Should I be a part of this project or is it too risky?

[Ryan Elder]

I want to get on projects whenever I can to gain more experience and connections under my belt. There is a project someone is doing, an animated series, but because of covid, he wants all the actors to do the voice overs from their homes, with their recording equipment.

But I feel that if they are all using their own mics, which can all sound different, and probably won't sound very good, and the performances may not play off each other as well as a result, that maybe the animated series is doomed to fail as a result. So is it too risky to commit too do you think perhaps, or could it still go very well, even with these shortcomings?

[Paul R Johnson]

What will you learn working on your own, what's your role? Oddly Ryan, as everyone sounds different anyway, then as long as they record in good quality, they will blend together. The thing that won't work is if their spaces sound different. If one speaks in the bathroom and another in a wardrobe it won't, but if ey all record close, and the sources are end and treated, it will be fine.

The biggest snag is acting in a group, but let's face it, animated series have been made this way for years. Star Trek was a good example. Shatner did his lines in one session, then next day they did t others with somebody doing read ins for the missing people. Animation isn't real, so it's far less important as the playing off each other feature is usually totally visual.

Sounds a really interesting project, but boring to produce. I can't see what you will do though?nyour existing skills seem to be not needed?

[Ryan Elder]

Oh well I would just be recording my voice for one of the parts probably, if I choose to. I can tell when microphones sound different though, and the spaces they are in, so I thought it would be obvious. But I can tell them I'm in, if it's worth it.

[Dave Baker]

Surely the point is, it is someone else's project and if it sounds awful it's their problem, not yours. At the most, all you will be is a voice.

[Paul R Johnson]

I agree - if they want your voice, because they know your voice, that's fine. Do it, move on. We all do this. However, as presumably it's dependent on the quality of the animation, I doubt people will complain about different audio perspectives.With these projects, they generally are what they are.

If you fancy it - do it. DO NOT GET INVOLVED WITH GROUP POLITICS - if audio is somebody else's department, let THEM worry about it.

[Brian Drysdale]

"The Archers" radio drama is currently being done this way. If the microphone is a worry to the sound recordist. no doubt they can do what the BBC does and supply a microphone. The actors can then do their thing under the duvet, which is now a running Covid gag on BBC radio.

If it's not your department, let the person responsible do their job. .

[Andrew Smith]

This will be "run away now" level of icky for the audio guy.

It will be an absolute nightmare with different mics and recording environments giving different tonalities of voices as well as different room tones, all of which need to be cleaned up and harmonised. Even with specialist skills and audio repair software, it can still be an unusable disaster.

And this is before you realise that their performances have suffered because they don't have the others there to bounce off.

Andrew
.

[Paul R Johnson]

Andrew - I really don't think from the acting perspective this is important. For live action, where little glances and eye movements can initiate response or delay it, I agree it is vital, but it's really common for recording sessions to NOT feature all the cast. I gave one example, but there are plenty over the years. My own favourites before animation made the technique popular were puppet series like Thunderbirds, Captain Scarlet and the Anderson series. The BBC did their radio plays for years with full casts, but from time to time, covered missing actors re-recorded later.

The other thing of course is that we are not dealing with trained actors here, but keen individuals who can read scripts, and that is a very different thing. The visual are animated, so like the Star Trek series I mentioned earlier, the acting is fixed, and if the actors want to do multiple takes, then they can.

In the past, getting actor's schedules to match has always been difficult. So it's not the end of the world - in fact, if everyone was sent one of those shields with a condenser mic, the tonal character of the rooms would be greatly reduced.

I totally agree that getting the cast together is always the best solution - but at the moment, impossible, but not a total killer.

[Brian Drysdale]

You can see how "The Archers" are doing it here: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-52796215

I assume there is some method for the director to given feedback on the performance as you record each character. Although, that's not a big deal these days.

[Ryan Elder]

Originally Posted by Dave Baker

Surely the point is, it is someone else's project and if it sounds awful it's their problem, not yours. At the most, all you will be is a voice.

True, but at the same time, I was told I should get on more professional projects than I was on before, so as long as it's worth it.

[Brian Drysdale]

You're working as an actor, it's up to you to judge if the animator is capable of making a good quality film from an aesthetic viewpoint. If they can't why are you doing it?

They may have already got a game plan in place for recording the sound, usually, they're not going to tell you since you're employed as an actor.

However, there's nothing stopping you asking them how they want you to record your voice.

[Paul R Johnson]

The title says "Is it too risky?" - Just a thought - risky? What risk can there be? If it's rubbish, it's not your fault, unless your acting is terrible. If it's rubbish - you take no responsibility and if it great, you take the credit - the exact opposite of your usual projects. I can't see how you can lose,