with the script.  Try to make these if you can, but if you can't, inform them of the reason for the delay as soon as possible.  Most project heads will be understanding as long as you keep them informed.

If you aren't given a firm due date, let them know when you plan to record next so that they can plan accordingly.  I work with one talented VA who always keeps her next record date in her Skype status so there's never any question of when I'll have my lines back.

The other part has to do with keeping your files organized.  Personally, I keep a separate folder on my hard drive for each project I do voice work for, with subfolders for each episode.  Each line gets a separate file named with the first three letters of the characters name followed by a number (ex: the third line from a character named Phil would be "phi03.mp3").  Once an episode's lines are done, I put them in a zip file and send them to the editor.  Some editors will prefer one single file with all the lines for the entire episode: the point is to have a standard scheme so that you can always find what you need.

Make sure to keep your files even after you've sent them off.  Even if they're just as organized as you are, a corrupted file transfer or a hard drive crash could render their copy unusable, and having a backup to send them in case of an emergency can save you a lot of rerecording.

10.)  Stick with what you start.

Recasting a character mid-project is no fun, and word gets around: if you put someone through that, you might not get very many more parts from anyone they talk to, so don't bail on a project unless you have a very good reason.  Before you've made a name for yourself, you might have to sign on to some iffy projects to get parts, but just because you don't like the writing isn't a reason to bail on a project.  Instead, think of it as a way to get your name and voice out there: even if the rest of the project sucks, it might lead the way to bigger and better things, but that won't happen if you get a reputation as being unprofessional.

Have any other tips for aspiring amateur voice actors?  Share them in the comments!