Well, it's finally here- the VOICE conference is officially in full swing- and what an event this is shaping up to be!
Let me start from the beginning of this amazing day...Since I was still on east coast time, I woke up around 5am and struggled to lay in bed until 7am. Just before 8am, my phone rang and it was my friend and fellow voice actor Caryn Clark. Since she is very close friends with Randy Thomas (voice of the Oscars, Emmys, Hooked on Phonics, The Insider, ET- and everything else you can think of!), she had been invited by Randy to visit the LA set of The Insider and ET. Caryn and I had made plans to tour LA today, so Caryn asked Randy if I could come along. She said yes!!
So, we arrived at Paramount Studios around 10am and went to the set to watch Randy record the voice over for that day's shows. It was an incredible process to watch. I learned a ton, and developed even more respect for Randy than I already had, which I didn't think possible! We had lunch on the lot, and then Randy took us to the new set of The Insider and ET over at the Studio City lot. While there, we met Kevin Frazier who couldn't have been nicer. It was a great day!
Once we got back to the Hyatt, we registered for VOICE. In the lobby we ran into September Day Leach, Terry Daniel, and Erik Shepard. I ran back to my hotel for a quick shower before the red carpet event.
The red carpet event began at 6pm. The first person I recognized was Beau Weaver as we arrived at about the same time. We chatted a bit, and then went downstairs to where the event was held. I saw Pat Fraley, Bob Bergen, Melissa Disney, Joe Cipriano, and old pals like Bobbin Beam, Julie Williams, Larry Wayne, Bob Souer (and his son Eric), Nina Baeza, Dave Courvosier, Gabby from Voice Hunter...honestly- this list can go on and on and on...it was nearly 3 hours of meeting, greeting, chatting, laughing, networking...and lots of other 'ings'. Really, it was so wonderful to see old friends, new friends, and soon to be friends!
When my feet could take no more, my long-time friend Kyle Hebert, Caryn, fellow anime voice actor John, and I went down to the XBar for some food (since they only serve apetizers, we ordered about 6-7 different ones to make a meal). Kyle and I told lots of stories from our days working together at Radio Disney, probably boring Caryn and John to pieces! It was a great cap off to a great evening.
However, even having met tons of people, I know there were many I missed- so I'm looking forward to the rest of the weekend and the chance to meet even more people!
As I stood outside waiting for my car at the end of the night, a guy asked me what I was in LA for. I told him a conference for voice actors. He asked me what I did for a living. I told him I was...a voice actor. He asked if he had heard my voice and I rattled off a small bit of my VO resume. He stood shaking his head, and finally said, "I really like the Simpsons". I told him I had recently won a contest for the best Lisa Simpson sound-a-like. As my rental Kia pulled up and stopped, I had to admit, "and yet clearly...that's nothing compared to being the real thing..."
So here's to a great weekend and making that one connection that earns me at least a rental Honda by VOICE 2009!
Friday, August 8, 2008
Wednesday, August 6, 2008
VOICE 2008- Day Zero
Since VOICE doesn't officially begin until tomorrow, I decided to label this 'Day Zero' as it is my first day of this trip.
It began at 5:45am EDT when I woke up and finished packing for my 8:40am flight out of Charlotte. The flight was delayed, making my connection in Atlanta a rather tight one! Fortunately, I made the plane, and despite the passenger seated near me smelling like cat urine- it was a rather harmless flight. I must say, I am oh-so impressed with the cool new touch screens in the seats! I killed the four hour trip by watching re-runs of Curb Your Enthusiasm and some awful movie starring Ashton Kutcher.
I arrived in LA around 1pm, and grabbed a rental car to head to my hotel. I am not staying at the Hyatt where VOICE is being held- I'm just down the road at the Marriott. It's quite nice!
After a quick bite to eat and check of e-mail, I headed over to Nancy Wolfson's house for a private session. I've been studying with Nancy over the phone for about a year now, and this was my first time meeting her face to face. My first impression was that she is really beautiful! I would kill for that bone structure...but I digress. She is as dynamic, informative, and fun in person as she is over the phone. We worked on mic technique- and I really learned a lot! In fact, I'm anxious to put my new 'stance' into practice when I return!
