Changes in Directives for Studios, Networks, and Casting The film/TV industry is taking very seriously the calls to expand diversity in all aspects of production. Content that reflects demographics. Greater inclusion of minorities in cast and crew for film, TV, and commercials, as well as among the shows’ producers, and network executives. Appointments to newly created Diversity positions within companies’ executive teams. Industry magazine Deadline Hollywood is an online news site reporting several times a day on the entertainment industry. On December 3, 2020, it published an article reviewing a study by Nielsen on diversity across various platforms. It found that “diverse identity groups appear more frequently on streaming shows than on broadcast or cable…” though it reported that overall representation in on-screen programming is low across all media platforms. Among the 300 most-viewed programs in 2019, 92% had some level of diversity in the cast (women, people of color, or LGBTQ +) but few had representation on screen that reflected the general population. “Presence is not the same as representation,” the report said. The article continued, saying that streaming services have more inclusion, followed by broadcast, and then cable. The demand, it said, is for content that tells the stories of the viewing audiences and said that programs receive higher overall audience ratings when multiple identity groups are represented. The under-represented groups include indigenous peoples, women, LGBTQ individuals, and people of color, which include Black, Native American, Asian and Pacific islander, Hispanic/Latinx, Middle Easterns, North African, and multi-racial populations. Women overall show up on screen 38% of the time, although they are 52% of the U.S. population, and women over 50 years old are 60% less likely to see themselves in programming vs. the general public. White men appear on cable 88.7% of the time, 66.9% on broadcast, and 64.9% on subscription video on demand (SVOD). African-Americans, by contrast, appear on cable shows 7.5% of the time, 24.7% on broadcast, and 18.9% on SVOD. Variety is a weekly entertainment publication with a broad coverage of movies, television, theater, music and technology. It also has a digital edition of headlines and brief version of print articles. On October 30, 2020, it published an article about the Motion Picture Academy and its new diversity requirements going forward. Called Academy Aperture 2025 , the Academy provides criteria that films must meet in order to be considered for a Best Picture Nomination. The guidelines provide a quota for the representation of marginalized groups in four categories; on screen representation, creative/leadership team, industry access and opportunities, audience development (marketing). Films must meet at least two out of four of these standards. The requirements don’t go into effect until 2024 and only apply to Best Picture nominees. An office of Representation, Inclusion and Equity was recently established to oversee the Aperture 2025 initiative and ensure that the Academy’s hiring and promotion practices aligned with its plan. These practices include annual unconscious-bias training for the Board of Governors, staff, and leadership, discussions to focus on the systemic challenges faced by various marginalized groups, and projects to ensure that the history and experiences of all Americans are well-represented. Entertainment networks, studios, and production companies are also launching new initiatives. In August 2020, Deadline announced that CBS News is promoting CBS Village , “a multiplatform franchise for news division content about diverse groups.” It will be dedicated to content about a diversity of communities, including Black, Asian, LGBQT, LatinX, women, and millennials. (Frankly, I don’t know how millennials are not being well-represented; it seems that most shows feature this age group, but there you go.) Kim Godwin, Executive Vice President of News, said that their "hope is that by spotlighting this cross-section of our coverage across all of our platforms, we’ll help audiences connect the dots in these stories involving race, gender and identity and bring a richer understanding to the national conversation around the problems, progress, and potential our nation faces." Fox announced at the end of 2020 that it has created a new producers initiative to improve diversity in non-scripted television. (An unscripted show is a TV series that does not have a fictional, scripted storyline. Examples are game and reality shows, documentaries and documentary series, and competitive formats amongst its participants.) Fox Alternative Entertainment, the company’s in-house unscripted studio, has launched Fastrack. It’s a program designed to develop producers with diverse backgrounds and build a pipeline of new talent behind the camera. The article continues to say that it was launched a month after CBS introduced a plan to ensure that 50% of its unscripted show casts must be Black, indigenous, or people of color (BIPOC), and that it has committed a minimum of 25% of its annual unscripted development BIPOC creators and producers. Overseas, BBC Studios has introduced an “ inclusion rider ” for all new productions, which requires them to meet a 20% diversity target. Commitments include ensuring a fifth of on-screen talent and production teams come from a Black, Asian, and minority ethnic (BAME) background, have a disability, or are from low-income backgrounds. Additionally, at least one senior role on scripted and unscripted production teams will be appointed from one of these backgrounds. ViacomCBS has expanded its U.K. “no diversity, no commission” policy to its entire international organization of 180 countries. It’s designed to help promote diversity both on-screen and behind the scene on international networks, including MTV and Comedy Central. The article on Deadline explains that “…production companies are required to adhere to diversity guidelines before budgets are signed off and productions are approved to begin.” The intention is to reflect their audience and provide opportunities for new diverse creative perspectives. Entertainment companies have created new Diversity appointments within their organizations. Recent appointments include: AMC Networks, which has appointed Aisha Thomas-Petit as the company's first Chief Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Officer. The Paley Center for Media, which has announced that Jamitha Fields will step into the newly-created position of VP, Diversity, Inclusion & Engagement. Paradigm, which has named Shakira Gagnier Vice President of the agency's diversity and inclusion section. No doubt that many more changes within the entertainment industry will be coming in 2021 and beyond. One show that I think deserves to be a model for this type of change is Mindy Kaling and Lang Fisher’s Never Have I Ever on Netflix, a funny yet poignant show about the life of a first-generation Indian-American teenager. It’s an honest look at the push-and-pull social life of an American high schooler dealing with the recent death of her father and the traditional values of her Indian Hindu family. The show dispenses with South Asian stereotypes and gives us fully realized characters; it’s a window into Mindy Kaling’s own upbringing. Diversity is never an issue, as its cast includes many cultural and identity groups, individuals who are presented as complete human beings with issues of their own. The success of this and other shows will be measured by their viewer ratings, the critical reviews they receive, and (for the broadcast networks), corporate sponsorships. Never Have I Ever has already been proved highly successful in its first season. Personally, I wholeheartedly look forward to more shows that provide views and understanding into other cultures that had previously played only in the background of mainstream-based stories. This promises to be a time of great opportunity for those with such interesting yet infrequently told stories. Their days of marginalization as storytellers, cast, crew, and executives may be over. And for those hoping to see themselves better represented in these productions, and for the rest of us ready for more diverse storytelling, it's a good thing.

