It’s so good to be back after taking a couple of weeks away from the mic and laptop with my family. There’s something rejuvenating about stepping away completely – I always come back with fresh ideas, fresh energy, and a renewed excitement for what I do.
And speaking of excitement, something landed in my inbox last night that perfectly illustrates the reality of working in this industry. I thought it would be valuable to walk you through a real-time audition experience because this is what voiceover life truly looks like.
When Opportunity Knocks (With a Tight Deadline)
At 3:50 pm Adelaide time yesterday, I received an email from my agent Scout Management. They are casting a documentary and I fit the bill. The brief was comprehensive and exciting. The catch? Auditions needed to be submitted by 9am the following morning.
Welcome to the world of professional voiceover.
Now, I should mention that when emails like this come through, we never really know the full picture. Sometimes clients have already done a preliminary selection process. With this particular documentary, I believe they’re approaching the big three voiceover agents in Australia – EM Voices, RMK and Scout Management. So the competition could be anywhere from a handful to fifty people or more.
But here’s the important part: the timeframe is typical. Whether you’re auditioning for audiobook narration, documentary work, television commercials, radio spots, or short films, the turnaround time is usually very tight. This is simply the nature of our industry.
The Brief: Finding Your Anchor Points
This particular audition came with fantastic supporting information. When I printed out the script, I had a full page of details, including:
- Production company background
- Project summary
- Voice direction from the producer
- Tone and delivery requirements
- Accent and gender specifications
- What they’re looking for in this particular voice
I took the time to look up the production company to get a sense of their work and style. This kind of research can really inform your performance choices.
But from all that information, I distilled it down to a few key descriptive words that I wrote directly on my script:
AWE • HUMOUR • INTIMACY
They also wanted someone who could shift from being playful to profound.
Those five words became my anchor points. Every time I ran through the script, I’d glance at those words. Having these touchstones was incredibly helpful in delivering a performance with enough light and shade to hit the nail on the head tonally.
Strategic Timing: Know Your Voice
Here’s where self-knowledge becomes crucial. I’d had a particularly big day yesterday, and I knew that going into my studio late at night was a recipe for frustration or fatigue-induced mistakes. I don’t like doing work late anyway – I prefer early bedtimes to maintain optimal voice quality.
So I made a strategic decision: print the script before bed, get a good night’s sleep, and tackle the audition fresh in the morning.
Through years of experience, I have a thorough understanding of how my voice works. I’m one of those voices that performs exceptionally well with just a little bit of warm-up early in the day. Back when I was the national voice of Shiels (radio and TV campaigns for seven years until 2017), I used to record every three weeks at 8am, before starting my day job at 9am. So I’m well-versed in having a voice that can fire early.
If you’re a night owl, you might have made the opposite choice – and that’s perfectly valid. The key is knowing yourself and your instrument.
The Recording Process: Efficiency is Everything
This morning, I woke up at 6 am, had a quick shower, and headed straight into my studio. By 6:30-6:40 am, I was ready to record. I gave myself about twenty minutes for the entire audition.
It used to take me much longer, but efficiency comes with experience.
Here’s my process:
Warm-up: I did some quick sirens through my register to warm up my voice. Nothing elaborate, just enough to get everything working smoothly.
Recording: I did two takes of the script on my phone. Yes, my phone! I checked with my agent when I first signed with them, and they’re completely happy with phone auditions for this kind of quick turnaround.
Technical requirements: This is where you need to pay close attention. My agent has specific requirements for file naming, and the brief explicitly stated: “MP3 files only, no WAV files.”
My phone records in a format I can’t even identify, so file conversion is part of my regular workflow. I use Zamzar (Z-A-M-Z-A-R) for audio file conversion. It’s saved in my bookmarks, and I can upload a file and have it converted to MP3 in about three minutes.
File naming: I renamed the file exactly according to my agent’s specifications.
Submission: Off it went, well before the 9 am deadline.
Total time from sitting down to hitting send: approximately 20 minutes.
The Key Takeaway
Quick turnaround auditions are the standard in this industry. They’re not the exception – they’re the rule.
To handle them successfully, you need:
- Clear systems: Know your technical workflow inside and out
- Self-awareness: Understand when your voice performs best
- Distillation skills: Pull the essence from detailed briefs
- Confidence in your choices: Trust your interpretation and your process
You also need to figure out what works for you. Maybe you’re a night owl who would have knocked this out the evening before. Maybe you need more warm-up time than I do. Maybe you prefer recording in your professional studio rather than on your phone. All of these choices are valid – the important thing is knowing what serves your voice and your performance best.
Over to You
If you have any questions about the audition process, quick turnarounds, technical workflows, or anything else voiceover-related, I’m always here to help. Feel free to reach out.
It’s great to be back, and I’m looking forward to sharing more insights with you all.
Have yourself a fabulous rest of October, and I’ll see you again soon!