When I got back to the hotel, I gave my friend and fellow voice actor, Caryn Clark, a call. She also arrived in LA today, and we agreed to meet for dinner. It's always fun to see the 'face behind the voice' and we had a great evening!! In fact, we've already made plans to hit Rodeo Drive and the pool tomorrow :). Since the Marriott is only about a half mile from the Hyatt, I decided to walk. I don't think I'll do that again. The distance is fine, but these are big streets and the cars everywhere scared me! Plus, it's never wise to walk alone at night...so I'll just have to pay the extra parking fees at both hotels. Oh well.
All in all it was a great first...ahem, zero-eth day! Since it is now around 9pm on the Pacific coast- that means my body thinks it is just after midnight. I am exhausted! I am so tired in fact, that I don't even plan to double check this post for mis-spellings and gramatical errors...my appologies!
I'm really looking forward to tomorrow's red carpet event, and I'm really wishing I had had the time to get that pedicure I so desperately need. Oh well, hopefully no one will look at my feet.
It began at 5:45am EDT when I woke up and finished packing for my 8:40am flight out of Charlotte. The flight was delayed, making my connection in Atlanta a rather tight one! Fortunately, I made the plane, and despite the passenger seated near me smelling like cat urine- it was a rather harmless flight. I must say, I am oh-so impressed with the cool new touch screens in the seats! I killed the four hour trip by watching re-runs of Curb Your Enthusiasm and some awful movie starring Ashton Kutcher.
I arrived in LA around 1pm, and grabbed a rental car to head to my hotel. I am not staying at the Hyatt where VOICE is being held- I'm just down the road at the Marriott. It's quite nice!
After a quick bite to eat and check of e-mail, I headed over to Nancy Wolfson's house for a private session. I've been studying with Nancy over the phone for about a year now, and this was my first time meeting her face to face. My first impression was that she is really beautiful! I would kill for that bone structure...but I digress. She is as dynamic, informative, and fun in person as she is over the phone. We worked on mic technique- and I really learned a lot! In fact, I'm anxious to put my new 'stance' into practice when I return!
When I got back to the hotel, I gave my friend and fellow voice actor, Caryn Clark, a call. She also arrived in LA today, and we agreed to meet for dinner. It's always fun to see the 'face behind the voice' and we had a great evening!! In fact, we've already made plans to hit Rodeo Drive and the pool tomorrow :). Since the Marriott is only about a half mile from the Hyatt, I decided to walk. I don't think I'll do that again. The distance is fine, but these are big streets and the cars everywhere scared me! Plus, it's never wise to walk alone at night...so I'll just have to pay the extra parking fees at both hotels. Oh well.
All in all it was a great first...ahem, zero-eth day! Since it is now around 9pm on the Pacific coast- that means my body thinks it is just after midnight. I am exhausted! I am so tired in fact, that I don't even plan to double check this post for mis-spellings and gramatical errors...my appologies!
I'm really looking forward to tomorrow's red carpet event, and I'm really wishing I had had the time to get that pedicure I so desperately need. Oh well, hopefully no one will look at my feet.
Monday, August 4, 2008
Headed to VOICE
It's been a whirlwind couple of weeks for me to say the least...the details of which I will delve into in blogs to come.
However, in my immediate future I will be heading to LA for my second VOICE conference. 2007 was a huge success, and I'm looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones again this year.
I fly out this Wednesday, and am really excited to finally meet my long-time voice coach and friend, Nancy Wolfson, in person. I've scheduled a private lesson with Nancy just hours after my plane arrives in LA. Then, it's off to the hotel for a bit of rest before the festivities begin on Thursday evening with the red carpet party.
I'm planning to attend sessions with Nancy, Gabriele Nistico from Voice Hunter (you can check out my new Voice Hunter page here!), Chris M. Allport, Julie Williams, Randy Thomas, Joyce Castellanos, Larry Maizlish, and of course all of the keynote speakers and panel guests! I'm also very excited about meeting some of the people I've previously only known online.
