THE VOICE OVER AND ITS USE IN FILM (In the Entertainment industry.)

Voice Over / Photo Credit: Acting Plan

THE VOICE OVER AND ITS USE IN FILM (In the Entertainment industry.)         

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The Voice Over and Its Use in Film.

Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique where a voice—that is not part of the narrative (non-diegetic)—is used in a radio, television production, filmmaking, theatre, or other presentations. The voice over is read from a script and may be spoken by someone who appears elsewhere in the production or by a specialist voice talent. Synchronous dialogue, where the voice over is narrating the action that is taking place at the same time, remains the most common technique in voiceovers. Asynchronous, however, is also used in cinema. It is usually prerecorded and placed over the top of a film or video and commonly used in documentaries or news reports to explain information. Voiceovers are used in video games and on-hold messages, as well as for announcements and information at events and tourist destinations. It may also be read live for events such as award presentations.

Voice over is added in addition to any existing dialogue, and it is not to be confused with the process of replacing dialogue with a translated version, which is called dubbing or re-voicing.

The voice over is a film technique that is utilized in virtually every film genre. Filmmakers use voice overs to provide quick exposition, tell stories, narrate, and provide an intimate look into the mind of a character. This essay will explore how voice overs are used in the context of several films. Filmmakers are always looking to challenge the status quo and create innovative films, so it is impossible to come up with rules that are true for all movies. Nevertheless, there are certain conventions that remain fairly consistent in their usage from film to film, and I will work to explain how voice overs influence the structure and function of a film. This essay will explore how voice overs are used in nonfiction as well as fiction films, the main differences between voice overs and breaking the fourth wall, how visual aids and voice overs can be used in tandem for greater impact, and the subjective nature of a character-provided narrator. This essay will then provide arguments as to why the voice over is not a cheap, easy storytelling mechanism, but rather a significant tool that can be used to create truly great films. The voice over is not a cheap gimmick, but instead is an important tool to any filmmaker, which gives them a range of abilities in storytelling that they would not have otherwise.

Voice overs have a spotty reputation in the film criticism community because they are often used poorly and without much creative insight. The command “Show, don’t tell” is generally regarded as a worthwhile pursuit for a filmmaker. A beautifully composed sequence or a spectacular performance by a character actor should be easily interpreted by any audience. If the film is confusing to audiences because of shoddy editing or unclear narration, it is entirely on the shoulders of the filmmaker to remedy the situation.

Voice overs provide filmmakers with a range of abilities in storytelling that they otherwise would not have. The real power of a voice over is its ability to communicate directly with the audience. Because there are so few tools available to the filmmaker that allows him to speak directly to the audience, the voice over is an invaluable asset to anyone who wants to establish a direct connection with the audience. In nonfictional and fictional narrative, the voice over acts as a liaison between the action on screen and the viewer, giving the filmmaker an opportunity to directly address the viewer, bypassing the usual conventions of dialogue, staging, costume, and the like to convey a meaning. A direct link between the audience and the characters in a film brings the audience closer to the action of the story. The viewer is no longer a casual observer, but rather an active participant in the story. The use of the voice over can save valuable screen time because the filmmaker does not have to spend extra time showing the audience information, and can leave the audience to infer the real meaning. The filmmaker is able to explicitly tell the audience what they need to know in order to move the story along. When a voice over is used skillfully, it can transform from a cheap gimmick into a valuable tool.

Character Device

Characterization techniques in voiceovers are used to give personalities and voice to fictional characters. There has been some controversy with characterizing techniques in voice overs, particularly with white radio entertainers who would mimic black speech patterns. Radio made this racial mockery easier to get away with because it was a non-confrontational platform to freely express anything the broadcasters found fit. It also became the ideal medium for voice impersonations. Characterization has always been popular in culture and all forms of media. In the late 1920s radio started to stray away from reporting exclusively on musicals and sporting events, instead, radio began to create serial talk shows as well as shows with fictional storylines. The technique of characterization can be a creative outlet to expand on film and radio, but it must be done carefully.

Creative device

In film, the filmmaker places the sound of a human voice (or voices) over images shown on the screen that may or may not be related to the words that are being spoken. Consequently, voiceovers are sometimes used to create ironic counterpoint. Also, sometimes they can be random voices not directly connected to the people seen on the screen. In works of fiction, the voiceover is often by a character reflecting on his or her past, or by a person external to the story who usually has a more complete knowledge of the events in the film than the other characters.

Voiceovers are often used to create the effect of storytelling by a character/omniscient narrator. Sometimes, voice over can be used to aid continuity in edited versions of films, in order for the audience to gain a better understanding of what has gone on between scenes.

Film noir is especially associated with the voice overs technique. The golden age of first-person narration was during the 1940s. Film noir typically used male voiceover narration but there are a few rare female voice overs.

