2014 Pendy Award - Best Actor in a Seminar Short

This was reasonably unexpected - it seems that I've won a 2014 Pendy Award for Best Actor in a Seminar Short, for my role as Richard O'Malley in "O'Malley's Media Storm".

We are taking questions from the audience... uh, yes? 

"What the heck is a 'Pendy Award'?"

Great question!  I hadn't actually heard of them before November of this year.  They are annual awards from Pendant Audio - an audio production group which was formed way back in 2004 dedicated to the creation of radio dramas in the style of radio serials from the Golden Age of Radio in the 1930's and 40s'.  They solicit audio scripts, post casting calls for voice actors, and through the magic of elves and computers, pull it all together on a regular basis. They have several shows, shorts and longer-form projects which can be found on their SHOWS page.  Next question... 

"What's a 'radio'?"

Really?  You're going with that?  Ok.  Yeah, a radio is like the internet without pictures?  Naaahhh... It's like streaming audio, except once upon a time, humans used to choose what got played.  And before that, they actually performed live at specific times, and you had to listen then or you wouldn't hear it. Crazy, huh?  Those were the dramas and shows that everyone  kept up with.   Most of the early voice actors came from radio and vaudeville, their talents and characters honed by years of live performances and the glorious creative environment of working with other actors.  Folks like Mel Blanc, June Foray, Dawes Butler and a ton of other folks whose voices you would probably instantly recognize.  These folks are some of my heroes, and I love the idea that audio dramas are being actively produced.

"Can anyone just listen to these?"

Yep - they post them on the Shows Page I mentioned earlier, and they have a regular podcast you can subscribe to (and I gotta put in a quick plug for Instacast here.  Been using it on the phone - iOS is free - and it's pretty solid!) 

"What kind of stuff do they do?"

It really ranges quite a bit - their most ambitious project has been "The Phantom Canyon" (which includes the very talented Lea Gulino among the cast).  

"And what exactly did you do?" 

I played Richard O'Malley, an overblown television host who has an odd and interesting guest on his show "O'Malley's Media Storm".  It was part of the "Seminar - Original Anthology Show" which features short plays and other projects "heard through the lens of lessons in a futuristic post-apocalypse..."  So, it's kind of a unique venue...  This project appeared in Episode Number 59, released in October of 2014.  My bit starts right around 8 minutes.

A big thanks to the folks at Pendant Audio, and everyone who had a part in making this happen!

Samsung Developer Conference Keynote - Voice of the Body

I was really happy to discover a this video:

Voice of The Body 2.0 from ATOMIC D on Vimeo.

It was from a recent project where I provided the voice.  While working,  it was not clear where the video would be used. But, it turned out that this was the video presented to the Samsun Developer Conference as the keynote.  Even though I was concentrating on the script during the time I was behind the microphone, it was obvious that the visuals and production quality was very high.

Kudos to the team at Atomic D!  Very nice work.

Levi's Talking Scoreboard Radio Spots

This project was a hoot -  had great fun coming up with the voice for the new Levi's Stadium scoreboard, who has questions about things...

Audio for the radio ads for the new Levi's Stadium, featuring the Levi's Talking Scoreboard.

Behind the Scenes: ADR with Disney Audio Legend Doc Kane

Wonderful behind-the-scenes glimpse into the world of ADR - here noted engineer/ADR artist Doc Kane talks about the process and techniques of recording the vocals and voice tracks which are laid into films and animations.



Thanks to Sirenetta Leoni's "Inside Voiceover" for passing along this engaging video!

"I Know That Voice" Documentary Premieres in LA Tonight

Sadly, I'll be a few hundred miles away from this, but wishing I was there to see my heroes, friends and mentors share their insights, opinions and more than a few characters in "I Know That Voice" - a documentary by Lawrence Shapiro.



Tom Kenny, Charlie Adler, the amazing June Foray, Billy West, John DiMaggio, Andrea Romano, Maurice LaMarche, Rob Paulsen and many many more...

Wider distribution should happen through December and into January, 2014, and you can order the DVD at http://www.iknowthatvoice.com

More info:
http://www.animationmagazine.net/events/know-voice-doc-premiere-nov-6/

Dave Fennoy "In the Booth With Adam & Erik" #5

Video Game News - they give a shout-out to the talented Cissy Jones-Lin - New segment "In the Director's Chair" with the always awesome Julian Kwasneski and the big interview with the inspiring and amazing Dave Fennoy - voice of Lee Everett in "The Walking Dead" as well as "the Hulu Guy".  Enjoy!

Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Baseball Retro Newscaster Character

Got to use on of my favorite characters for this Yahoo! Sports Fantasy Baseball ad - my Retro Newsreel Announcer!  Great and creative team to work with in the production of this. 