Here's the best part, John Florian from Voice Over Xtra has assembled what he calls his 'Dream Team' of bloggers to fill everyone in on the week's festivities. You will be able to read about VOICE from 5 different perspectives (including John's). I am very honored that I have been asked to be one of the contributors, along with Bob Souer, Dave Courvoisier, and Bobbin Beam.
You can read more about it here...and be sure to check the front page of Voice Over Xtra starting this Wednesday and going through Monday. Whether you are at the conference, or you are unable to attend, I hope you'll take a few moments to read the blogs and tell us about your experiences as well!
On a side note, I alluded at the beginning of this post to having a hectic week outside of heading to VOICE. I'll be going into details when I get back from LA, but thought I would share an amusing story in the meantime...
As I was sitting at my computer this evening printing out scripts and checking e-mail, I heard a scratching sound behind my desk. Looking around, I noticed that my dog and two cats were all accounted for, so no- it wasn't coming from them. I heard it again, and immediately ripped everything out from under the table to get a good look and saw...nothing. Then it happened again, so I grabbed a flashlight and alerted my husband that there was clearly a rat under my desk and it was probably going to eat through all the cables of my recording gear. He reminded me that we have two cats, and it was unlikely that a mouse was living in my studio. Then, I heard it again- and with my nerves rocked to the core, I began to pull the desk (computer, mic-pre, MBox and all) away from the wall. That's when I saw movement...
No, it wasn't a mouse or a rat or a vermin of any type...it was a piece of paper in the printer that had come out slightly crooked and was scratching against another paper each time the air conditioner hit it.
The moral of the story? In between sessions at VOICE, you most likely will find me relaxing by the pool with a lovely umbrella drink...it is time for a vacation!
However, in my immediate future I will be heading to LA for my second VOICE conference. 2007 was a huge success, and I'm looking forward to seeing old friends and making new ones again this year.
I fly out this Wednesday, and am really excited to finally meet my long-time voice coach and friend, Nancy Wolfson, in person. I've scheduled a private lesson with Nancy just hours after my plane arrives in LA. Then, it's off to the hotel for a bit of rest before the festivities begin on Thursday evening with the red carpet party.
I'm planning to attend sessions with Nancy, Gabriele Nistico from Voice Hunter (you can check out my new Voice Hunter page here!), Chris M. Allport, Julie Williams, Randy Thomas, Joyce Castellanos, Larry Maizlish, and of course all of the keynote speakers and panel guests! I'm also very excited about meeting some of the people I've previously only known online.
Here's the best part, John Florian from Voice Over Xtra has assembled what he calls his 'Dream Team' of bloggers to fill everyone in on the week's festivities. You will be able to read about VOICE from 5 different perspectives (including John's). I am very honored that I have been asked to be one of the contributors, along with Bob Souer, Dave Courvoisier, and Bobbin Beam.
You can read more about it here...and be sure to check the front page of Voice Over Xtra starting this Wednesday and going through Monday. Whether you are at the conference, or you are unable to attend, I hope you'll take a few moments to read the blogs and tell us about your experiences as well!
On a side note, I alluded at the beginning of this post to having a hectic week outside of heading to VOICE. I'll be going into details when I get back from LA, but thought I would share an amusing story in the meantime...
As I was sitting at my computer this evening printing out scripts and checking e-mail, I heard a scratching sound behind my desk. Looking around, I noticed that my dog and two cats were all accounted for, so no- it wasn't coming from them. I heard it again, and immediately ripped everything out from under the table to get a good look and saw...nothing. Then it happened again, so I grabbed a flashlight and alerted my husband that there was clearly a rat under my desk and it was probably going to eat through all the cables of my recording gear. He reminded me that we have two cats, and it was unlikely that a mouse was living in my studio. Then, I heard it again- and with my nerves rocked to the core, I began to pull the desk (computer, mic-pre, MBox and all) away from the wall. That's when I saw movement...
No, it wasn't a mouse or a rat or a vermin of any type...it was a piece of paper in the printer that had come out slightly crooked and was scratching against another paper each time the air conditioner hit it.
The moral of the story? In between sessions at VOICE, you most likely will find me relaxing by the pool with a lovely umbrella drink...it is time for a vacation!
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