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Voice Acting

Voice acting is a unique and exciting career that allows individuals to use their vocal talents to bring characters to life. Voice actors are in demand in a variety of industries, including film, television, video games, commercials, podcasts and more.

People become voice actors for a variety of reasons. Some are drawn to the creative nature of the work and the opportunity to bring characters to life through their voices. Others appreciate the flexibility of the profession, which allows for remote work and freelance opportunities. Salaries for voice actors can vary widely depending on factors such as experience level and the type of project they are working on. Top voice actors earn six-figure salaries.

To get started in voice acting, many begin by freelancing. There are several freelance websites where voice actors can find work. Some popular options include Voices, Fiverr, Upwork, Freelancer.com, Guru, and Peopleperhour. These sites offer a range of opportunities for voice actors at different experience levels and price ranges.

To become a voice actor, one should have experience in acting methods and vocal techniques. Some important techniques include warming up and performing vocal exercises before any voice-acting session. This can include full body stretching, facial stretches, and airflow exercises. Voice actors should also be skilled at character-driven performances, using their vocal tone to convey emotion. Mastering accents and dialects is another important skill for voice actors. Analyzing and interpreting scripts is also crucial for voice actors, as it allows them to understand the character they are portraying and deliver a convincing performance. Experimenting with vocal tones and emotions can help voice actors develop their range and versatility. Continuously honing their acting skills and embracing feedback from others can also help voice actors improve their craft.

Many voice actors begin their careers by learning to act on stage or in films. A bachelor’s degree in acting or theater arts can provide valuable experience in performing and knowledge of fundamental acting principles. Acting classes and workshops can also help individuals improve their abilities by learning from experts with proficiency in techniques like characterization, vocalization, and interpretation.

Voice actors should also have technical knowledge of audio equipment, sound recording techniques and audio software like Adobe Audition, Audacity and Apple GarageBand. These are just a few of the software packages used by voice talent.

There are many famous voice actors who have brought beloved characters to life through their vocal talents. Some examples include Mel Blanc, who voiced nearly every character on Looney Tunes, and Tara Strong, who has starred in animations like The Fairly OddParents, Rugrats, The Powerpuff Girls, as well as the Final Fantasy video game series. Actor James Earl Jones, known for saying “This is CNN” is best known as the voice of Darth Vader in the Star Wars franchise. A Generation X hero is Peter Cullen, known for his vocal portrayal of Optimus Prime through several generations of the Transformers franchise. Interestingly, Optimus Prime’s nemesis, Megatron is often voiced by actor Frank Welker, who is believed to have more vocal acting credits than anyone else, with nearly 900 film, television, and video game roles.  Although most people have never heard of him, with a total worldwide box-office gross of $17.4 billion, Frank Welker is the third highest-grossing actor of all time!

WORKS CITED:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Voice_acting

https://www.behindthevoiceactors.com/

https://www.backstage.com/magazine/article/voice-actor-requirements-advice-75466/

https://www.mymajors.com/career/voice-actor/education/

https://cloudlancer.com/best-voice-over-software-for-voice-actors/

https://www.websiteplanet.com/blog/best-voiceover-websites/

https://www.theguardian.com/film/2011/aug/09/frank-welker

Creating and Pitching Television Shows, Movies, and Video Games

Television, movies, video games, and even web series are all things we consume at least somewhat frequently, and the entertainment industry is rapidly growing and looking for new ideas (This current deficit of new, fresh ideas is at least one reason they’ve been remaking so many movies that were already fine to begin with). If you feel like you want to make a show or a movie and have an idea that you think should be out there, chances are that others would absolutely agree. This article is dedicated to explaining the basics of what you will need to get started, and a groundwork for where to go next.

The most important part of creating a show is its pitch, specifically presenting it quickly while covering the most notable parts of your idea, called an “elevator pitch.” Elevator pitches are quick, abbreviated editions of the concept itself- so quick, you should be able to pitch it to an executive in an elevator ride. For example, Breaking Bad’s elevator pitch was famously “Mr. Chips becomes Scarface,” quickly describing how a high school teacher turns into a drug lord, which was so bold, Sony executives picked it up. When you get straight to the point of an elevator pitch, you jog the cogs in someone’s brain and they become curious if there is more, which helps you move on to the next part: the pitch meeting and the bible.

