VO-BB - 19 YEARS OLD!

[Mike Harrison]

Occasionally, I edit eLearning narration files for a friend. My feeling on this topic is that narration that's been edited should never sound like it's been edited. We should not hear cuts in the middle of breaths, a file should not begin or end in the middle of a breath, pickup edits should not be noticeable because of a sudden increase in energy/loudness, and anything containing a mystery noise should be fixed.

But is that old school thinking? Are these things now considered acceptable to some clients' ears? Do we reduce the quality by speeding through editing to save money?

Tell me it isn't so.
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Mike
Male Voice Over Talent
I have taken leave of my sensors.

[Deirdre]

Man, I've never heard of that being OK.

If the bar has dropped that far, that's pretty grim.
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DBCooperVO.com

[Frank F]

[Drew]

There's no excuse for sloppy editing.
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www.voiceoverdrew.com
Skype: andrew.hadwal1
Although I have a full head of hair, I'm quite ribald.

[Chuck Davis]

+1 to all that's been said above. Anything less is amateur.
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Wicked huge.....in India.
www.chuckdaviscreative.com

[Scott Pollak]

Anything worth doing, is worth doing right, and to the best of your ability.
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Scott R. Pollak
Clients include Pandora, NPR Atlanta, Wells Fargo, Cisco, Humana, Publix, UPS, AT&T, HP, Xerox and more.

www.voicebyscott.com

[Mike Harrison]

Thanks, folks.

Let me clarify a bit. My VO friend, whose voice quality/delivery style, skill with tedious words, and ability to handle lengthy material without wavering is truly remarkable, has been doing work for a few companies producing the material for some global brands.

What's puzzling to me is that, apparently, neither the production company nor the end-user client have ever questioned the quality (or lack thereof) of the editing.

My VO friend, as far as I know, does not like to or otherwise prefers not to edit. I believe I've been editing most jobs, and someone else steps in when I'm not available. My editing is completely unnoticeable because I began recording and editing my own voice at age 14. For that reason, and because I also happen to be very adept with computers and software, I get results quickly. However, because I notice and address things that others for whatever reason don't, yes... it often requires more time.

So, my time spent and subsequent invoice amount can be, apparently, considerably higher than that of the other editor. Yet, while both the production companies and end-user clients have accepted jobs that I've edited and jobs edited by the other person, my quandary is that I am unable to justify my time and cost versus that of the other, 'faster' editor.

When the 'that's good enough' mindset is at work, there's no way to defend true quality. It seems, if I want to continue editing for my friend, I will have to lower my standards.

And, unfortunately, the only thing that will help my case is if someone at some point rejects the work of the other person.
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Mike
Male Voice Over Talent
I have taken leave of my sensors.

[Bruce]

I understand your distress. But we live in a world where some producers think jerky computerized voicing is fine for long form narration, so jerky sounding live narration must be more than satisfactory in their books. The take the money and run, final user be damned philosophy.

It sounds like you're destined to make less money in the future from this source by either accepting a lower rate, or quitting and get no rate. No fun. My sincere condolences.

Wait! Maybe you could find a quality editor in Asia to do it for you for one fifth the price and you keep the difference. That way you're a job creator!!

B
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VO-BB Member #31 Enlisted June, 2005

I'm not a Zoo, but over the years I've played one on radio/TV. .

[Bish]

I'm up to double-figures with my audiobook narrations... all self-edited. Yes, it's tedious, but I certainly agree that "good enough" is NOT good enough! Partial breath noises, unnatural quick cuts, clicks, bangs etc. are not allowable in my books. OK... I'll admit that sometimes I lose all objectivity with drop-ins and let something go that I'm finding impossible to match... only to be told later (when I've asked for an opinion from a family member) What drop-in? I'm sure some get through that aren't perfect... but to aim lower is not the way to approach it. There is no doubt that errors can (and will) creep in during a ten-hour narration, subsequent editing, and QC... but having a target rate of anything other than zero is starting from the wrong position.
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

[heyguido]

To paraphrase our board's unofficial motto.... There's another way?
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Don Brookshire
"Wait.... They wanna PAY me for this?"

[Frank F]

Stand up for quality. Just because the current "acceptable" lower standard is allowed to pass by the VO, the other production company, and the publisher does not mean you have to lower your standards or your fee, Mike. The results of a poor quality production will reveal themselves in the listener reviews and purchases.

Listeners DO notice quality, despite what a publisher might think. Several months ago I auditioned for an audiobook and was turned down; as the "winner" was quicker with editing. Now I am fairly fast and extremely attentive to detail, but that did not matter to the publisher. Fast forward to Thursday of this past week. I have been offered to read the book AND edit - with a substantial raise in fees. Apparently the book has been released and sold 55 copies in three months.

Professional reviews had comments such as: "it must have been edited by a untrained monkey" or "The read was OK, but the it sounded wrong with lots of mistakes and loud breaths which were not caught in the editing of the audio".

Oh, I am NOT going to read and edit the book as they desire it to be shelf ready in two weeks. Maybe you would like the gig Bish?! Good luck.

Frank F
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Be thankful for the bad things in life. They opened your eyes to the good things you weren't paying attention to before. email: thevoice@usa.com

[Bish]

Now, I never said I enjoyed editing

Two weeks? I think I should resurrect my old signature line: I love deadlines. I like the whooshing sound they make as they fly by. - Douglas Adams
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Bish a.k.a. Bish
Smoke me a kipper... I'll be back for breakfast.
I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls... I will not feed the trolls.

[Deirdre]

[ccpetersen]

<slight>

I've noticed in comparing production quality and editing values between U.S. and European projects that have come our way lately that the European producers do NOT always cut breaths out, particularly in long-form narrations. At least, this is true in several of the projects that I've recently received that we may be translating and renarrating for U.S. use. What they did was have the talent take *very* quiet breaths...

make if it what you will, and maybe this isn't always true, but it was striking that several projects from three different producers in two different countries did NOT edit breaths.

<end o' threadjack>
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Charter Member: Threadjackers Local 420

[Mike Harrison]

Thanks, everyone, for the great feedback. It helped to at least get some thinking going on the client's end.

Gotta start somewhere.
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Mike
Male Voice Over Talent
I have taken leave of my sensors.