Cashews and Raisins, Oh My! Sure to Put a Smile on Your Face Move over meat lovers, there's a reason for vegetarians to smile this winter. Chili gets a whole new spin with the addition of cashews and raisins to tons of beans and seasonings. It's so good that I like to make this version all year long. Before the pandemic, when we used to socialize in person (sigh), I regularly served this chili at wintertime parties, where even my most dedicated carnivore friends came back for seconds. If you like a spicy version, increase the chili powder to 1 tablespoon and add in 1/4 teaspoon of bottled hot pepper sauce when you're adding all the seasonings. Vegans can enjoy the chili without the cheddar cheese topping, though I love mine topped with plenty of wonderfully melted cheese. However you like your chili, dig out your favorite large soup pot, set it on the stove, and get ready to stir up a whole batch of chili love. Vegetarian Chili 3 medium onions, sliced (1 1/2 cups) 3 stalks celery, sliced (1 1/2 cups) 2 green peppers, sliced (1 1/2 cups) 4 cloves garlic, minced 2 tablespoons olive oil (2) 28-ounce cans tomatoes, cut up (3) 15 1/2-ounce cans red kidney beans (1) 15-ounce can great northern beans or navy beans 1 cup beer or water 1/2 cup raisins 1/2 cup cashews 1/4 cup vinegar 1/2 tablespoon chili powder 1 tablespoon snipped parsley 2 teaspoons salt 1 bay leaf 1 1/2 teaspoons dried basil, crushed 1 1/2 teaspoons dried oregano, crushed 1/2 teaspoon pepper 2 cups shredded cheddar cheese Cook onion, celery, green pepper, and garlic in oil til tender. Stir in undrained tomatoes, undrained kidney and great northern beans, along with all remaining ingredients except cheese. Bring to boiling and reduce the heat. Cover and simmer for 1 hour. Remove cover and simmer 1 hour longer. Remove bay leaf. Top each serving with 1/4 cup of shredded cheese. Serves 8.

Customer Service the Way the Customer Wants It I credit the IBM sales training program for ingraining within me the essentials for properly running a good business. Top of the list: treating each customer like gold. A healthy growing business treats both prospective clients and current customers alike in this respect. And caring about them and providing excellent service are demonstrated in so many ways. Listen First and foremost, listen to their “pain point” before offering a solution. Discover the obstacle(s) in their business, whether it’s a need to reach new buyers for their products via social media or a different marketing approach to appeal to new generational tastes. Respond Respond quickly and completely to requests for information or a sample of work. The business-minded voice talent does so with fast turnaround service (24 hours or less) and provides a short (30 seconds or so) customized demo of the client’s script. Communicate Ensure clear, concise communications regarding expectations and deliverables at every stage of the project, so that everyone is on the same page. As I observed many times in the high tech industry, it’s easy to make changes at the beginning of the project. It becomes increasingly difficult and expensive to alter course as the project progresses. The last thing anyone wants is an unpleasant and totally preventable surprise down the road. Do the Job Right the First Time All of these add up to the desired end result: doing the job right the first time. Yes, Murphy is alive and kicking, and the unexpected can always come calling. But with clear communications, responsiveness, and working with the client to solve the immediate problem, chances are high for delivering a high quality voice over that meets – or exceeds! - customer expectations.

Achieving a Relaxed State of Mind Before the Coronavirus paralyzed the world, I was fortunate to enjoy a ski vacation with my family during the week of my daughter’s spring break. Strange that a “spring” break began this year in late February, but in retrospect, I’m glad that we were able to have it at all. I’m a fair-weather skier. Unlike others who fancy the perfect ski day as bitterly cold with blowing, blinding snow, I prefer warm, sunny days where the gorgeous mountain views extend for miles. I like the intermediate blue runs and the challenging black diamonds – as long as they’ve been well-groomed. My inner twelve year old comes out to play when I can ski fast and smoothly. Leave the endless bumpy moguls to my kids whose knees don’t object to the punishment. Almost every day of our trip was warm and beautiful, and I found myself relaxing into the rhythm of gliding down Colorado’s Beaver Creek runs. My body was on automatic pilot, like it often is when I’m engaged in familiar physical activities. And after admiring the views for a while, my thoughts turned to voice over (sure, why not?). I began thinking how a measure of accomplishment in one activity can provide insights to succeeding in another. Relaxation It’s amazing how much easier something becomes when you can just relax into the effort. With skiing, and with acting, there comes a point at which the body and mind know what to do. You have trained, acquired the skills to stay upright and balanced when swooshing down a mountain at a fairly decent rate of speed. You know how not to crash into other skiers … or into a tree. You know how to turn, how to slow down when the run seems to suddenly drop off into a vertical plunge, and how to stop without – again – crashing into anyone or anything. Tense muscles from fear, or even simple apprehension, detract from the smoothness of movement and enjoyment of the activity itself. Acting is much the same way. You’ve studied the script and understand the genre. You’ve done the script analysis and answered the whole set of who/what/when/where/why questions. You’ve studied your character arc, made choices, and are ready to immerse yourself in that persona. So now relax into it! You’ll be so much more authentic and fluid, and the performance that much more truthful. Enjoy the scenery As with a perfect ski day, however you may define it, have fun with the story that you are bringing to life. There’s a bit of joy in every piece of drama, just as there is some drama in every comedy. The yin/yang interaction, with opposites containing a bit of each other to draw one to the other and yet create conflict. Explore the nuances before you, whether it’s admiring the bits of snow still clinging to the bare limbs of the mountain aspens or the humor within the explainer video script. Your listener will pick up on your comfort and pleasure with the message, and enjoy the ride right alongside you. Dress appropriately Just as most skiers wouldn’t be wearing just a t-shirt without a jacket – though I did see one or two questionable types who looked like they thought they were at the beach – attire your character in accordance with the script. Is this an authoritative read for a medical narration? Perhaps you’re the doctor in the lab coat or the CEO addressing a board meeting. Stand up straight and adopt a more formal tone. Or maybe you’re the wacky bunny in a children’s eLearning script. In that case, move freely and let all the facial expressions and vocal inflections ‘hang out.” Know where you’re going At Beaver Creek, warm chocolate chip cookies are waiting at the bottom of the main lift at 3pm. A delicious tradition and a powerful incentive to give it your all before winding down with a chocolatey treat. In voice over, know the key message and what the client wants the receiver to know. Is it a more efficient way to navigate the legal complexities that challenge a small business? A call to action to reduce local emissions and adopt cleaner air standards in the community? Or maybe it’s a simple, but heartfelt “thank you!” to customers for their on-going support. A story has a beginning, middle, and an end. Know the arc of your customer’s story, tell it with all the heart, thought, and care that you can bring to it, and the product – and your client’s satisfaction - may just be as sweet as a warm chocolate chip cookie.