Following the elevator pitch comes the pitch meeting, where those interested in making a show or movie must talk to executives. You should create a bible, or a book/binder full of different ideas for the show or movie and bring a copy to the meeting to show executives. Spongebob Squarepants’ pitch was more of an experience than a regular pitch because the creator, Stephen Hillenburg, really put his all into his pitch. He and the creative director, Derek Drymon, showed off a tiny diorama of Bikini Bottom in an aquarium tank with tiny versions of the characters in it, wheeled it into the room, and blasted Hawaiian music both wearing Hawaiian shirts, truly making the pitch their own. They told their plans for the characters and ran down the pilot with executives. It was so good, the executives wished they had it on tape. So, the best thing to do in a pitch is make it your own and have fun, because if you have fun making it, executives will have fun watching it, and they will be more inclined to pick you up. You can read through the Spongebob Squarepants show bible here! There is no right or wrong way to do a pitch, but here is a good template for how you could structure your own pitch meeting. Feel free to build off it!

The best thing about the entertainment industry is that you do not need a degree from a big school, or even in any specific program (film studies, animation, English/creative writing, computer science, etc.). For example, Lawrence alum Josh Sawyer majored in history here and participated in theater and was able to become a design director at Obsidian Entertainment and has used his love of history to create one of the best-regarded games of 2022, and one of Obsidian’s best: Pentiment. Sawyer found early on he did not want to pursue a career with his history major and used his tinkering in web design and animation to jump into the world of video game development and directed Fallout: New Vegas and the Pillars of Eternity duology.

If your pitch does not get picked up at first, know that it is completely okay! Even the greatest creators have struggled to land a place with a publisher or network. But even if it is discouraging to have your idea turned down, it is important not to give up. There are plenty more people who will be willing to give you a chance. The industry can be for anyone (including Lawrentians), and if you have any interest, the worst thing you can do is not try to get involved.

WORKS CITED:

https://www.slashfilm.com/963967/why-so-many-networks-turned-down-breaking-bad/

https://careerdevelopment.princeton.edu/sites/g/files/toruqf1041/files/media/elevator_pitch.pdf

https://www.lawrence.edu/articles/lawrence-expertise-helps-fuel-pentiment-video-game

https://www.todayifoundout.com/index.php/2015/12/spongebob-squarepants-made-air/

Spencer R. Brown is a junior in their first year at Lawrence University, with a major in Government. They work as a media and marketing assistant in the Career Center, and curates articles for students in both Communication, Journalism & Written Arts (#CJW) and Government, Law & International Relations (#GLI) career communities. A writer and animator by trade and part-time mascot, Spencer is fascinated in finding ways to make digesting information entertaining. Feel free to connect with them on LinkedIn here!

Public Relations

Public relations is a big umbrella term, since it covers so many things! You could be creating media for a brand, speaking for an important figure, or writing for an organization, and you would not be wrong calling it public relations. If you are interested in writing, being creative, and/or getting your face out there, public relations is a field you should look at!

Jobs in public relations, or PR as will be said throughout the article, involve you being the spokesperson for an organization or person in a way. Sometimes, you’re directly speaking for a person or organization, like Press Secretary for the White House, and at other times, you could be the voice of the  SunnyD Twitter account, hoping this attempt at humor will be even funnier than your last try.

There are several career paths in PR, such as administration (press secretary), marketing (marketing coordinator), communications (content manager), media (media director), account managing (brand specialist), and development (fundraising), and usually these jobs go to people in communications, business, and social sciences, but because of how broad PR is, any person with any college degree can get involved in a sector that fits their needs. Your creativity and your sense of humor are vital to any PR job you have interest in because employers love to see what you can do differently from what came before. In a way, public relations is a playground and allows you to be as personal as you want to be in your role.

So, what do you do if you are interested in a job in public relations? There are jobs on Handshake and Indeed, but you can also visit the website of the Public Relations Society of America (www.prsa.org). In addition to being a resource for Public Relations professionals, you will find several job postings that you may not see posted anywhere else.

How do you get started? Like most every other occupation, getting an internship while still in college is particularly important. Also, take classes that will help develop both your verbal and written communication skills. As always, making connections with PR professionals already in the work place is vital, so visit the Career Center to find out more about PR jobs and  connections with Lawrence alumni already working in PR. Make your appointment with the Career Center here!

