Recording international voiceovers can feel like a daunting task, especially when you’re unfamiliar with a foreign language. But don’t worry. We’ve got you covered.
Here are four workflow techniques that are guaranteed to make your next international voiceover session a langlauf in the park.
1) Line numbers
Navigating a script can be tricky enough, especially when dealing with long format reads. Throw in the additional headache of an unfamiliar language and the whole experience can feel overwhelming.
Line numbers help cut out all the unnecessary page turning. Want the talent to re-read a line? Just call out the line number and save yourself the embarrassment of pronouncing that very long French word you always struggle with. You don’t need to be a multilinguist.
2) Guide Voice – Tone Reference
Guide VO’s are useful for several reasons.
Firstly, they provide a tonal reference for the talent, allowing them to hear the speed and style of delivery that you’re looking to achieve. This is far more effective than trying to describe a performance.
Imagine trying to describe a colour to a decorator. There’s too much guess work. Too much variability. So what do you do? You show them a colour palette. Apply this same philosophy in your voiceover sessions. Use the guide VO as a colour palette for the talent to work with.
What’s more, you’ll achieve a more consistent tone of voice across a multilingual campaign, which helps in building brand values (cue the celebrations from the marketing department!)
3) Guide Voice – Timing Reference
The second benefit to using a guide VO is timing.
Languages vary in length, which can present an issue when re-recording voiceover to a film that was initially cut to an English dub.
Playing the English guide VO at a low volume underneath the talent as they record gives them a timing reference. That way, you commit to getting the sync right at the source, rather than nudging the voiceover around in the edit after the session.
In order to utilise this workflow, we recommend supplying splits to your sound engineer before the session (Music, SFX & Guide VO), so they can create a custom headphone mix for the talent.
4) Have A Native Speaker In The Session
Ok… so this tip is fairly self-explanatory. But shouldn’t be overlooked.
Guiding the talent in their native language leads to more effective feedback implementation. It reduces the chance of miscommunication and creates a comfortable and familiar environment for the voice artist so they can deliver the best performance.
Unless you’re a super genius who can speak every language known to man, you’re going to need a native speaker in the session to help with nuances in pronunciation and tone whilst also acting as a point of sign-off.
So there you have it. Four simple, effective workflows that will save you time, money and hassel in your next international voiceover session.
We really should be charging you for this wisdom!
