Are voice actors now expected to be on call 24/7, travel with gear everywhere they go, and never miss an audition?
That's the question audiobook and narration voice actor Amy Tallmadge brought to Marc Scott after hearing some interesting conversations at VO Atlanta - and the answer might give you permission to actually enjoy your next vacation.
Marc gives his honest take on whether the industry has genuinely changed its expectations, or whether something else is really driving the always-on mentality that so many voice actors feel.
Inside this episode:
- Whether the 24/7 on-call expectation is a real industry shift or mostly FOMO in disguise
- Which voiceover genres actually do have higher availability requirements - and why commercial in general is not one of them
- The grocery store story - how FOMO over missed auditions drove Marc off pay-to-play sites entirely
- How early delivery built Marc's business fast - and what the old guard had to say about it
- Whether casting directors really listen to every audition - and what that means for the ones you submit late
- Marc's practical travel kit setup for when you do want to record on the road
- Why Amy's return to commercial VO may have fewer barriers than she thinks
You get to decide what kind of voice actor career you want to build. This episode is a reminder that the industry isn't taking that choice away from you.
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CONNECT WITH AMY TALLMADGE
🖱️ Amy Tallmadge Website - https://amytallmadge.com
🖱️ Amy Tallmadge on Instagram - https://instagram.com/amytallmadge
🖱️ Amy Tallmadge on Blue Sky - https://bsky.app/profile/amytallmadge.bsky.social Z
🖱️ Any Tallmadge on LinkedIn - https://www.linkedin.com/in/amyltall
🖱️ Marc Scott on Instagram - https://instagram.com/marcscott
🖱️ Marc Scott on YouTube - https://youtube.com/@MarcScottVO
🖱️ VOpreneur® on YouTube - https://youtube.com/@vopreneur
RESOURCES FOR VOICE ACTORS
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00:00 Summer Series intro
00:19 Amy's question - do voice actors have to be on call 24/7?
01:16 On call to the voiceover gods - Marc's take
01:43 How fast delivery built Marc's early business
03:59 Joe Cipriano and the promo VO reality
04:41 FOMO vs actual industry expectation
06:02 What Marc's agents actually require
07:05 Phone auditions and recording quality on the road
09:57 Automotive and political VO - the real exceptions
12:20 Genre determines the expectation
13:11 Does the early bird really get the worm?
14:36 Marc's travel gear setup
15:37 The tri-booth at the mother-in-law's
16:54 Why Marc quit pay-to-play casting sites
18:18 If you need travel gear, that's a good problem to have
19:15 Amy's return to commercial VO
20:26 You decide - bagged milk at 3am
23:14 Every talent builds the career they want