July 2007 RAP
July 2007 Highlights
Production 212: The Optimal Processing Process
by Dave Foxx
Along with all the email about last month’s column, I got a curious one
from a Spanish speaker that I had to have translated. (My Spanish is
confined to a few curse-words and a lot of food items…especially cerveza…one
of the major food groups!) Having heard some of my work at Z100/New York, he
was curious about my processing, asking which plug-ins I use and what kind
of settings I put on them. I get this same question about every three weeks
or so and I usually simply answer them directly and have done with it. As I
wrote my response (to be translated back into Spanish), I remembered a few
stray comments from various other producers saying things like “Your
production is so ‘open’” and “everything is so bright sounding,” and so I
decided that this month, I’d like to take you from A to Z in the Dave Foxx
processing process.
Radio Hed: Unexpected Spokespersons
by Jeffrey Hedquist
Who is the person delivering the message in your commercial? Often it’s
the anonymous announcer, making it more difficult for you to write
compelling copy. Here’s a suggestion: get attention by using someone the
listener would not expect to be delivering the message for the advertiser.
To find an unexpected spokesperson with contrast, ask yourself: Who would
hate this product, service or advertiser? Who would be opposed to this? Who
would be the most unlikely customer? Who might complain about the
advertiser?
Interview: Terri Apple, Voice-over Actress, Los Angeles,
CA
by Jerry Vigil
If you don’t know the name, you probably know the voice. Terri Apple is
one of the top voice-over actresses in the country. She’s been at it for
over 25 years. Her credits include the award winning “Got Milk”, California
Cow/cheese, Taco Bell, Sears, Wal-Mart, Oscar Meyer, BMW and hundreds of
others, as well as several TV shows including E! Modern Girls Guide To Life,
A and E, ABC Family, Fox Sports and many others. Terri’s voice can be heard
on TV and radio every day. Terri’s acting credits include “The Fair” a
recently released feature film, ABC’s MOW, The Mary Kay Letourneau Story”,
“Never, Never” a Sundance winner, and the animated series, “Punktuition.”
Terri is the author of “Making Money In Voiceovers”, the 2nd Edition of
which is just about to become available. Terri is also working on a video
“How To Make Money In Voiceovers” as well as the audio version of Making
Money In Voiceovers. She also recently started her own talent management
company, ASE Talent. This month’s RAP Interview barely scratches the surface
of the wealth of knowledge Terri possesses about the VO business, but we get
a healthy serving nonetheless. Check the RAP CD for a sampling of Terri’s
demos.
Technology: A Sub-$500 VO Studio
by Steve Cunningham
My friend David Lawrence called me a few weeks back asking about gear.
Seems he has several actor friends who want to set up small rigs for doing
voice work at home, and he asked me for some recommendations. What came out
of that phone call (among other things) is this month’s Test Drive, where we
assemble a high-quality VO recording and editing rig for under five hundred
clams, not including the computer.
Q It Up: The RAP Network Speaks! - How do you keep your
voice-over business thriving?
Q It Up: This question is for all of you who either make
a living doing voiceover, or who supplement your income doing free-lance
voiceover. What do you do to keep your voice-over business thriving, whether
you’re making six figures doing voiceovers, or one of the many who
supplement other income doing voice work on the side? Is marketing the key?
Finding a great agent? Is it customer service? Is it keeping on top of your
voice game by always trying to improve your skills with training, exercises,
education or other means? Is technical quality at the top of your list? Do
you invest in the best mics, preamps, voice processors, studio acoustics,
etc.? Is it constantly refreshing demos? A great website perhaps? Is it all
of the above? Tell us what you think is key in your voice-over success, and
please offer any other thoughts you have on the subject!
Feature: How to Make Manure Smell Better
by Richard Stroobant
It’s something we’ve all done, and we’re not very proud of it. No, I’m
not talking about watching an episode of the Golden Girls. I’m talking about
putting a commercial on the air that was voiced by a client over the
telephone. Now, let me state this from the beginning: 1. I hate clients
voicing their own spots. I think in most cases, it is detrimental for their
business and can make the client sound unprofessional, nervous and not
trustworthy. 2. I also hate phone calls on the air. Unless it is a listener
winning something, or a breaking news story, the sound quality is like nails
on a chalkboard to me.
Feature: I Always Walk Toward the Sun
by Ed Thompson
“I always walk toward the sun,” George Patton Minelli would say. The
pastor repeated those words at the graveside of Mr. Minelli’s funeral. Mr.
Minelli, named by his immigrant father after the American general who led
the liberation of Sicily, died at the age of 55 and was buried in the only
suit he owned. In the inside pocket of his jacket were two Purple Hearts
from his service in Vietnam. The American Legion paid for his gravesite,
sent an honor guard with pallbearers, and would later provide a brass marker
free of charge. With the thanks of a grateful nation, a representative of
the Legion gave me the flag that draped his coffin because I was the only
mourner present to receive it.
...And Make It Real Creative
by Trent Rentsch
If you’ve even only glimpsed this column over the years, you couldn’t
escape the fact that there are some drums I’ve beaten skinless, some banners
forever flying, blowing ragged in the wind, some soapboxes I’ll continue to
mount even when forced to add a wheelchair ramp. Some are standards of
common Creative sense (“It all begins with great words” comes to mind), some
are pet peeves (don’t play Russian roulette with your music choices), and
some are simply pleas for workplace peace (Production and Sales… can’t we
all just get along?). Of all of my continuing diatribes, one stands out. It
has nothing to do with production orders, voice-overs, or over-compression…
in fact, all of those things seem small and meaningless by comparison. It
affects everything we do, not just in our daily Creative job, but in our
life. It’s the care and feeding of the Creative mind.
Monday Morning Memo: Stronger Ads = More Complaints
by Roy H. Williams
It’s no secret that stronger ads generate faster growth. But with each
higher level of awareness comes an increase in complaints: “I’m sick of
hearing your ads.” TRANSLATION: “It makes me mad that I can’t ignore you.”
“Your ads don’t sound professional. They’re not polished and smooth.”
TRANSLATION: “It makes me mad that your ads stand out.” “I’m offended by
your ads and I’ll never do business with you.” TRANSLATION: “Complaining is
what I do to make me feel important.”
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