Letting Go of the Hectic to Appreciate the Everyday Recording in a small space for hours at a time. Focusing intently on delivering the copy in just the right character tone. Carefully editing to provide the client with the best possible audio file. Whew. Couple all that with working in a small windowless room for a bit too long a stretch and you can emerge feeling a bit disoriented. That’s when I like to step outdoors and give myself a wholly different experience. Especially with Atlanta’s beautiful early spring days – before it gets too hot and humid – and walks around the neighborhood can be simply glorious. And so refreshing for the soul. These short excursions during the day have changed dramatically since the quarantine confined everyone to their homes. If there is to be a silver lining to this health and economic crisis, it’s that human social behavior has returned, at least for the duration of this pandemic, to its most basic interactions: the need to see and connect with others face-to-face. Social media and video communications like Zoom, Skype, and FaceTime are great, but they generally don’t satisfy the essential human need for contact in physical space. Before the quarantine, I’d walk my neighborhood with few other people out and about. only the occasional dog-walker or jogger. Most of the people I glimpsed were speeding along in their cars on their way to or from home. And few waved or greeted one another. I would see a house or two in the process of remodeling, but rarely with the homeowners in sight. Now, in our Twilight Zone of Quarantine, it feels like the world clock has turned decades backwards in time. Not since I was a child have I seen so many neighbors just hanging out in their lawn chairs. It seems like everyone has rediscovered the outdoors. And each other. We are meeting neighbors we didn’t even know we had, waving and calling greetings to each other – from at least six feet away, of course. Front yards have been rediscovered as the primary spot for relaxation. Patio chairs, tables, and toys have moved from the back yard to take up residence on front lawns. Without after-school organized sports, kids of all ages – and family groups, too - are riding the streets on bikes, scooters, and Razor ripstiks. On a recent unusually warm day, little kids were running through sprinklers, coasting down homemade slip ‘n slides, and just playing ball with their parents in their driveways. It’s wonderful! I’ve come to really enjoy these walks, striking up conversations, and truly enjoying a sense of community. And as a gardener, I am able to see and appreciate my neighbors’ landscaping projects so much better during those walks, rather than from brief passing glimpses out a car window. I feel revitalized when I finally return to my recording studio after such a stroll. Happier, more content, and relaxed. The hectic pace I set for myself melts away and I can just enjoy life a bit more. I think the work reflects this new balance, too. We forget how essential it is to our well-being to disengage from the mechanical, the digital, the continuous feedback loop of our own thoughts and internal conversations. I’ve become more grateful for those long walks, the quiet times strolling through nearby wooded paths, and the camaraderie from my neighbors. More than ever before, I feel part of the community. I take true pleasure helping elderly neighbors with their grocery shopping. I’m happy to compliment the people down the street on the beautiful results of their home remodeling. And from speaking to others, they feel it too. This home confinement will soon be lifted and we’ll begin to gradually return to (more or less) our normal routines. I only hope that we can retain this renewed sense of community, too. It’s a cliché to say that the best things in life are free, but that doesn’t diminish the truth of it. Especially when we experience it firsthand.

Laugh, because it hurts too much to cry I learned on the playground that one way to disarm bullies is to laugh at them. Sure, it may get you punched in the face, but oftentimes it just confuses them and they'll walk away, shaking their heads and muttering that you're crazy and simply not worth their time. On a trip overseas last summer (ah, I remember a time when normal people would leave their homes to - what's that word? oh yes! - vacation), the bully took the form of a surly middle-aged woman. She was sitting behind my husband and myself on a sight-seeing boat ride down a river in Copenhagen, when my husband suddenly sneezed loudly. He wasn't facing her and he sneezed into his elbow. She may have been startled or worried about her own health, but she began yelling at both of us how offended she was by his breach of etiquette and wouldn't stop berating us, no matter what we or anyone else said to her. Even her own husband couldn't get her to settle down. So, I just started laughing and she finally picked herself up in disgust, cursed a bit, and dragged her poor husband to the other end of the boat. Dark humor is born of those times when we can't battle the bully or free ourselves from its tyranny and abuse. For millennia, people have turned to laughter to mitigate the pain. When you've already tried everything you can think of to remedy the situation or are just powerless to affect it, what else are you going to do? There's power in prayer, and faith and community uplift a lot of people. And so does humor. Here's my take at combatting the biggest bully currently on the planet, the Coronavirus pandemic. It's a terrible illness that's costing us dearly in lives lost and wreaking tremendous havoc in our personal finances and livelihoods, with huge financial consequences for both our national and global economies. There's much to be upset about, but right now I choose to laugh in its face for my own sanity, if nothing else. These are some of my favorite memes from around the internet. Plus, a six minute original film that my teen daughter and I made during the first week of the quarantine, in response to a competition sponsored by our on-camera agency. (Our parody of the TV show "Survivor" took first place.) Enjoy! And here's the link to our short film, Survivor: Coronavirus. The premise: mother and daughter are quarantined together for a LONG time. Can they survive each other? Click on the logo to find out.

