Adobe Audition Replaces Soundbooth
June 24, 2011
I recently previewed a beta version of Adobe Audition for the Mac. What I didn’t know, at the time, was that Audition was replacing Soundbooth, a digital audio workstation long used by voice actors. And while that might be disappointing to Soundbooth fans, Audition does pack quite a punch.
Some of the features Audition has that Soundbooth didn’t have are: project exchange with third-party DAWs, native 5.1 multichannel support, more native audio effects and new royalty-free sound effects, loops, and music beds.
Officially, it’s being called Audition CS5.5 – part of Adobe’s mid-cycle release of its Creative Suite series. Adobe is billing it as a “modern audio post-production toolset.” That means it’s powerful enough to be used for big budget audio and video productions. I got my hands on the final release and found it simple enough to use as a voice actor.
From the moment you launch Audition it has a familiar look and feel to it. The interface is clean and easy to understand. Once you click record you’re presented with the option to name your file, choose your sample rate, select your channels and bit depth. Click okay after choosing these settings and the recording begins.
Editing in Audition is as straightforward as it gets. Just click and select the portion of a waveform you need to edit and copy, cut and paste to your heart’s content. If you’ve ever used the free DAW Audacity, you can use Audition with no problem.
Adobe has upped the ante on audio effects this time around in Audition. Some of the native audio effects you may find useful are noise reduction, de-hummer, de-esser and speech volume leveler. The noise reduction effect can be very effective if, like me, you have less than perfect soundproofing in your studio. I was able to remove street-level traffic noise from a recording without much degradation to the recording. I had to tweak the sliders a bit, but it worked remarkably well.
Audition is included as part of Adobe’s Production Premium package. You can buy it separately for $349. But if you’re looking to upgrade, there are some generous options. For $99 you can upgrade from some previous versions of both Audition and Soundbooth. You can even cross-grade from one format to another (PC to Mac). Not a bad deal if you just have to have the latest and greatest from Adobe.
Hal Douglas Wins The 2011 Don LaFontaine Legacy Award
June 24, 2011
PromaxBDA, the leading global association for marketing, promotion and design professionals in the entertainment industry, will honour iconic voice-over actor Hal Douglas with the Don LaFontaine Legacy Award at the annual 2011 Conference in New York City. Read more
Mel Blanc’s Voice Back In Theatres
June 17, 2011
Looney Tunes will be returning to the big screen in November 2011. Warner Bros. is planning to release three shorts of the cartoon which will be shown prior to the studios feature films such as Happy Feet 2.
Beloved characters such as Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, Porky Pig, Sylvester the Cat and Tweety Bird will be featured - with the original voice of Mel Blanc! His voice will be heard singing two classic Looney Tunes songs “I Twat I Taw a Puddy Tat” and “Daffy Duck’s Rhapsody.”
The cartoons will be shown in 3-D computer animation rather than the classic hand-drawn style of the original series. The shorts are directed by Matthew O’Callaghan for Warner Bros. Animation.
“This will probably be the last time that Looney Tunes fans will have an opportunity to see an original Mel Blanc short featuring these characters,” said Sam Register, an executive vice president at Warner Bros. Animation.
Blanc died in July 1989 at the age of 81. He is fondly remembered as “The Man With A 1,000 Voices.” In addition to his Warner Bros. characters, he was also the voice of Barney Rubble on “The Flintstones,” Woody Woodpecker’s laugh and he performed many characters for Jack Benny’s radio and TV shows.
Source: LA Times
Disney’s Reboot Ralph Renamed Wreck-it Ralph
June 17, 2011
Walt Disney Animation Studios announced this week that the 3D animated CG film Reboot Ralph has been renamed Wreck-it Ralph and is now slated for release on November 2, 2012. The film was originally set for release in 2013 but production of the film has been bumped up.
