Looking for a Conversational Voice Over Style?

Guess which voice over tone is the most requested today...

Guessed?

The conversational voice.

This tone of voice has many other alias: real person, believable, not-salesly, genuine, natural, casual, people's voice...

No matter the adjective, everything seems to converge to a conversation voice nowadays, specially commercial voices.

At the same time, all those voice types we hear in conversational voice-overs are not the same.

They vary a lot in many parameters.

1. So what do they have in common?
2. In what are they different?
3. And how to get a conversational voice-over right from a voice talent?

Spoiler

This article clarifies that there's not one-size, fits-all conversational voiceover and suggests instructions on:

• how the artistic director can ask for a conversational VO in any language,
• how to make sure that the actor understands the instructions and implements the desired conversational vocal attributes that were requested, even if the director doesn't speak the voice talent's language.

Infinite Types of Conversation

There isn't only one kind of conversation in the real world. So why there would be one kind of conversational voice-over? That's why there isn't THE conversational voice-over.

Actually, conversational style is a considerably large range of natural, believable, authentic interactions that includes almost everything that's not on the theatrical or hard sell extreme nor on the monotone, robotic, withdrawn, flat replication of words.

Conversational is the new Convincible.

Imagine a couple having a conversation in a charming carioca Café, at the sunset, with jazz playing in the background.

Now, imagine a teacher having a conversation about art with a small group of 10 years-old students right before they go home for lunch.

Once more: imagine best friends on a Saturday night talking about the $500 Sephora make-up products they've just bought while they are going to the movies.

All those scenarios have more differences than similarities, yet we can derive some characteristics in common:

• the people are interacting, possibly asking and answering each another. They are talking to and with each other, not over or against each other.
• they are not following a script nor establishing a clear end for the interaction.
• they're not concerned about how, but why and what they are talking about.

So by analyzing real-life situations, it's clear that a conversational voice-over is about content and context, not about form.

3 Ways to Ask for a Conversational VO

1. CONTEXT: The fastest way to communicate you want a voice-over that sounds conversational is by giving context.

   If you are dealing with a professional actor or actress, I suggest you don't mention vocal attributes, at least yet.

   Probably they won't need it.

   Actors already know how a conversation sounds like, and if you are directing a talent in another language than yours, they know how to have a natural conversation in their mother language.

   Note A: If the voice talent is not yet proficient or lacks skills, it is possible that he or she won't know how to work with specific vocal parameters you might request.

   Note B: If you are not fluent in their language, you can look for cues on the performance.¹ So, in both cases, describe the scenario, the situation, and the context first. And give them a little time and space in front of the mic. And... listen, listen carefully for what they are presenting.

   Note C: Focus on the context. Say in which situation that copy takes place. And if you want to go further, you can give details about where, who, and when, but ideally not how. Saying "how" too early can break the gemstone instead of polishing it.

2. VOCAL PARAMETERS: Once you've listened to what the voice talent proposed in the first reads, and you've spotted opportunities to make it even more natural, now it's time to mention vocal attributes - only if the professional is profficient.

   If the talent is not proficient, or is a kid, for example, then context, abstractions, adjectives, and mimicking are few but effective tools to communicate vocal attributes without being too technical or hermetic. Having a native Brazilian linguist and voice over director as a bridge will make the whole difference in your project.

Well... It's still possible that you have a feeling that you're not getting anywhere with this artist: maybe the result is changing with your direction but it's still far from the expected or maybe the reads seem all the same and you're not getting any improvements take after take.

In this case, what's happening is that the VO doesn't sound like a conversation or like the conversation you have in mind.

One last attempt can be to instruct on body language.

3. BODY LANGUAGE: If you still don't have a conversational voice or a relaxed, natural style for your copy, I suggest working on posture, hands, neck's position, eye's energy... after all, it is an actor's job.

   If the session is a remote recording and you're not in the same room, ask for specific postures and recommend relaxing exercises to unblock the actor, if that's the case.

Golden tip: allow the use paralinguistic sounds and let the actor do some improvisation before actually "reading" the script. The better this improvisation and contextualization before going to the script, and the smoother the transition from the improvisation to the copy, the more natural and casual the read will be.

2 Take Home Insights

I've met directors, clients, and audio engineers that didn't manage to clarify why they're not pleased with the VO nor were they at ease to give clear, actionable feedback or request a specific modification.

Hence, they usually decided to suspend the project with the current actors in order to have a fresh start with other ones.

1. Consider another actor: If there was any artistic limitations or bad decisions in the casting stage, changing the actor can be the only way, but most of the time there are other options.

2. Don't give up: I know you can achieve exceptional results by supporting the voiceover talent to go that extra mile further for your project. Now you have a method to optimize your session and get the most out of the artist you are directing (online or offline). If you need assistance in the casting process or want a Brazilian director online in your session, count on us - conversational voice over is Amanda's expertise and most acclaimed style of voice over in the Brazilian market. Simply send us a message so we can start helping immediately.

_{¹ In this other article, we talk about how to fix conversational voiceover cues and parameters.}

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