Many thanks to today's guest blogger and VO peep Lynnette Baum, who shares some valuable insights on the importance (and benefits) of giving back to the Voice-over community!
by Lynnette Baum
www.the-right-writer.com
For example, many years ago I attended the Jackson Hole Documentary Film Festival. If I had listened to professionals in the field, I wouldn’t have attended, and how much I would have missed! The first thing I did was offer my services to help festival employees. This opened a door that saved me over $500, as a volunteer. During this event, I helped festival staff and attended classes. While rubbing shoulders with directors and editors, I enthusiastically passed out my voiceover tape and writer’s resume. I still recall what one well-known director said, while scanning my tape with a critical eye.
“Why do you want to do voiceovers for documentary films?” he asked, frowning. “You only get about $7000 each, with no residuals.”
Seven thousand? I thought. I’ll take seven thousand dollars for spending a few hours in a studio!
The upshot was that, after three days at the festival, I landed both a voiceover job and a scriptwriting job. This amazed the very professionals that would have told me not to attend. The resulting video sold well for over ten years at the Yellowstone National Park Gift Shop under the title, “Wild Babies of Yellowstone!”
All this, after hearing nothing but discouraging things, from the pros.
“You can’t succeed by going to this event,” one engineer had told me. “It will take directors at least three years to trust you enough to hire you!”
It took me three days…
In all my years in the voiceover industry, I’ve learned two things. 1) Give it away. Give away your talent, your support, your skills. As you do, you will not only develop a loyal cadre of people that will recommend you at every opportunity, but you will hone your talent. 2) Put enthusiasm in the driver’s seat. Never allow the discouraging platitudes of established professionals to puncture the dreams that lift you up.
Keep on showing up, to events, to festivals, to service projects. This will keep you in the public eye, as well as keep your name on the lips of the people that do the hiring for jobs you want on your resume.
About the Author:
Ambassador for the Southern California Writers Association, Lynnette Baum is an active member of the OC VO Peeps and an experienced voiceover talent, with 2 Golden Microphone Awards and 3 Silver Microphone Awards to her credit. A fulltime freelance PR writer, marketing consultant, ghostwriter and voiceover instructor, her stable of clients includes many elite companies along the Golden Coast, as well as authors from across the country. For more information please contact her at:
www.the-right-writer.com
949.654.3891
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