The film follows Ralph, an 8-bit arcade game bad guy, who longs for the same adoration of the hero in his game and sets out on a video-game hopping journey to prove that bad guys can be good. The film is directed by Rich Moore (“The Simpsons,” “Futurama”) and features the voices of John C. Reilly, Sarah Silverman, Jack McBrayer and Jane Lynch.
Quoted in a press release Moore said, “I love the idea of a very simple 8-bit video game character struggling with the complex question: ‘isn’t there more to life than the role I’ve been assigned?’ In his quest for the answer, we journey with our hero through three visually distinct video game worlds. It’s unlike anything anyone’s seen before, and I’m thrilled to be to creating it here at Walt Disney Animation Studios.”
Disney has yet to release a movie trailer or posters for the film.
Source: ComingSoon.net
New Contract Agreements For AFTRA Voice Actors
June 17, 2011
For the first time ever voice actors who are members of The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA) will enjoy streaming payments for their work on video games after the union negotiated a new 3 1/2 year agreement with representatives from the video game industry.
This new contract will see that performers are paid via a new cloud gaming fee. Artists will be paid a 15 percent one-time payment before the streaming payments begin. Also included in the contract are increased contributions to the AFTRA Health and Retirement Fund from 0.5% to 15.5%. There will also be an extra 3% added on to minimum compensations over the duration of the contract, with 1% being added immediately after the contract expires.
Ultimately, what all of this means is that the new minimum fee for AFTRA Interactive Media contracts will start at $809. The new minimum will increase again in May 2013 to $825.
Source: Gamasutra
Voice Actor Ralph Hass Is CanuckStruck
June 6, 2011
At a Tim Hortons in Kelowna, BC, a creative collaboration between sports announcer Ralph Hass and a homeless Johnny Cash impersonator known as Sir Edmund Thundermonkey the 5th spawned a YouTube video dedicated to hockey or more specifically, the Canucks.
The tribute video includes footage of the ongoing Stanley Cup run of 2011 for the Canucks and highlights from the unsuccessful 1994 and 1982 Cup runs. The video editing was completed just one day after game one of the Stanley Cup finals against Boston.
The collaboration extended across British Columbia as Hass called in singer/songwriter Corey Doak for sound engineering and Jonathan Galbraith of Vancouver to assemble the video. The photos and graphic at the end of the video are courtesy of Geoff Heith, a photographer based out of Abbotsford, BC. Justin Dueck helped out with backing vocals. Dueck just happens to have the same name as Hass’s eldest son. Hass acted as main songwriter for the parody project – with a lot of help from AC/DC’s “Thunderstruck” original.
Hockey and humor here. Enjoy!
Character Acting With Rob Paulsen
June 6, 2011
Aspiring voice actors are now able to receive coaching from Rob Paulsen, one of the most prolific cartoon voice over artists in North America.
Are Narrators A Part Of An Audio Production Team?
June 6, 2011
Not according to the Emmys.
The audio production team for the critically acclaimed nature series “Wild View” won a regional Emmy award for their work on the documentary, well, everyone except for narrator Mary McKitrick.
Photographed on left, McKitrick is holding the iconic statue but was not permitted take actually take one home. Evidently narrators are not recognized by the Emmys as being a part of the audio production team.
This struck a nerve in the voice over industry which instigated a call to action to have narrators fairly recognized at the Emmys for their contributions to audio productions. A Facebook page has been developed to draw attention to the issue and will be presented to the National Association of Television Arts and Sciences (NATAS) if enough support for the cause is shown.
The goal of this appeal is to have the NATAS review and update their awards criteria to include either categories for or the inclusion of narrators as E Award recipients in its regional and national awards and to finally get Mary McKitrick her Emmy statue.
To show your support visit A Statue for Mary on Facebook.
Source: CourVo
“Green With Envy” For The Muppets Movie Trailers
June 2, 2011
After more than ten years The Muppets are making their big screen come-back. The first trailer for the movie is cleverly misleading, giving the impression that it is another fluffy RomCom until Kermit and Miss Piggy appear in the trailer confusing the voiceover performer who asks, “Are there Muppets in this movie?”
