a memorable voice acting workshop
With only an illustration and some text, Jonathan Cormur (Murphy) was challenged to quickly develop a voice to perform at the voice acting workshop taught by Bob Bergen. First one up to give it a go…first take…and Bob replies,
You’re just not one of us, are you? Wow…dude… that was awesome!
The entire session took nine minutes and the finished product, according to Bergen, “was perfecto.” Bob Bergen is a veteran voice actor voice has been heard in hundreds of commercials, animated features, interactive games, and for over 20 years, he’s been the voice of Porky Pig (originated by Mel Blanc) for Cartoon Network’s The Looney Tunes Show.
Lucky for us, their sessions together were recorded! It’s an opportunity to listen in on Bob’s positive, and straight-forward teaching style and hear how Jonathan takes direction to quickly nuance a performance.
In this audio clip, Jonathan interprets lines as an ice monster and Bob offers directions that adds depth to his delivery of this character. Jonathan’s final take is sinister and frightful. Listen to the session to hear how Bob and the group respond:
Next, Jonathan does a quick character take from a script read with feedback from Bob. Throughout, Bob asks him questions about the character’s backstory and challenges Jonathan to add new layers to his performance. Listen to the coaching and how Jonathan changes his delivery of the character’s lines depending upon Bob’s directions:
“You never stop learning,” says Jonathan. So, from the beginning of his career to the present day, Jonathan continues to study his craft and grow his skills as a voice talent. In addition to Bob Bergen, Jonathan has been coached by:
- Elaine Clark – Producer, director, casting, coaching, author
- Cristina Milizia – Bilingual singing voice actor who’s in toys and cartoons
- Everett Oliver – Professional directing for voice over auditions
- Mick Wingert – Voice actor, director, coach
- Brian Sommer – Voice actor best known for video games
- Richard Horvitz – Character actor and coach
- Jared Gertner – Film, TV, and musical theater actor (best known for his work on Broadway and the West End)
He’s attended classes and workshops from such industry notables as Ned Lott, Collette Sunderman, Terry McGovern, Holly Dorff and other voice and industry professionals through Voice One in San Francisco and the Global Voice Acting Academy.
Leave a Reply