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/what-are-public-relations-jobs

https://www.prsa.org/career/find-a-job

Spencer R. Brown is a sophomore experiencing their first year at Lawrence University, with a major in Government. They work as a media and marketing assistant in the Career Center, and curates articles for students in both Communication, Journalism & Written Arts (#CJW) and Government, Law & International Relations (#GLI) career communities. A writer and animator by trade and part-time school mascot, Spencer is fascinated by finding ways to make digesting information entertaining. Feel free to connect with them on LinkedIn here!

Sports Journalism

If you’re a fan of sports, you might be found glued to your television set every weekend, watching racecars turn left for three hours, or millionaires throwing, hitting or carrying some kind of ball around.  While very few of us will end up as professional athletes, there are career opportunities for those who love sports, are excellent writers and communicators and, in some cases, have a great on-camera or behind the microphone presence.

Whether sitting behind a computer, standing on the field or talking in a broadcast booth, there are jobs in sports journalism.  If you’re a fan of sports and want to get involved in the world without getting too dirty or too injured, sports journalism is the field for you!

The best things about being a sports journalist is meeting your athletic heroes and the opportunity to travel. There is also a good deal of flexibility in your schedule, however you will have to adhere to the professional sports schedule you are covering, which likely means some weekend work.  The industry is also an easy one to explain to family that comes over for Thanksgiving, asking what you’re doing with that degree.

No matter where you live, there is likely a news organization nearby that covers sports. Here in Appleton, the Appleton Post Crescent newspaper and website devote a great deal of coverage to the Green Bay Packers, especially on Mondays. Local Appleton and Green Bay radio and TV stations also dedicate many resources to the coverage of local and statewide sports. Due to media consolidation, there are not as many listed job opportunities as there used to be. For example. Gannett, the largest newspaper publisher in the United States, owns and prints most of the local papers in this area including the aforementioned Post Crescent, the Green Bay Press Gazette, the Oshkosh Northwestern, and the Fond du Lac Reporter.  So rather than applying at a single paper, you would instead apply with Gannett.

Sports journalists usually get their start right out of college as a general reporter, who covers more than just sports. With time and excellent job performance, journalists begin to specialist in certain areas, like sports. A bachelor’s degree in communications, journalism or English is often a requirement to get started. Experience, such as writing for The Lawrentian is also extremely helpful.

As is the case with several industries, the future of sports journalism involves analytics. As there is data collected about every instance in every sport, sports data analysis has increased. Sports publications are now hiring people with extensive background in statistics and mathematics to publish articles detailing this analysis. New metrics are used to compile rankings of players and teams. Blog sites like FiveThirtyEight and other full-time sport analytic sites take available data and construct analytic heavy articles about sports.

In terms of career stability, as long as there are sports, there will be sports journalists who love what they do! If you’d like to learn more, schedule a visit with the Career Center to discuss it further!

https://mwwire.com/2022/09/08/5-reasons-to-become-a-sports-journalist/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sports_journalism

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/how-to-become-a-sportswriter

https://www.butler.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/8/2022/01/sports_journalism_industry_guide_1.pdf

https://www.indeed.com/jobs?q=Sports+Journalism&start=10&pp=gQAPAAABhzNvVjoAAAAB_uVHJAAaAQEBBgHXiQQkOKrzY-qqH6si295itUjSaJwAAA&vjk=e638d7dec679aadd

https://lawrence.joinhandshake.com/stu/appointments/new

Spencer Brown

Spencer R. Brown is a sophomore experiencing their first year at Lawrence University, with a major in Government. They work as a media and marketing assistant in the Career Center, and curates articles for students in both Communication, Journalism & Written Arts (#CJW) and Government, Law & International Relations (#GLI) career communities. A writer and animator by trade, Spencer is fascinated in finding ways to make digesting information entertaining. Feel free to connect with them on LinkedIn here!

Librarians

When you think of Librarians, an image of an old woman who barks orders at children and hates fun might come to mind. Actually, it is quite the opposite, as librarians can be anyone of any age with a drive of, as US News puts it, “intellectual exploration”. If you have a lifelong love of learning and want to make a living off of that, the position of librarian is definitely up your alley.

It is important to know that becoming a librarian is not easy.  In addition to an undergraduate degree, librarians are required to get an MLS (or Master in Library Sciences) from an American Library Association-accredited program.  Most MLS programs are two years in length. 

