With AI, synthetic voices, text to speech and speech to speech, our industry is changing. If you feel nervous about it or not sure what to do, we wanted to share some really helpful resources that will educate and empower you.
We recently interviewed Sam Ufret and Jim Kennelly of Lotas Productions about AI and voice over on our podcast HERE.
The first resource I want to share is one of the books Jim recommended.
By Jason Feifer Editor of Entrepreneur magazine
Reading this will help ease any fears and also give you hope for what could be! One of the things he talks about is loss and gain perspectives. In the midst of change, most people focus on what may be lost. To navigate change, you have to focus instead of what may be gained.
2| Gravy for the Brain Article
This article was the best explanation of AI in Voiceover, how and why it impacts our industry. Very informative!
3| TTS/Synthetic Voice Rate Guide
How do you know if you’re being taken advantage of if you don’t know the correct rate to begin with? This is a great breakdown of proper rates! Bookmark this!
4| Synthetic/AI Voice Rider (contract)
NAVA (National Association of Voice Actors) has created a wonderful rider/contract you can use for these projects.
If you prefer to watch/listen to people share about AI/synthetic voices and how it’s impacting our industry, we recently hosted a Zoom webinar with Cissy Jones, Zeke Alton and Tim Friedlander.
The one resource I wish we had was a list of reputable companies that you could submit to become one of their synthetic voices. I’ve talked to a couple that turned out not to have enough guardrails for the usage. Open Voice Network is a great place to start though! Any companies listed here adhere to ethical practices. Becareful of companies that allow their clients to use a synthetic voice for any purpose whatsover (ESPECIALLY commercials).
I also shared specifically what I’M DOING as a voice talent (and have been doing for several years – I started researching synthetic voice companies over 2 years ago and just signed on with one) on my personal INSTAGRAM page. You can see that HERE.
AND two more helpful tools –
1| Article Breaking Down Why You Don’t Need to Worry about Zoom
2| Podcast Talking About AI (Jason Feiffer of Build for Tomorrow) – he uses a GREAT example of the phonograph.
As we learn more, we’ll definitely share them with you!
In the meantime, don’t give up hope or excitement for our future as voice talent! Focusing on all the potential gain!