Serendipity happens sometimes when it is most needed.
As with so many others, I experienced deep loss this year. My Dad passed away as did a lifelong friend, Mike, who was like a second Father to me. My Dad had been ill for several years and I had planned a trip to the UK this past January with the intention of spending some quality time with him, which I did. Mike, however lived in Dorset which is over a 3-hour journey from the North West, where I was staying, so I was unsure if I would be able to manage a visit with him, as I was only in the UK for a short period of time
My Voice over work is never far from my mind and I had been considering cutting a new specialist E-Learning Demo.
Through UK friends at The VoiceOver Network, I was referred to Rich O’Donogue at ioAudio. Turns out his studio is in Cheshire and would actually be ‘on the way’ if I travelled to see Mike. The trip was set in motion. My mum also travelled with me to visit our dear friend and in addition gained the opportunity to sit in the studio, to watch me work. As a lifelong actress herself she found the whole demo process fascinating.
In the VO world we inhabit, I believe it is worth having genre specific demo-reels for genres you want to compete in.
I chatted with Rich about what I wanted, and he prepared and sent some scripts. Thus, my E-Learning demo was born and at the same time I got to see important people in my life. I travelled back to the US just as the Pandemic was breaking and literally got back to the US just under the wire. A week or so later, Rich delivered my finished product, and I can tell you that it has more than paid for Itself, by helping me gain representation on multiple E-Learning rosters and being cast to narrate for them.
I was so pleased with the result I decided to submit it to the SOVAS awards and was even more delighted when it was shortlisted for the Outstanding Performance in an E-Learning Demo category. Accordingly, I’d like to thank my mum for her input and Rich O’Donogue for his considerate direction and outstanding production.
The SOVAS awards winners will be announced December 20th, 2020.
Click here to hear Ian's demos..
** This Post In Loving Memory of Mike and John **