Dreams, Clichés, and the Real World What business owner wouldn’t want a happy customer? A satisfied client is the best marketing arm of any successful enterprise. Happy customers are often repeat customers, referral sources to new customers, and - perhaps best of all - walking, talking testaments to the quality of a business’ goods and services. Free, unprompted advertising also speaks to the trust that future customers can place in the business, even before they first walk in the door. So, let’s make our customers happy, right? A number of famous people have shared their thoughts on how to do just that: “There is only one boss. The customer.” – Sam Walton "I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel." – Maya Angelou “Whatever you do, do it well. Do it so well that when people see you do it, they will want to come back and see you do it again, and they will want to bring others and show them how well you do what you do.” – Walt Disney “Quality in a service or product is not what you put into it. It is what the customer gets out of it.” – Peter Drucker “The key is to set realistic customer expectations, and then not to just meet them, but to exceed them—preferably in unexpected and helpful ways.” – Richard Branson Essentially, we’re advised to: Treat the customer like the boss. Be responsive to their wants and needs. Ensure that customers feel special, appreciated, and valued. Demonstrate consistent excellence in your products and services. Provide the best experience when customers frequent your business. Know your customers’ expectations and then exceed them. All great advice and well-heeded by the most successful companies. Interestingly, many business consultants especially like to focus on this last piece of advice, that of exceeding customer expectations. We hear phrases that have become cliché in the business world, like: “Meet and exceed your customers’ expectations” and “Under-promise and over-deliver” Great advice, right? Yes, but … let’s qualify these statements. Consider this. It’s terrific to exceed your customers’ expectations, but what happens the next time they purchase? Well, the bar is set to a higher standard, to where you exceeded their expectations, and now they may expect the bar to be continuously raised. You want to please your customer, but there’s a limit to how much you may be able to do. Or they may let you know that the best way to exceed their expectations is to lower your price, while keeping the quality of your product to its same high standard. At some point you have to depart this model and you will either have an unhappy customer, who was accustomed to receiving ever more, or you will be out of business. It doesn’t have to be this way, of course. An astute business person aspires to exceed customer expectations, but manages what those expectations should be. They don’t have to – and should not - come at a dear cost to the business itself. Rather, expectations are met and exceeded through the values that the business embraces and extends to all its customers, values such as excellent customer service, accountability, and business conducted in good faith. These values are universally treasured and enhance the reputation of both the business and its owner(s). As customers come to associate these values with the business itself, trust is established, which elevates the business in their minds to a level where it consistently exceeds their expectations. Trust is the cornerstone of human relationships, whether personal or commercial, and must be earned, but once it is, its value is truly priceless. What about the pledge to under-promise and over-deliver? Well, be careful here! It sounds great – like Scotty from Star Trek, you could build a reputation as a miracle worker, right? ( click here ) Hmmm, Scotty may have pulled it off, but more likely than not, you could end up shooting yourself in the foot. First, you run the risk of disappointing customers by not appearing to be able to deliver what your competitors are offering. In the voice over world, that’s as if I were to tell a potential client that I could complete a corporate narration within three days, when I know that I can really do so within two. I risk losing the job to another voice talent who more accurately estimates a more realistic timeframe for delivery. The second risk comes when a repeat customer sees this happening time and again, and wonders perhaps if you’re not being honest or knowledgeable enough about your business to more accurately forecast. When repeat customers begin to question your subsequent quotes on delivery, trust erodes and diminishes the business relationship, again opening the door to your competitors. Finally, imagine this philosophy embraced by employees within a larger company. If I were running a software company, for example, I’d soon discover that my sales reps were gaming the system with low-ball forecasts, so as to exceed their quotas and collect their quarterly or year-end bonuses. I’d be reinforcing the idea that the appearance of superior performance is better than setting and meeting reasonable, realistic goals. And no one wins, neither the business that’s short of its year-end goals nor its employees, who at best underestimate their abilities and at worst are labeled “underachievers” and may soon be out of their jobs. In my experience, the best thing that a business – no matter its size - can offer a customer is the value that it brings to the relationship: honesty, integrity, hard work, and the dedication to deliver a high quality product or service on-time and within the customer’s budget. Happy customers receive what they expect, and perhaps a bit more, especially when it comes from an individual or business whom they know, trust, and respect.

