"Having worked professionally as an actor for 19 years, I have a strong understanding of the demands and the requirements of both the acting and voiceover industries. Voice reels produced at SonicPond are tailored specifically for various needs, whether it be acquiring a voiceover agent, updating your old reel, or targeting a specific voice job. " - Martin Fisher

consultation
Initially, actors are invited to the studio for a consultation, where we can discuss the kind of voicereel you want, and talk about the balance of pieces needed to play to your strengths most successfully. I can guide you through the whole process of choosing pieces, or simply provide you with all the material if desired. (Many actors enjoy personally tailoring the choice of pieces for the reel with my guidance). It also gives the actor a chance to get a sense of the space they will be working in, and to meet me (and vice versa), so that once recording begins in earnest they hopefully will be relaxed and confident enough to create their strongest work. (and have fun doing it!) The way the reel normally breaks down in terms of pieces is described here.

recording
We try to make all reels as unique and personal to the actor as possible. All material used will be original pieces devised between myself and the actor, or adapted from existing material taken from numerous sources, such as recent magazines and newspapers, online script sites and even YouTube. Recording will be done over one full 6 hour day, so that there is no pressure to get everything 'first take'. The key to a successful reel is confidence, time, and meaningful direction. I approach each reel with the same attitude as if it were my own, and painlessly coach you through the whole process, however little experience you may have. We also have an extensive, searchable database of high quality Hollywood sound effects and music to enhance the soundscape of your final reel, as our aim is always to make each reel sound as dynamic and captivating as possible.

the finished product
The final reel will contain 8 to 10 pieces, made up of a mixture of commercials, straight reads from fiction, poetry, documentary and character/drama pieces, and will include any accents or vocal talents that you feel you can present well (see here for suggestions of the kind of material to look for). A dynamic 1:30 minute montage of the pieces will kick off the reel. We can also work to provide you with four 30 second clips for your online Spotlight page (free with the full voicereel package), and a Radio drama audition cd if required (for only £50 extra). Listen to examples here

When we edit your reel, we 'comp' (compile) each piece from the best versions of each take, often using different lines from many different takes to reach a final 'perfect' version. We then add carefully chosen music and sound fx to enhance the final sound, creating a 'straight from the radio' feel, and finally edit the highlights of all the pieces into the montage. We then upload all your material onto our server, so that you can then review and approve your performance and the order of the pieces, from the comfort of your own home, before we send out your finished cds.

Several professionally edited & fully labeled CDs of the final reel will be provided as needed, including a Spotlight clips cd if required, at no extra cost, and possibly an extra Radio Drama audition cd (optional, £50). (Digital media options also available - MP3, RealMedia, etc, also at no extra cost). As standard, we include on the cd label an itemisation of the pieces, including length, style/type etc, all relevant contact details, and your photo/headshot of choice. (see examples here)

If you would prefer a 'discounted' cost reel, or just a cd of clips for your Spotlight online CV, we can try to provide you with a reduced quote by recording fewer pieces, or working to a shorter time frame. Feel free to contact us about this.

previous clients
Many of our clients have gone on to acquire Voice agents, and worked extensively and successfully in the voiceover industry. Have a look at the column on the right to see a few of our most successful clients, who they signed up with, and listen to a few examples of the reels they recorded here

foreign language reels
SonicPond has a great deal of experience recording in languages other than English, and will be happy to provide foreign language actors with the same level quality of voicereel. We have so far recorded reels in Welsh, Dutch, French, German, Spanish, Italian, Portugese, Swedish, Romanian, Polish, Hindi, and even Yiddish!
(click on language name to hear an example of each)