voice-actor

Essential Listening: The Talkin’ Toons Podcast

Via: Wikipedia

Voice-acting is one of my favourite parts of the animation business. Not so much because it’s the only creative aspect of the business that I have any hope of being good at, but because it really is a talent and skill that is often under-appreciated. Thankfully Rob Paulson (pictured above, left, with Maurice LaMarche) has made a long and fine career in the profession and is putting all that he has learned to good use with his Talkin’ Toons podcast.

Some episodes are Rob simply talking about the business and any advice he has (very worthwhile if you are even thinking about entering the business), but his guest podcasts, where he invites his friends and colleagues in for a chat are where the real magic happens. Besides the many, many pearls of wisdom to be gleaned, they are a superb insight into the world of an industry that doesn’t get a lot of coverage. There’s plenty of discussions about how people got started in the industry, why they like doing it so much, and also plenty upon plenty of what goes on when things aren’t being recorded.

Notable guests thus far have included Billy West, Maurice LaMarche, Tara Strong, Grey DeLisle nd Phil LaMarr and I can safely say that at some point during each of those podcasts, I almost had tears of laughter in my eyes they were that funny.

Rob’s clearly put a lot of effort into the endeavor and I’m happy to say that it has paid off. With many more guests to come, it is safe to say that I will be tuning in regularly from now on.

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Why You Should Listen to This Podcast With Voice-Actor Scott McNeil

Via: Wikipedia

First of all, who is Scott McNeill? Well, if you think he looks Australian, then you are correct, he was born there, much the same as my good chum Mr. Elliot Cowan. Certain folks out there will be familiar with his work in Tranformers (as Bumblebee) whereas others may know him from the literally hundreds of anime shows that he has done over the years. I discovered him through his work as the paranoid emo alien Stork on the Nerd Corps. series, Storm Hawks.

Scott’s an incredibly talented, genuinely funny guy who is a real character in his own right. He’s a veteran of the industry and has this podcast is chock full of insightful., witty anecdotes from his time in the Vancouver scene. He also makes some excellent, decent points on the use of celebrity voice actors and he throws in a few horror stories for good measure.

The podcast contains plenty of discussion about the nature of the animation industry in Vancouver and how it differs from that of it’s California neighbour. Scott also has plenty of tales of how he managed to get his break in the industry and how he manages to keep a full schedule in an industry where unemployment lurks after every project.

It’s also great to hear from such a down-to-earth character talk candidly about life in an industry where some of the heaviest hitters rarely seem to get a similar chance for discussion.

The podcast was originally part of the A3U (Ages 3 and Up) series that has sadly vanished from the interwebs hence the lack of a link back to the source. It’s just over an hour long but I can guarantee you there is hardly a boring minute in the entire thing.

Click here to download the mp3 instead.

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