Put on the Back Burner … Like Everyone Else When an actor “books out,” it means that he is unavailable for work, or as it’s commonly referred to in the film/TV industry, a “booking.” Reasons to book out range from having an existing booking (the best reason of all!) to vacation schedules, illness, or general unavailability. Generally, actors go to great lengths to avoid booking out, in fear of missing out on a golden opportunity, a well-paying gig, or the one role that could (finally!) provide their breakout moment. Enter Covid 19, the Coronavirus, the pandemic, instigator of the Great Shutdown. Suddenly, EVERYONE is involuntarily booked out as productions, auditions, and castings grind to a halt. Movie release dates are moved out months into the future and the talk is that the industry may not start up again until the fall. Or will it be sometime in 2021? Or perhaps slowly beginning in July 2020? No one knows how long the industry will be in limbo or how long they’ll personally be out of work. Then an interesting thing happens. Innovation springs from crisis as people learn to adapt, and it’s been amazing to see the film/TV industry find ways to connect, create, and craft, thanks to our digital-enabled world. Within a few weeks, virtual platforms sprang up to offer emotional support, actor training, open casting calls, and monologue competitions. And a few projects, notably commercials, are being revised to deliver their same messages, but with social distancing rules in place. Instead of gathering cast and crew together in a small space for long hours, actors are professionally self-taping their dialogue at home and sending the footage to the production folks, who create the final piece from these many components. Some projects are actively searching out actors who’ve been living – and quarantining – together to film scenes that require close proximity. Still other projects are staffing skeleton crews and scheduling actors to report to set in shifts to shoot their lines individually. Sometimes, these unusual circumstances open rare opportunities. Actors have always yearned for a chance to meet and interact with a respected casting director, and now many of these opportunities have opened up in full. Agencies have been hosting Zoom sessions with casting directors who freely talk about their career paths, answer questions about the casting process, and occasionally even “meet” actors one-on-one or in small groups. My agency expanded on this notion by also encouraging talent to share special skills with one another via Zoom workshops. I have been asked twice to provide an introduction to voice over, which I’ve tailored to film/TV actors with a “how to get started” twist. The Resources section in my blog grew out of these presentations and the follow-up questions that I’ve been receiving afterwards. Additionally, acting teachers, coaches, and studios are finding an eager audience who want to keep their skills sharp and their boredom and frustration at bay. Teachers who work out of studios are offering classes and personal coaching directly from their homes via Zoom, Skype, and Facetime, often discounted in consideration of their students’ lack of available funds. It’s a smart way to keep in touch with students and earn a few extra dollars while they themselves are looking to keep afloat financially. The acting schools and studios themselves are discovering that a number of classes can be successfully taught online via Zoom. Students are loving this format so much that this online component may never go completely away. It’s especially useful for those who live far from a studio and wouldn’t be able to easily attend otherwise. This same advantage is appreciated by students with family responsibilities who are thrilled with the flexibility that classes from home provide. The social isolation has been lessened a bit as actors from all over the country are networking with one another via Facebook groups, email blasts, and Instagram. It seems that just about everyone is happy to keep others informed of the large number of free classes, webinars, and fun challenges that have become available, many created and hosted by well-known acting coaches and casting directors. A fair number of actors are creating content themselves, too, and reaching out to others with “tape at home” opportunities, much like the production companies are doing. Professionally self-taping, like the voice actor who records in a home studio, has grown from a “nice to have” capability to practically a necessity, thanks to the quarantine restrictions. And as in the voice over world, some markets are way ahead of the game than others. Self-taped auditions have been used predominantly in the Southeast and other markets for 5-10 years, which gives actors in these regions a practical and technical advantage over those in Los Angeles and New York, who predominantly have been auditioning in person. LA and NY actors are now scrambling to catch up, as the trend for the foreseeable future is the self-taped audition. This mirrors a similar situation in voice over. LA and NY voice actors are accustomed to traveling to recording studios, whereas most voice actors in other markets have been working out of professional-quality home studios for years, and have the equipment and technical skills to be their own audio engineers (to a certain degree). With the quarantine, some of the rules for recording self-taped videos have been relaxed. Before, actors in home studios needed scene partners to be physically present; casting directors frowned upon a remote voice over a cell phone. Now, in the time of Covid 19, actors are reading scenes with each other via video (cell phones and tablets being the most popular) to give the auditioning actor a person – and a real eyeline - to play off of … and casting directors are fine with the adaptation. Everyone understands the limits of social distancing and supports the innovative ways that people are finding ways to practice their craft and ply their trade. But one thing hasn’t changed: don’t even think of recording an audition (unless it’s a monologue) without a scene partner. It’s still not acceptable to pre-record the other character’s lines and tape your audition by yourself, by playing off your own recorded voice. If Covid 19 provides us with anything remotely positive, it’s that these innovative digital work-arounds allow everyone to appreciate that we are all human and that we can laugh at – and tolerate - the little life interruptions that we wouldn’t have had the patience for earlier. Children unexpectedly burst into view, the neighbor’s lawnmower noisily springs to life, even the occasional background toilet flushes … we’re all in this together. And we can all make jokes about whether the presenter on Zoom is wearing only boxers below his collared shirt. (Hey, sometimes he stands up to show us we’re right!) Just remember, though, if you’re going to turn yourself into a talking potato on your next Zoom meeting, be sure to know how to change yourself back. 