And thanks too to Mr. Thom Pinto, who gave me the feedback to "put a bow tie on him!" in a workshop once upon a time.

Thom Pinto – Smithsonian Candy Store & Jack Nicolson - LTVO! Interview Pt 3

Thom Pinto – Smithsonian Candy Store & Jack Nicholson

We get the third installment of this enjoyable interview with VO and Voiceactor Teaching legend Thom Pinto -

"What do the Smithsonian and Jack Nicolson have in common? Who is Alison Krauss or Marty?  Learn the answers as Thom Pinto discusses voice-over TV narration for documentaries, aka the ‘serious read’ and the human side. Find out how have ‘how-to’ videos changed? How do you balance the budget as an entrepreneur? A BIG question – Do you have to live in LA? And one more ‘celebrity’ influence on the VO jobs…"

Thom Pinto, a Commercial, Promo and Documentary voice actor since the early 80s, has national campaigns including Pacific Life, NetZero, Honda Motorcycles, Chevron and Staples.  He’s doing promos for every major network and is currently heard daily on the CBS Evening News as well as affiliates across the country.  Thom’s narration credits run the gamut of serious documentaries on the History Channel and Smithsonian network to lighter projects for the Travel Channel.
Learn more at www.thompinto.com and on Facebook.

Love That VoiceOver is an internet radio show unveiling the personalities and projects behind the mic, with your fun loving host LoveThatRebecca, aka Rebecca Michaels Haugh.  Every week it's a new interview with a fresh perspective on the art and artistry behind the voice-over microphone....
Follow on Twitter @LoveThatVO

April = Autism Awareness Month - Voices for Autism 2013

Find out more information about Autism at http://autismspeaks.org and http://http://www.autism-society.org/ and don't forget to LIGHT IT UP BLUE with blue clothing and/or blue porch lights!

The producers of this video send a VERY SPECIAL THANKS TO:

DINO ANDRADE
STEVE BLUM
GARRY CHALK
MAILE FLANAGAN
TOM KANE
DAVID KAYE
TANIA GUNADI
KYLE HEBERT
DAVID SOBOLOV
LEE TOCKAR
DANIELLE MCRAE
ZUREK
STEVE VALLO
OTIS JURY
NANCY KASZERMAN
PETER O'CONNELL
SARIANN MANACO
ASIA MATTU
JAMES FERRERO
TED MCALEER
DAVID STONE
CONNIE MUSTANG
LAURA BEDNARSKI
JEN KROMPEL
DAVE DEANDREA
DEB COLOMA
DANA ABRAM

Oracle Endeca - "Changing the Game"

Finding this video was kind of driving me crazy, as I could see the link on the Oracle site for a few months (this recorded back November), but it wouldn't work (though the other video recorded that day with the talented Lara Asmundson seemed to work fine).  While poking around the site today figured out that they had added a gap in the video play string in the page code (and also found another page where it served up without a problem).  Gaps don't play nice in code...  Of course, it was about that time that I realized had also been posted directly to youtube. 



I'm the guy who speaks second, and has the info about how Oracle Endeca Information Discovery helped make things work so well.  My "boss" in this was read by Bob Makohin. 

(The corrected string on the Oracle site is here.)

Love That Voiceover! Thom Pinto Interview - Pt 2

I've been lucky to have trained with Thom Pinto over the years. It's always a pleasure to hear his perspective on the industry, technology and talent. His love for the craft and attention to detail always comes through.

Thom Pinto – "Seedy Hollywood to Ninja Turtles" 

from Rebecca's announcement:

"Rejoin Thom and Rebecca as they pick up from last time… He takes us from the Hawks Recording studio in the seedy part of Hollywood to new paths as his VO career dominated running a commercial studio. Follow Thom from the early 90’s to present, witness the shift from external studios to home studios and how other busy industry leaders like Rob Paulsen and Don Lafontaine led that very shift which now creates a conundrum for some of the profession even now… Some producers don’t like it! Learn Thom’s pointers about camaraderie, spontaneity, self-direction and keeping himself fresh – Great tips! And hear Thom reflect on his numerous credits, selecting the most notable including some hilarious guest appearances on Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles. Finally, gain his insights from the Pinto Soapbox – Breaking VO myths, Ultra Marketing, Fostering Relationships, Managing Delicate Balances, How Agents Really Help and VO 2.0, Finding Your Niche, Celebrity VO and the fate of the ‘middle class’ VO."
Learn more about Thom at www.thompinto.com

Love That VoiceOver is a podcast showcasing in-depth interviews unveiling the personalities and projects behind the mic, with your fun loving host LoveThatRebecca, aka Rebecca Michaels Haugh. Every week it's a new interview with a fresh perspective on the art and artistry behind the microphone....
Follow Love that VoiceOver on Twitter @LoveThatVO

Thom Pinto – Seedy Hollywood to Ninja Turtles - LoveThat VO blogtalkradio.com

Part 2!! Rejoin Thom and Rebecca as we pick up from last time… Thom takes us from his seedy Hollywood Hawks Recording studio to new paths as his VO career dominated over the studio. Follow Thom from the early 90's to present,...