Educational or descriptive device

The voiceover has many applications in non-fiction as well. Television news is often presented as a series of video clips of newsworthy events, with voiceover by the reporters describing the significance of the scenes being presented; these are interspersed with straight video of the news anchors describing stories for which video is not shown.

Television networks such as The History Channel and the Discovery Channel make extensive use of voice overs. On NBC, the television show Starting Over used Sylvia Villagran as the voice over narrator to tell a story.

Live sports broadcasts are usually shown as extensive voice overs by sports commentators over video of the sporting event.

Game shows formerly made extensive use of voiceovers to introduce contestants and describe available or awarded prizes, but this technique has diminished as shows have moved toward predominantly cash prizes. The most prolific have included Don Pardo, Johnny Olson, John Harlan, Jay Stewart, Gene Wood and Johnny Gilbert.

Voiceover commentary by a leading critic, historian, or by the production personnel themselves is often a prominent feature of the release of feature films or documentaries on DVDs.

In radio, voice overs are an integral part of the creation of the radio program. The voice overs artist might be used to remind listeners of the station name or as characters to enhance or develop show content. During the 1980s, the British broadcasters Steve Wright and Kenny Everett used voiceover artists to create a virtual "posse" or studio crew who contributed to the programs. It is believed that this principle was in play long before that time. The American radio broadcaster Howard Stern has also used voice overs in this way.

Commercial device

The commercial use of voice overs in television advertising has been popular since the beginning of radio broadcasting.

In the early years, before effective sound recording and mixing, announcements were produced "live" and at-once in a studio with the entire cast, crew and, usually, orchestra. A corporate sponsor hired a producer, who hired writers and voice actors to perform comedy or drama.

Manufacturers will often use a distinctive voice to help them with brand messaging, often retaining talent to a long-term exclusive contract.

The industry expanded very rapidly with the advent of television in the 1950s, and the age of highly produced serial radio shows ended. The ability to record high-quality sound on magnetic tape also created opportunities. Digital recording—thanks to the proliferation of PCs, smartphones (iOS and Android 5.0+), dedicated recording devices, free or inexpensive recording and editing software, and USB microphones of reasonable quality, increasing use of home studios — has revolutionized the industry.

The sound recording industry uses the term "presence" as the standard of a good quality voice over and is used for commercial purposes in particular. This term "presence" measures the legitimacy of how it sounds, specifically one of a voiceover. Advances in technology for sound recording have helped voiceovers reach this standard. These technological advances have worked continuously on diminishing "the noise of the system...and thus reducing the distance perceived between the object and its representation."

The voice over industry works in tandem with the advertising industry to help deliver high quality branding and as a whole is worth millions. Commercial advertising that uses voice overs reaches about 89 percent of all adults in Britain alone.

Due to new technology and the internet. Voice over artists are able to cater for anywhere or anyone in the world regardless of their location. An example of this is http://thevoiceoverguy.com.au an in demand Australian Voice artist based down under in Australia. Catering for the USA and other countries besides his native country.

Translation

Main article: Voice-over translation

In some countries, such as Russia and Poland, voiceover provided by an artist is commonly used on television programs as a language localization technique, as an alternative to full dub localization.

In Bulgaria, multiple voiceover is also common, but each film (or episode) is normally voiced by three to six actors. The voice artists try to match the original voice and preserve the intonation. The main reason for the use of this type of translation is that unlike synchronized voice translation, it takes a relatively short time to produce, since there is no need to synchronize the voices with the character's lip movements, which is compensated by the quieted original audio. When there is no speaking in the film for some time, the original sound is turned up. Recently, as more films are distributed with separate voice and noises-and-music tracks, some voice overs translations in Bulgaria are produced by only turning down the voice track, in this way not affecting the other sounds. One actor always reads the translation crew's names over the show's ending credits (except for when there is dialogue over the credits).

Sources, References & Credits: Google, Wikipedia, Wikihow, WikiBooks, Pinterest, IMDB, Linked In, Indie Wire, Film Making Stuff, Hiive, Film Daily, New York Film Academy, The Balance, Careers Hub, The Numbers, Film Maker, TV Guide Magazine, Blurb, Media Match, Quora, Creative Skill Set, Chron, Investopedia, Variety, No Film School, WGA, BBC, Daily Variety, The Film Agency, Best Sample Resume, How Stuff Works, Career Trend, Producer's Code of Credits, Truity, Production Hub, Producers Guild of America, Film Connection, Variety, Wolf Crow, Get In Media, Production Beast, Sony Pictures, Warner Bros, UCAS, Frankenbite, Realty 101, Careers Hub, Screen Play Scripts, Script Doctor, ASCAP, Film Independent, Any Possibility, Ethan Laughman, CTLsites,

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Voice Over / Photo Credit: Acting Plan