Finding Your Place on the Spectrum There are many fine lines that we have to carefully navigate. The fine line between assertiveness and aggression. The fine line between speaking one’s mind and respecting “political correctness.” And now, due to the Coronavirus and our valid concerns on how to best contain and defeat it, the entire world is walking with various degrees the fine line between security and independence. Nations look at the situation through their unique cultural lenses, staking their positions in accordance with their national characters and available medical information. Individuals, too, find their comfort levels by balancing past experience with new information, emotional fears with confidence in authority figures, and their need for security vs. personal independence. Arguably, the notion of security vs. independence can be defined on a political level: government providing a certain level of security (salary, health benefits, safety), as opposed to individualism and self-reliance. Politics is certainly weighing in on how best to manage this pandemic, with face masks (of all things!) emerging as the predominant symbol of this debate. People are sizing one another up rather quickly and jumping to conclusions based on the wearing or absence of the face mask, whether they’re worn while grocery shopping, walking in the neighborhood, or pumping gas. The subject is hard to avoid while living and working in a major city like Atlanta. Recently, my family and I were able to get away for a few days at the beach. It felt as if we had been given a pass to go on leave from military duty, to walk the hallways at school during classroom hours, to do something we normally wouldn’t have been allowed to enjoy. We were so glad to be able to celebrate our son’s college graduation in some small way! Due to Coronavirus, he had lost both his graduation ceremonies and a long-promised special family vacation. We couldn’t wait, not just for the much-needed change of scenery (we love our house, but enough is enough), but to see how far we could stretch our legs along the miles-long sandy beach and just get out of the pandemic mindset. Right away, I was struck by the wide-ranging attitudes on face masks by both locals and visitors. The locals, who’d been previously terrified at the prospect of losing much-needed business during their peak summer months, were delighted and relieved to see so many people flocking to their community. Their local government had lifted its ban on short-term rentals and business operations only a few weeks earlier. Almost all stores and restaurants were open, though with restrictions in place. The locals wore face masks while working at the grocery stores, restaurants, and in some of the shores. They followed the social distancing guidelines: Grocery stores managed the numbers of shoppers in the grocery stores and placed six foot markers in the check-out lines to delineate how far apart people should stand. Most restaurants offered take-out service only, though quite a few had expanded outside seating, and a handful offered limited inside seating. Most shops were open (I saw just one with a sign saying that it was open only by appointment), but they had varying requirements on the allowed number of shoppers in the store at any one time, wearing of masks, and use of hand sanitizer. Most visitors seemed very happy to be going about their days without masks, though I saw a preponderance of people wearing them in the grocery stores, far more than in any other place. Along with the masks was careful avoidance of fellow shoppers, caution in handling packaging, and methodical progression through the grocery aisles. It looked like a scene from any grocery store back home in Atlanta. But it was in stark contrast to visitor behavior everywhere else on the island. It was especially striking in one particularly large shopping district bordering a marina. I was amazed to see that the restaurants were filled to their social distancing-allowed capacities and that no one was wearing a mask. Did we enter an alternate universe where the pandemic had never happened? All around, not a mask could be seen - not in the shops, on the boats, or along the waterfront. OK, there was ONE shop that offered hand sanitizer and the older ladies behind the counter wore masks and seemed very nervous, but they tended to discourage shoppers with their worry and so were left alone. Which may have been what they wanted, though not what the shop owners had intended. The beaches were another area almost totally devoid of masks. Not terribly surprising. A few isolated individuals wore them or had them tucked under their chins, but they just looked out of place and a bit odd. People still gave each other plenty of distancing in setting up their beach umbrellas and chairs and in passing one another as they walked along the beach. I heard many visitors telling each other that they preferred deciding for themselves which risks to take, rather than following a litany of government rules designed to provide for their safety. I imagine that the beach visitors were a self-selected lot anyways; those who were more fearful or cautious of spreading/contracting Coronavirus stayed at home during the holiday weekend. The push-pull between groups who follow the government mandates and those who determine their personal risk levels will continue on for some time, but I predict pandemic masks will be a hot Halloween costume item, maybe not this year, but certainly in ones to come. And decades from now, when the kids who haven’t been born yet throw a “20’s theme” party, you can be sure that the masks will come out. For now, they’re the signature emblem of our troubled times.

A Process for Getting It Right the First Time Back in the day, when I donned my “power” business suit for work, I had a long-running assignment that I affectionately referred to as “knocking heads together.” In retrospect, it was pretty good training for my future role as a mom. Officially, though, it was a workshop process called Joint Application Design (JAD), used to collect business requirements early in the development cycle while creating a new information system for a company. At the time, I was one of the first trained JAD moderators (now called facilitators) in the U.S., first for Texas Instruments and later for IBM, and led workshops across the US and in Europe. I loved it. It was a wonderful opportunity to learn about different industries, how they operated, and how they were going about modernizing to become more competitive in their markets. As a moderator, I would spend one or two days touring their facilities, interviewing the executives of the departments who would be using the new system, and setting expectations for the process and end results. I met interesting people at all stages of their careers and in many different fields, and gained an appreciation for all the moving parts involved in developing a product and bringing it to market. JAD is a method of including key end-users in the design and development process of a new enterprise-wide computer system. The idea is to “get the job done right the first time” by involving these future users of the system right from the start, so that the end result addresses their needs and is more satisfactory to the client company. This gives the client autonomy throughout the process, creates buy-in and support of the finished product, and delivers a system that helps them do their jobs as efficiently as possible. JAD has been used for implementing new systems, enhancing existing ones, converting old system, and purchasing new ones. The process includes representatives from every affected department who deeply understand the major job functions within their departments and what is required from other areas of the company so that they can most efficiently do their jobs. For example, when Texas Instruments was designing an enterprise-wide system for the manufacturing of their silicon chips, knowledgeable representatives came from TI’s engineering, inventory, customer service, operations, financial departments, and of course, information systems, who