As a newcomer to voice acting, you’re not alone in feeling overwhelmed by the wealth and variety of places a career in this field could take you. From voicing corporate training videos to video game monsters, anime to audiobooks, and ad reads to e-learning gigs, opportunities are vast and varied. Even once you’re established, careers in voiceover seldom offer a predictable 9-to-5 work life.
Still interested in capitalising on your vocal dexterity? Here’s a rundown of the type of work you can expect and the hallmarks of working as a voice actor (VA).
Animation
The first thing people think of when they hear “voice acting,” animation work involves bringing hand-drawn or digitally animated characters to life for anything from anime dubs to kids’ cartoons to YouTube shows.
Successful animation VAs often come from theatre backgrounds that furnish them with skills such as character development, emotional expressiveness, comedic timing, and improvisation.
Professional studios generally go through agencies that specialise in animation talent, but VA roles may be advertised on social media and studio websites. Beginners should look to indie creators and students planning animated shorts, films, and series.
Commercial
From dulcet tones for wellness retreats to energetic descriptions of toys to clear confidence explaining medical products, the commercial VA market is broad. Those within it employ their vocal talents to promote products across media such as TV, radio, podcasts, and social media marketing.
It’s where many VAs start. “I was doing commercial voiceover classes because that is the thing that will get you in the door when it comes to agents,” says video game VA Abby Trott (Demon Slayer: Kimetsu no Yaiba, Dandadan)
Key skills include relatable and conversational narration; the ability to match voice to brand; strong pronunciation, enunciation, and intelligibility; and versatility to portray different characters and brand personas.
Commercial work is often posted to online job boards. Failing that, reach out directly. “Contact local businesses and charities in need of free voiceover services,” advises independent production platform FILMD. “You’ll be surprised by how many people may wish to use your services!”
Audiobooks
For fiction, you’ll enter literary worlds with numerous characters and bring each one to life. For nonfiction, you’ll convey information while maintaining listener interest. Long recording sessions are a double-edged sword – they can be lucrative, but speaking for hours is a skill in and of itself.
Audiobook VAs require vocal stamina, patience, consistency, vocal versatility, and storytelling skills.
Scott Brick (the Dune series, Dirk Pitt Adventures, Alexander Hamilton) recommends producing a specific audiobook demo “to show off those long-form skills”, and VA Rosie Akerman suggests sending a cover letter along with your reel to publishers and audiobook production companies. Partnering with indie or self-publishing authors can help build your portfolio.
Video games
Home console, PC, and mobile games from AAA to indie developers need talented VAs to portray characters consistently across hours of gameplay and numerous branching narratives, including everything from gasps of pain to grunts of surprise (and, increasingly, motion-capture work).
Key skills include versatile range, acting ability, cold reading, and expressiveness.
Bigger studios prioritise experienced talent, but indie developers and modders may provide nascent careers with early credits. Modders (players who alter video games) recently added voice acting for over 40 Fallout 2 NPCs while “operating on a budget of no money” and using volunteer voice actors.
E-Learning
There’s an online learning course for everything – and probably more than one thanks to platforms such as Udemy, Skillshare, and Coursera. Many of the creators behind those courses hire professional e-learning narrators to convey complex information without losing students’ attention.
“It’s about connection,” e-learning VA Tom F. told Voice Crafters. “Warmth and genuine interest in the subject matter make all the difference.”
E-learning VAs must speak clearly, engagingly, and knowledgably, and maintain a steady pace, using pauses and emphasis to help lessons sink in.
Job boards and social media are the places to search for e-learning work. Repeat work brings opportunities to specialise.
Corporate
“Corporate narration work is plentiful and accounts for a lot of work,” says VA and vocal coach Paul Schmidt. Plentiful, indeed! Work covers tutorials and training for staff, internal and external presentations and announcements, content for websites, and more. Clients typically want polished, motivational voices able to balance authority with relatability.
Key skills include a focus on accuracy over dramatic flair, the ability to convey complex data using simple language, and precise pacing and pronunciation.
Agencies and referrals account for many corporate VA gigs, but online freelance platforms and specialised VA job sites can also prove fruitful for those finding their feet.
“The truth is, there’s no typical ‘day in the life’ for a voiceover artist,” Aura writes for Voiceover Kickstart. “Most voice actors are freelancers, working from their home studios and setting their own hours. This means you might record a video game character in the morning, a corporate announcement in the afternoon, and then spend the evening editing your demo reel or catching up on admin.”
Maybe there’s no industry average or precisely plotted career path, but here are a few things to expect from voice jobs.
A slow start
VA and vocal coach Carrie Olsen urges newcomers to be realistic. “It’s not like a regular job where you do actually get a full-time paycheck two weeks after starting,” she says. “You have to build up to it. You have to be a beginner and be OK with being a beginner.”
Plan for voice acting to be a side hustle before you can take the leap to full time.
Building a reputation
Most VAs are freelancers, and any freelancer will warn you of the dedication involved. You’ll spend plenty of hours on marketing yourself, creating an online presence, developing your audio reel, and building relationships with producers, studios, and other VAs both in person and online.
Then there’s auditioning for voice-acting roles. “Many of us spend hours each day sending out auditions, and it’s a big part of the gig,” says VA and post-production specialist Trevor O’Hare. Remember: Auditioning is unpaid, but even the roles you don’t land may connect you with useful industry contacts.
Running a business
“Many of us are also audio engineers, as well as the sales department, marketing, finance team, and more for our businesses,” O’Hare says. “While wearing all of these hats as solopreneurs, we tend to work out of our own home studios.”
It’s common for VAs to control their own finances, find their own work (if they don’t have an agent), and build their own home recording setup. Relatively basic equipment works for many voiceover jobs for beginners from home, but expect to upgrade as your career takes off.
“I’ve learned over the years to invest in quality equipment that can deliver professional-grade sound,” says VA Peter Baker. “Clients will often know when the tech quality is not good, and they won’t come back to you.”