CHARACTERS FOUNDATION
Next Masterclass date to be arranged
A 6-week intensive ‘Characters Foundation’ Masterclass with VO expert, Elaine Clark - direct from San Francisco.
Character voice acting is a business
It’s more than doing funny voices. Your character needs to be specific to each genre, style, audience appeal, and technical performance requirement. Auditions and jobs leave little or no time to develop a character. To prep your character demo, you need time to build a stable of 5-10 characters that you can quickly draw from and build upon.
Class aims
The goal of this Masterclass is to give you an in depth overview into the types of characters you will need to master for a demo, audition, and job. Each week we’ll explore a range of character styles along with techniques, genres, overviews and industry expectations.
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This is a fast paced workshop with homework assignments. So, be prepared to play!
“I was completely unaware of VO and the extent to how big the industry is. From just the first lesson of this Character course, it definitely is something which I find exciting.”
- J.W (Character Masterclass student)
Your Teacher
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Elaine A. Clark has been acting, producing, casting, and directing video game, toy, animation, and anime VO for over 40 years.
Elaine has voiced hundreds of commercials, narrations and toys, directed and/or performed in close to 100 video games and a couple of Anime series (JoJo's Bizarre Adventure and Saikano); looped several movies, including Super 8, The Curious Case of Benjamin Button, The Master and Titan A.E.; and recorded a dozen or so audiobooks featuring her voice, book authors and celebrities. Read a little more about Elaine here.
“The confidence you gain knowing you’re working with a real, seasoned professional. You never doubt that Elaine knows what she’s talking about!”
- Poppy C. (Character Masterclass student)
Masterclass Overview:
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Class 1: Techniques, Genres, Overview, and Expectations
Posture, Stance, Layering Multiple Personality Traits, Letter Focus, Location, and Movement. Assign Cartoon homework.
Class 2: Cartoons for Kids, Youth, and Adults
Animation discussion and homework review. Refine situation, voice, and action for the 3 different age groups. Assign Anime and Toy homework.
Class 3: Anime and Toys
Perform and adjust Anime Character homework. Perform with direction and adjustments on the Toy voice character homework. Assign Video Game homework.
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Class 4: Video Games
Review the game genres. Discuss the 1-5 intensity levels. Create situations and build out the stories. Rehearse and refine the scripts. Assign Age-Range and Accents homework.
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Class 5: Perform an Age and Accent other than your Own
Perform homework and make adjustments for the various character styles. Homework Final: Make a list of the characters you performed in class and the short 1-3 line script. Practice at home and be prepared to perform all the characters back-to-back in the final class.
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Class 6: Character Styles for Demo
Each actor performs their characters, demonstrating the unique style, tempo, voice, voice placement, attitude, audience, and genre that is specific to each character.
Class size is limited to 12max so reserve and book your place below.
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“I really enjoyed myself and learned a lot. I was so nervous at the start of the course but the group was so fantastic and supportive it helped me get over the nerves and I'm so proud of my final piece of homework!”
- Adam H. (Character Masterclass student)
“The Masterclass helped me let go of inhibitions when it comes to voice acting and opened my eyes to a whole other world of VO I can explore.”
- Sinead G. (Character Masterclass student)
Next class dates to be arranged...
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There will be some homework to complete between the sessions, feedback and ongoing support during the six weeks. This class is only run twice a year.
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All sessions will take place on Zoom. Max 12 students.
Cost: £550 (6 x 2hr sessions and support)
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*You can take this class at any stage of your VO training*
**Please note, after completion of this class, you may be eligible to attend the advanced character class ‘Develop Your Character Playbook’ - this is by invite only**
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