would be implementing the results from the JAD workshop. The IT representative provided technical advice and guidance, so that the JAD team would develop logical models and specifications to build the prototype of the end result. I won’t go into the full methodology, but suffice it to say that the JAD workshop required a group of busy departmental experts to dedicate themselves to several days of intense discussion and negotiation with one another. And sometimes personalities were at odds with one another. This is where the “knocking heads together” reference comes in, as not everyone was 100% cooperative and focused on the end result. It was my job as the workshop facilitator to keep the process flowing, to moderate the factions and keep the peace, so that we could deliver a workable prototype design that all participants could agree on. Mostly that was achieved by reminding everyone that we all had a common purpose. And a deadline. I learned many things from my experience as a workshop facilitator that I’ve brought over into my voice over business. While the element of “knocking heads together” isn’t one of them – let’s file that one under useful parenting skills instead – here’s my list of the main take-aways, which can be applied to any business: A common goal A well-defined budget and time frame Requirements spelled out before any work is begun Clear and consistent communications Documented work flow Agreed upon result A common goal. The clients and I both know what we want: high quality voiceover audio that will help sell their product, promote their message, instruct their employees, entertain their customers, help their communities, or whatever else the clients are trying to do. A well-defined budget and time frame. Before a voice over job is accepted, the client and I have agreed on a rate and a deadline for my work (if it’s not recorded during a live, client-directed session). No surprises, no disappointments, although I often will submit the finished audio files well before the client needs them. Requirements that are spelled out succinctly before any work is begun. Before I turn on my microphone to record or connect for a directed session, I make sure that I understand exactly what my clients need. If I’m not certain, I ask in advance, so as not to waste their time delivering what I think they want instead of what they are expecting. That includes the type of read (is it friendly and conversational or more authoritative?), number of alternate reads, length of recording, labeling naming convention, file and delivery specs, and so on, including any contract requirements, usage, invoicing and payment, or the signing of any non-disclosure agreements. There may be only two or three of us, rather than a whole room of department heads battling for what they want, but the principle remains the same: understand what the others require from me and know what I need in turn to get the job done for them. Clear and consistent communications. To ensure that client requirements are met, you cannot be afraid to ask for clarification, whether that’s for guidance on pronunciation, understanding their terms for delivering voice over files, or anything else related to the job. Very few clients balk at answering reasonable questions that help talent deliver what they were hired to provide. Documented work flow. If I’m recording live during a client-directed session, I will keep track of each take in two ways: I’ll note on a physical paper the number and description of each take and I’ll include markers within the voice over recording to delineate each take. If I’m delivering finished audio files, I’ll keep both the finished (and processed, if that’s what the client wants) .mp3 file and the working, unprocessed .wav file in my computer’s client folder, should the client request changes or corrections later on. Agreed upon result. Before submitting any work that I have recorded at home, I always check the recordings to be certain that they are clean, clear, free of mistakes, and to the client’s specs. I like to follow up with the client afterwards, just to confirm that they have received what they need and that they’re satisfied with the work. There’s no cost to the client for changes due to my mistakes (mispronunciation, for example), or for any little tweaks that they need to make after hearing the recordings. While on the surface, voice actor seems a far cry from JAD moderator, there are quite a few things the two careers hold in common. Professionalism from start to finish. Organization and teamwork. Communications. Client-focused results. Top notch customer service. Both are businesses that seek to serve individual and corporate clients by helping them achieve their goals. And I consider myself most fortunate to have thoroughly enjoyed both. Though I’m much happier now that I no longer need to wear a business suit every day to work.

Voice Over Techniques to Enhance On-Camera Performance Beginning voiceover students are taught to “lift the copy off the page.” Likewise, beginning stage/TV/film actors work to “bring the script to life.” The idea is pretty much the same for both VO and on-camera: to create believable characters who seem to the audience to be experiencing events as they unfold, moment by moment. I am both a voice and TV/film actor and have been consistently taking classes in each for about the same amount of time. While outwardly the work may seem quite different – on-camera classes focus on script analysis and performance in front of the camera, and voice over classes work on tone and character behind the microphone – each develops the student to become a compelling story teller. They teach the techniques unique to their medium (visual vs. auditory), but share a common acting foundation. And in my experience, that provides a wonderful bit of cross-training! Many voice over instructors, in fact, advise their students to study both acting and improvisation. Acting, because it teaches the process of creating and developing a character and placing that character in a specific place, time, and circumstance. The Meisner technique , in particular, trains the actor to be “in the moment” and let the words spoken by the other actors affect him as if he were hearing them for the very first time. Improvisation strengthens the imagination and the ability to play with the material, helping the actor to discover something new each time a scene is rehearsed or performed, so that it always seems fresh and alive to the audience. I’ve studied improv at several studios, including Second City in Chicago, and heartily agree that it’s invaluable! Not to mention a great deal of fun, too. Many voice talents would agree that acting and improvisation training go a long way in helping the voice actor create interesting, unique characters to enliven many types of copy. The reverse – teaching voice over techniques to on-camera actors - doesn’t seem to happen quite so much. Yes, some acting academies offer voice instruction, but I think they’re more the exception. Aside from teaching vocal warmups and encouraging acting students to learn how to do accents, not many techniques taught to VO students seem to cross over into acting classes. That’s too bad, because I’ve found that my voice work greatly informs my on-camera performances. It especially helps me out when find myself in a rut or when I’m trying to break free from old habits that are holding me back. Most often, it helps me see things from a different perspective, so that I can bring more to my on-camera work. Here are a few tips that I’ve brought over from the VO world that I’ve found to be most helpful in my work in film and television: When less is more . Film and TV actors know to keep their reactions small (unless perhaps they’re in a broad comedy), since the camera provides a tight focus on facial expressions. I’ve had to work at this, since I’m naturally very expressive and a little bit of Laura can go a long way on-camera. I’ve found that keeping the VO conversational read in mind has helped me to “dial it down.” Just as in voice over, the conversational read used on-camera is relaxed, often