And God Made a Voice Actor

The talented Cissy Jones tipped this my way via the FBook.  It's one of those things which is probably only completely-laugh-out-loud funny if you are in this crazy, wonderful business.  There are a bunch of wild fabrications and complete truths herein.  I leave it to you to decided which are which.

(And yeah, it does turn out to be pushing the VO Conference in Atlanta, which I shan't be attending nor do I have a specific opinion about...)

Anyway, enjoy!

Lea Guilino's Floating Studio Newsreel

What a great way to start the week - enjoying fellow voice actor Lea Guilino's retro newsreel coverage of her floating studio!



Another of the supremely talented and creative voice over talents located here in the San Francisco Bay Area. 

Sim City Advance Looks At March Delivery!

With EA's recent closed beta preview, it looks like they are in the home stretch for releasing the new SimCity experience.  I've seen a few "real-time" videos of the beta play and it looks pretty impressive - with a gorgeous look and compelling detail.

Here's a quick promo of the city expansion packs and basic setup -


Reviews have already popped up as well - games.com and mashable, for example -  most of the folks seem to have spent their weekends looping back to the limited-to-one-hour beta and going through things again.  Certainly a testament to the quality of this upcoming release.

Can't wait to see it myself!

Autodesk Vault Professional - "Why Go Pro?"

Autodesk Vault Software Overview Video

This one was kick to work on - I actually got to see the "finished" whiteboard which was used on the project. That was an impressive piece of felt tipped artwork!



The production team was excellent to work with and the clients had a good sense of where they wanted to be in terms of tone - a good balance between being knowledgeable, warm and easy to relate to. The focus here was on providing information to folks who had a good grasp of the subject matter already - no need to "sell" anyone. Just help them understand how the new Vault software would break down barriers and let everyone communicate directly.

Mel Blanc Radio Interview - 1971

For many people in voice acting, Mel Blanc is one of the nudges of how we got there. Of course, with Mel's characters, "nudge" might not be quite as accurate as "frying pan to the face"... But, the characters that he voiced (as well as those of Dawes Butler) surrounded me growing up, and still provide inspiration and - at times - moral guidance.

Big tip o' the mouse to Sirenetta Leoni over at Inside Voiceover, who shared this wonderful interview with Mel Blanc over at Speaking of Radio.

FireEye.com: The New Threat Landscape

The fine folks at FireEye.com have rolled out their new site upgrade - I'm providing voice for the video "The New Threat Landscape - Are You Protected?" - just go to FireEye.com and click on "Watch The Video" link (there's a cycling display of three options right now on the main screen - just look for the one which gives the video option).




Direct link to the video:
http://www.fireeye.com/resources/videos/two-min-intro.ogv

Me talking to, uh...Me

One of the projects I've been working on has been a series of product videos for Hitachi. They've been rolling out some IT Operational Analysis software for the US market. If I have the specifics correct, the animations were done for the Asian/Japan market originally, and have been adapted for use in English-speaking markets.

I was lucky enough to land the role of Cary, the IT Manager, who, as the episodes continued, ended up talking with his future self (or past self, depending upon your perspective...). So, in the third of the series, I got to have a dialog with myself:



This has been a fun project, and there should be another episode available before too long.

The other two are here:
Episode 1 - Hitachi IT Operations Analyzer - About Analyzer

Episode 2 - Hitachi IT Operations Analyzer - Simplified Network View

Thanks for the votes so far!

Had a couple of projects I was working on and hadn't checked the tally with the Neil Gaiman "American Gods" audiobook contest - there was a pretty nice jump in the past day or so!

Thanks to everyone who navigated through the registration page - which then jumps you to a land far, far away from my read page. I must say that the fine folks at bookperk.com might want to tidy up that unnecessary routing...

They have actually begun posting the leader board, and it reminds me a little of bicycle races from my past, where you look up to see the fast folks waaaay up the course. Fact is, I could use another 250 votes if I want to bridge up to the leaders.

The tendency would be to be a little disheartened by that - but honestly, I"m incredibly buoyed by the fact that I've received votes from more than just my wife and brother and sister. Thanks again to everyone who voted, and if you get the chance to do so again (you can vote once per day - hint, hint...), I would greatly appreciate it.