Video games are the largest and fastest growing sector of the entertainment industry, comprising more revenue than film and music combined. Coupled with the explosion of content created by streaming services such as Netflix, Disney, and Amazon, the demand for international voices in gaming, dubbing and animation is growing daily. Giving the best performance for these entertainment products, however, requires more than quirky voices. Actors must be able to give performances that inhabit characters with emotional life that engages audiences, regardless of the language or the medium.

What does this mean for you? Why do video game acting skills best prepare actors for all other aspects of voice acting? Why are video game actors getting the majority of dubbing work? How have acting standards in story-driven VO changed to be less like animation? What are the big production companies looking for when casting voice actors?

In this one-hour webinar, Randall Ryan and Gillian Brashear, voice directors and casting directors with the VO production company HamsterBall, will answer these questions and more. For 25 years HamsterBall has been creating all aspects of VO direction and production, with gaming taking up the largest footprint.

Join us!

Randall Ryan: A musician from the age of 5, Randall found that his musicality gave him a knack for directing voice actors. The work that jazzes him the most are the story-driven narratives where the actors and get to explore and create deep characters and complex worlds. He still composes music, performs the occasional live gig, and thinks dogs make the best people. Directing titles include: Chivalry 2, Hearthstone, Lord of the Rings Online, World of Tanks, Dungeons & Dragons Online, Vacation Simulator, World of Warcraft, Cosmonious High, Cobra Kai: Dojos Rising, Deer Hunter, Dora the Explorer, and GI Joe: Operation Blackout.

Gillian Brashear: Gillian came from the stages of New York City to the big) and small screens in Los Angeles before delving into voice acting, and then directing. Director: Cobra Kai: Dojos Rising, Chivalry 2, Cosmonious High, Lord of the Rings Online, Dungeons and Dragons Online Actor: Criminal Minds, Legends, CSI: Cyber, Chekhov and Maria, For the People, Danger One VO Actor: Titanic: Secrets of the Fateful Voyage, Leisure Suit Larry, Cobra Kai: Dojos Rising, Little League Baseball
Narrator: Emmy Award® winning series, Wonder Women

Moderator – Lisa Stokke: Actor, singer and voice-over artist, in a career spanning 23 years, in the UK, Norway and USA. Best known as the original Sophie in Mamma Mia, Trine in Doctor Who, Jodee Tressky in Jonathan Creek, her docudrama Lisa Goes to Hollywood, and as the Norwegian voice of Elsa in all the Frozen movies.