quieter than other tones, and associated with an approachable, believable persona on screen. It’s often a friendly voice, which most audiences appreciate and therefore are more likely to absorb the message or story being told. When I decide on the nuances or need to quickly settle into a character . Acting classes teach students to imagine that the scripted scene is just a fragment of the character’s life. The job of the actor to create a complete character with back story, hopes and dreams, and personality quirks, just like any real human being. This character exists and is busy living a life before entering the scripted scene, and (unless the character dies in that scene) continues on afterwards. Script analysis teaches actors to think about those moments before (and after) the scene itself and to imagine what the character may be thinking, feeling, and doing as he/she enters the scene. I’ve found that voice over helps to overlay the character with additional qualities: what’s the sound of her voice? What’s her mood, as relayed vocally? Are there certain regionalisms or quirks that add to her character? What is she saying just prior to beginning the script? Additionally, adding a realistic lead-in phrase helps me launch into the character. This is a technique that VO coaches suggest: start off with an improvised phrase that leads into the script, one that makes sense to the character and helps make the scripted copy sound natural and real, like the continuation of a thought. When recording, I would delete this improvised intro before submitting the audition or final audio file; it’s just a tool to help me deliver the lines as naturally as possible. With an on-camera script, I’d give myself a similar realistic lead-in conversation or action before the director calls “action!” to shift into the character’s mindset and physicality. Acting teachers call this a “moment before.” Voice over training, in my experience, provides a solid technique to help move this script analysis tool into practice. When I’m asked to provide different takes on a scene or for an audition . On-camera actors are taught to make definitive choices: what their characters want to achieve in each scene or in the overall story, what they want from the other characters and how they go about getting what they want. Often for an audition or during a shoot, the actor will be asked to provide different takes, or choices, on the scene. For example, in a scene with one other character, the actor may choose to do one take as manipulative and another one as helpful. Same lines, different motivation or attitude. I’ve found my VO work useful in being able to apply different types of reads (normally applied to commercial copy) as my choices. In an acting class recently where I was asked to give three different reads in rapid succession without prior preparation, I pulled out my three favorite VO tones: friendly conversational, business-minded authoritative, and the smartass sarcastic attitude. The result: three totally different takes on the scene. Other options include different voice pitches and tempos to present different personalities, like bold and direct or shy and hesitant. The VO technique of giving a line the ABC treatment (saying the line three different ways in rapid succession) is also great practice for making varied interesting choices on camera. When the other actors aren’t giving much to the scene . On film and TV, the audience wants to see a dynamic relationship taking place between two or more characters. It can be playfulness. Or intimacy. Or friction. Or downright conflict. As long as it’s SOMETHING. Otherwise, it’s just plain boring and the audience will lose interest and move on. So the actors must really connect and work off each other, ideally giving each other what they need to give their most to the scene, and in doing so, receive that energy back in kind. Acting is the dynamic transfer of energy between characters and it’s always moving and transforming the characters as the story plays out. Voice over work, in comparison, is almost always done in isolation. One voice actor alone in a booth, whether that’s in a professional recording studio or in a converted walk-in closet at home. Without a scene partner, a set, hair and makeup team, costumes, or props. Everything takes place in the imagination and, at the time of the recording, the actor’s voice creates the story’s entire world. A tall order, and yet the ability to use the imagination to this extent gives the versatile actor so much more to work with, especially when delivering a monologue on camera, in scenes with inexperienced actors, or when working with lazy scene partners who aren’t trying to connect and provide little to work off from. Creating a believable character who “brings the script to life” and convincingly “lifts the copy off the page” takes thought, preparation, and a toolkit of ideas to trot out and play with to see what fits. Voice over provides a useful array of techniques that translate well to the on-camera world. Who knows? It can be the “secret sauce” that helps the actor nail the audition or book a most memorable character.

Toasting a Maskless Tomorrow Who WAS that masked man? No disrespect, Zorro, but you’re not alone. These days, it could be anyone. And it usually is. Except for the youngest kids - with few exceptions, they don’t wear masks. (Most of them have no clue who Zorro is, either.) Wearing masks has become a sign of consideration and respect for others … or over-the-top fear-mongering, depending upon whom you ask. There are plain surgical masks, handmade colorful and patterned masks, and designer masks made from high-end clothing lines. I haven’t yet seen masks patterned like they those of comic superheroes’, but I’m sure they’re out there somewhere. Likewise for masks emblazoned with popular sayings, famous quotes, or personal opinion, much like you’d see on a t-shirt. Perhaps enterprising mask-makers just haven’t gone to quite that much trouble, hoping to see an end to this pandemic and thus the market for masks. So what then, when the pandemic finally wanes, businesses fully re-open, “normal” everyday routines are resurrected, and we can literally show our faces again? When the last state lifts its final restrictions, I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a national celebration to commemorate our victory over this biological enemy. And what better way than to torch its symbol? The mask is stifling, especially in the summer heat and humidity, and I can’t imagine anyone missing having to wear it. All told, statistically at least half of us absolutely despise wearing them. I can just envision mask-burning parties, much like the early feminists of the late 1960s held their bra-burning protests. When the day of the Great Unmasking arrives, I wonder, will desserts be temporarily renamed in its honor? Mask Flambé. Mask à la Mode. Mask-arpone, anyone? For one day, will schools refer to arithmetic as Mask-amatics, much like March 14 is dubbed Pi Day? (For those out of the loop, pi is a mathematical constant with practically an infinite series of numbers abbreviated to 3.14.) And will there be Un-masquerade parties to mark the event? I have to think that Halloween will have a unique spin this year, too, assuming that we’re well out of lockdown by then. I don’t know about you, but I’d find the traditional ghost, goblin, witch, monster, and vampire yelling “Trick or Treat!” so much more reassuring than seeing kids dressed up as the coronavirus, its victims, or everyday people wearing masks. Well, I assume the ones just wearing the masks will be the teenagers who are really too old to be out trick-or-treating. Yup, the same ones who’ve always walked door to door without a costume, carrying pillow cases to collect candy. Some things never change (sigh). Yes, 2020 will definitely go down as an “interesting” year. And it’s only half over. Considering what we’ve all been going through, a mask bonfire may be just the thing to ring in a new year, come January 1, 2021. Though the darn things may come in handy if we end up with some bitter cold weather next winter.