The 7 DEADLY Sins of Voice Over – NEVER DO THESE!
There are Seven Deadly Sins in voice over. Things you should never do under any circumstances, and things that, if you do try to get away with them, I guarantee you it will bite you in the ass, either in the near or long term.
Some of these will seem obvious, some not as obvious, but I can tell you I’ve personally seen multiple examples of ALL of them in the real world, and one of them is not just common, but it runs rampant in our industry.
Today, I’m going to break down these Seven Deadly Sins, explain to you why they are gigantic no-nos written across the sky in red neon, and what the consequences are for committing them.
In fact, let’s get the consequences out of the way. Are these sins deadly as in will they kill your career?
Some actually can.
But at the very least, they will kill the most important relationships you have in this business, damage your reputation in the industry, and in some cases, will get your ass hauled into court.
In case I haven’t made it clear, NEVER, as in ever-ever-never do these seven things:
7. DO NOT ask someone you don’t have a relationship with for agent referrals
The best way to get into a talent agency is by referral. Sorry, that’s an incomplete sentence. The best way to get into a talent agency is by referral from someone with whom you have a good professional relationship.
Any referral only has value if it’s based on a solid professional relationship. This is one small reason building relationships with your peers and coaches within the industry is so important.
If you ask someone you don’t have a relationship with for a referral to their agent, the first thing the agent is going to ask them is, “How do you know this person?” and if the answer is, “Well, they reached out and asked me to refer them,” then that makes you and the other actor look like a couple of idiots.
Don’t put them, the agent, or yourself in that position.
And the old tit-for-tat, you refer me, I’ll refer you is just as bad if there’s no relationship there.
The whole premise of a referral is that there’s a solid business relationship, not a rando meeting, or worse yet, a cold reach out on social media.
6. DO NOT submit auditions for multiple agents
Here’s the scenario, you get an audition in from 2 or more of your agents. Maybe the first agent that sends you the audition isn’t your preferred agent.
What’s a preferred agent? Of all your agents, they are the one you determine to be the top priority for instances just like these. Ideally this agent is the most invested in you, sends you the most auditions that are right for you, and you have the best professional relationship with.
If you have multiple agents, it’s a really good idea to determine your preferred agent, and to let them know that if they don’t already. Some larger agencies will only work with you as your preferred and you should know that upfront when you begin working together.
Now back to our scenario. Let’s say the first audition comes in from an agent that is NOT your preferred agent. You send it in. Then an hour later, you get the same audition from your preferred agent.
What do you do? You don’t send it in.
Why? Because by submitting for your first agent, you’ve committed the booking, should it happen, to them.
Let’s say you do submit it to both agents and you book through either agent, it doesn’t matter which one. You’re going to have to explain to the other one why you double submitted, and they’re going to explain to you why you’re no longer working together.
Double or triple submitting also pisses off casting because you’re wasting their time.
It’s shitty and unprofessional. Don’t do it.
5. DO NOT bitch, moan, and complain about rates.
A shout out to our colleague Marc Scott on this one. He did a great video last week on this topic and he’s right. If you’re bitching, moaning, and complaining about rates or practices on or by the pay-to-plays and you’re still handing them your money, then you’re not voting. You’re just, as Marc said, griping online.
If you’re bitching about bad rates on or off the pay-to-plays, to what end? Shitty jobs with shitty rates are NEVER going away no matter how indignant, offended, and otherwise sad you may be.
The only way to fight shitty rates is to not audition and move on. We get what we tolerate. Upset with the pay-to-plays? Stop paying them.
If you want to take it upon yourself to help educate other voice actors or even the clients themselves, then by all means, go ahead. Explain clearly and rationally why it’s subpar job, what a proper rate for the job would be, and move on.
Bitching, moaning, and complaining serves no one. It doesn’t change a damn thing and it just gives fuel to more useless indignation in the community, which also serves no one.
4. DO NOT break an NDA
NDA is short for non-disclosure agreement. Cornell Law School says:
Non-disclosure agreements are agreements in contract law where parties agree that certain information will remain confidential. As such, an NDA binds a person who has signed it and prevents them from discussing any information included in the contract with anyone not authorized by the NDA.
In legal terms, you’ve legally agreed not so say shit about shit. Break that agreement at your own peril.
You need to be acutely aware of the details of every NDA you sign. But here’s a great rule of thumb. Don’t talk about projects for which you’ve signed an NDA at all.
Some NDAs have expiration dates, for example those for films with upcoming release dates. Meaning, once they’re public, you can typically talk about them often with some other stipulations. And don’t assume that just because the stars are on a press junket promoting the film that you have the right to talk about it. You may or may not.
So, when you agree to sign an NDA, don’t just send it, file it so that if you have the urge to post about it later, you have that document to refer to and can act accordingly.
3. DO NOT EVER post audition audio or scripts
This is just cardinal law: never post audition audio or scripts from auditions you receive online publicly. Period. End of Story.
“But Paul, I didn’t sign an NDA!”
That may be true, but you never know when you may be unwittingly divulging private or proprietary information. That’s not a call you ever want to get, NDA or not.
As a professional, it’s your job to protect your clients and the people who serve them, like ad agencies, production companies, etc.
There are countless instances of actors leaking scripts or audio online who were promptly shit-canned for doing so.
Not to mention, WHY the HELL would you post your audition audio or a script? It’s not yours to post. All that material belongs to the client. It’s not yours, don’t post it, you gargantuan douche canoe.
2. DO NOT post work without permission
If you did not sign and NDA, it’s still a best practice to ALWAYS ask the client if you can post the final project to your portfolio, in your marketing, and on your website. Why risk damaging the relationship over a bad assumption or misunderstanding?
Ask first and always.
If you did sign an NDA, you should consider that document iron clad. If you have questions about it, you should have gotten those answers before you signed it, but if you still have questions, ask your lawyer.
You do not want to be hauled into court by an enterprise level company or large studio and sued for breach of contract.
1. DO NOT ask other voice actors for leads
Yes, this happens. It happened to a colleague just this week.
Look, the voice acting community is the most loving, supportive group of professionals on the planet. They will help you with whatever it is that you may need help with. They will give you tips and strategies they themselves use, they will point you in the direction of helpful others, they will laugh with you and cry with you and celebrate your wins. They will even give you helpful hints about how to go about finding leads.
But they will NOT give you their leads. They will NOT give you client lists. Nor should any professional.
To even ask is the epitome of laziness. It is the definition of unprofessional. How dare you ask for information about contacts who put money in that voice actor’s pocket? You might as well just say to someone, “Hey, your wife’s pretty hot, you think you could introduce me?”
Don’t. Just don’t.
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We’ll see ya again here soon. Thanks for reading and/or watching.