On the job, librarians do much more than just stock bookshelves and order books. Librarians connect people to information and technology, they are knowledgeable in website creation, social media management, and they digitally archive works such as art and literature. As mentioned earlier, being a librarian also involves a lifelong love of learning, and there is a lot of learning on the job involved.  Librarians should also enjoy working with people, as in the end, being a librarian is a service job.

Being a librarian also comes with a lot of flexibility and freedom, where you can choose what projects you want to start. Laura Robinson, the librarian at Clark University, told US News that “As a librarian for over 20 years my day-to-day work changes on a regular basis,” and the job refuses to get old.

There are many places to work as a librarian. There are libraries everywhere, from public and academic institutions, to hospitals, businesses, and museums. There are also many different requirements to work as a librarian.  In Idaho, Librarians don’t need state certification, while in Connecticut, you need an MLS to work in any city with more than five-thousand people, and in communities with less than five-thousand people, as long as you have some “demonstrable training in library science”, you are able to become a librarian. EveryLibraryInstitute.org has a great article featuring states with different stipulations to become and stay a librarian.

Being a librarian is a position with plenty of rules to follow, but once you follow them, you can turn the role entirely into your own. It’s a job that twists and turns so often, it’s hard to be bored and to lose interest, and you yourself control those twists and turns. If you have interest in becoming a librarian, the best way to get involved is to work right here at the Lawrence library, either as a shelver or at the circulation desk. That way, you can network and get some good library experience that might be useful towards your certification!

https://www.ala.org/educationcareers/libcareers/become

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/career-development/how-to-become-a-librarian

https://www.everylibraryinstitute.org/requirements_to_become_a_librarian_by_state

https://www.usnews.com/education/best-graduate-schools/articles/what-library-science-is-and-how-to-become-a-librarian

Spencer R. Brown is a sophomore experiencing their first year at Lawrence University, with a major in Government. They work as a Marketing and Media Assistant in the Career Center and creates content for students in both Communication, Journalism & Written Arts (#CJW) and Government, Law & International Relations (#GLI) career communities. A writer and animator by trade, Spencer is fascinated in finding ways to make digesting information entertaining. Feel free to connect with them on LinkedIn here!

Meeting and Event Coordinators

Whenever you think of event planning or coordinating, the first thing that pops into your mind might be “aren’t those the people that make weddings happen?” While you are technically right, there are other types of event coordinators whose scope of work exceeds a wedding.  One of these is a Corporate Meeting and Event Coordinator.  This position is vital to making sure office and organization events go smoothly.  The other role is that of a Personal Event Coordinator.   Personal Event Coordinators organize personal events like family reunions, retreats, and, celebrations like, yes- weddings. Opportunities for both of these careers are growing incredibly rapidly, in fact, faster than most occupations, so it is very enticing for recent graduates, especially as a starting position.  The pay is on the low end when starting, but the most successful event planners can make seven-figure salaries.

Corporate Meeting and Event Coordinators, self-explanatorily, arrange times for live and virtual meetings, for organizations and clients.  They check technology and registration and make sure everything is accounted for. Some event coordinating can be grander, such as organizing company outings and celebrations, which calls for more moving components like budgeting for meals and/or desserts, decorations, and perhaps a venue.

Personal Event Coordinators may have broader range of responsibility. They can help organizations with events if the organization does not have a designated event coordinator in-house, but they also work with individuals who feel they need help with a birthday party or that wedding. Planning meals/desserts, finding decorations, and a reserving a venue are tasks that are usually part of the job.  Other tasks could include sending proper invitations and organizing transportation and accommodations. Here, the event coordinator may also be in charge of coordinating what to do in a day, depending on the clients’ wishes.

To become a meeting and event coordinator, most employers would prefer a candidate to have a bachelor’s degree in communications or a related field. Certifications for event coordinating can also be helpful.

https://www.bls.gov/ooh/business-and-financial/meeting-convention-and-event-planners.htm

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/event-planner

https://www.salary.com/research/jobs/meeting-event-planner-jobs/wi

https://www.indeed.com/career-advice/finding-a-job/event-coordinator-vs-event-planner

Spencer R. Brown is a sophomore experiencing their first year at Lawrence University, with a major in Government. They work as the Marketing and Media Assistant in the Career Center and creates content for students in both Communication, Journalism & Written Arts (#CJW) and Government, Law & International Relations (#GLI) career communities. A writer and animator by trade, Spencer is fascinated in finding ways to make digesting information entertaining. Feel free to connect with them on LinkedIn here!