Television-Tv News

Getting the read that you want

Fri, 06 Jan 2012 13:58

Marice Tobias coaching voice artists

A diminutive figure in top-to-toe black from New York, who has directed the likes of the late Marlon Brando, proved a masterful presence at the recent PromaxBDA Africa in Johannesburg, as she guided six local actors to deliver the ideal promo read.

“The one note I give to my actors is – too much work in the work gets in the way of the message. So, take the work out of the work and find an affinity in your mind for the promo topic. An actor has to work from a base of emotional truth,” said Marice Tobias of Tobias Entertainment Group.

Tobias should know what she is talking about – her clients range from The Tonight Show, Dr Phil, The Doctors, Discovery Networks, BBC, VH1, History, NASCAR, WTN / Canada and PBS. She was the first woman to direct commercials in the US and the first woman director to receive a Clio Award.

PromaxBDA Africa was Tobias’ first trip south of the equator. “Whenever I travel I find that the cultural conversation is the same no matter where you are. Directing actors is not a case of telling them what to do – it’s all about putting them in a state of mind, a conversational state of mind.

“An actor’s voice in a promo is the promise of an experience that the viewer will have. It’s the same end game – the feeling of how you will feel when you watch the show. The actor’s voice tantalises the viewer and promises what the altered state of life will be once he watches the programme.

“When casting an actor for a promo you have to find an emotional match. The choice of actor has to do with the programme mission statement and which feeling you want to evoke.”

Tobias maintained that an actor is far more concerned with the opinions of his peers than with those of other people.

“You have to allow for the fact that actors are nervous because they want to prove you were right to hire them,” continued Tobias. “So let them blow it out and ask them to read through a couple of lines. If the actor is reading a promo about a documentary or travel programme on China and he’s never been to China, you will hear that in his voice. The actor’s voice must reflect an affinity for the subject matter. So he must imagine a place he has been to and likes when reading the China promo.

“Remember that if you give notes to the actor in between readings the ball will fall on the ground. When you hire a talent you’re not buying their voice but their point of view and how they see the world.”

During the session each of the six local actors read three promos each in front of hundreds of conference delegates, who heard a discernible difference in performance once they took Tobias’ advice.

« go back