PANA Responds to Publisher’s Weekly, New NHL Voice, Netflix Dubs

Hi there and welcome to Vox Talk, your weekly review from the world of voice over. I’m Stephanie Ciccarelli from Voices. In today’s show, you’ll hear the Professional Audiobook Narrators Association’s answer to Publisher’s Weekly, discover ESPN’s new official voice of the NHL, how foreign language shows are helping Netflix to succeed, Scripts Out Loud’s first birthday, Sing 2 with Bono and an inspiring message in the Vox Talk Community Spotlight.

News 1: Professional Narrators Respond to Publisher’s Weekly

Remember that piece from Publisher’s Weekly we covered last week? Since that article was published and episode 96 reached your podcast app, professional narrators around the world have been raising their voices in support of human narration.

The Professional Audiobook Narrators Association (also called PANA) took to Twitter to mobilize their following of narrators, authors, bookworms and audiobook pros to share about the power of the human voice and how it has made a difference in their lives.

A widely shared tweet from PANA reads, “To replace the human voice with a machine is to deny literature its power.”

At the time of recording, the tweet has been retweeted 242 times, quoted 70 times and liked 418 times.

Formed this year, the Professional Audiobook Narrators Association’s mission is to advocate for the common, collective business interests of professional audiobook narrators.

Vox Talk received an audio statement from Emily Lawrence, co-founder and board chair of The Professional Audiobook Narrators Association in response to the article from Publisher’s Weekly. Let’s take a listen.

Audio Statement from Emily Lawrence of The Professional Audiobook Narrators Association:

The narrator community was deeply hurt and rightly outraged by Publisher’s Weekly’s article. We understand why news media and the public would be interested in the topic of artificially narrated audiobooks, but to do so without a single perspective from someone actually working in the industry or without any mention of the real concerns this technology presents was irresponsible. We hope that any future articles on the subject will give this topic the balance and nuance it truly deserves. On a positive note, this article, and the community response to it, clearly demonstrate the power of collective action. The tweet we made in response to the article was seen over 200,000 times clearly showing that when we stand together, our voices and message become amplified. We hope you’ll continue to stand with us in support of human narrators and the stories we bring to life.

To learn more, you can follow PANA on Twitter with the handle ProNarrators or visit their website at ProNarrators.org

News 2: Cayman Kelly, New Official Voice of the NHL on ESPN

Acclaimed radio personality and voiceover artist Cayman Kelly announced that he had recently inked a deal to expand his coverage and serve also as ESPN's official voice for the NHL.
ESPN's parent company Walt Disney announced in March that it had secured a seven-year rights agreement with the NHL beginning with the 2021-22 season. The deal allows ESPN or ABC to show 25 games and half of the playoffs each season, Stanley Cup finals in four of the seven years, along with many other games via streaming.

Representing a return by the league to ESPN after being absent for over a decade, the network plans to use the opportunity to broadly expand its streaming plans: offering NHL games via ESPN+ and Hulu, streaming more than 1,100 regular-season games.

Kelly's smooth, professional sound will soon be instantly recognized by NHL fans across the country.

Will you be tuning in? If you’re a fan of Cayman Kelly, be sure to send him a hearty congratulations!

News 3: How Foreign-Language Shows are Helping Netflix Succeed

What does it take for a streaming service to stand out from the crowd? Netflix seems to have found a competitive advantage thanks to dubbing.

According to MakeUseOf.com, the inclusion of local-language programming has been at the center of Netflix's approach to global reach.

To expand Netflix subscribers to more areas of the world, films and shows from places like Spain, Germany, France, and Korea have all been released to huge success. Not only do these films and shows have success in their home countries, but they have also hit it big with international audiences as well.

In 2020, the commitment to foreign content has led to the biggest subscriber growth Netflix has ever seen, with over 200 million active watchers. More than 60% of that total came from countries outside the US.

While dubbing is popular, there is definitely an audience that prefers subtitles over foreign-language dubbing. Recently, I posted to my LinkedIn on the topic and was surprised to see how many people preferred subtitles to dubbing, with most who feel that way citing that the dialogue in dubbed productions often loses its original meaning in order to line up with the pacing and phrasing of the on-camera actor or character. When a voice actor dubs, they need to be saying their lines at exactly the same time as the actor on-screen, matching lip flaps and communicating dialogue that makes sense to the viewing audience, as not all sayings translate precisely from one language to another. And that’s not even to get into the fact that some languages take more words than others to express the same idea.

So, what do you think? Do you prefer subtitles or dubbing? Be sure to join the conversation on LinkedIn and see what others are saying. You’ll find the link in the show notes.

News 4: Scripts Out Loud Turns 1

Do you enjoy a good table read? Scripts Out Loud, operated by Julie-Ann Dean and Rhian Marston-Jones in the UK, is about to celebrate their first birthday on November 30, 2021 and they’re doing it in style.

The event promises to be more than just a birthday party. There will be a mini Scripts Out Loud event - live and in-person, directed by Emmy award winner Sharon Miller (who won an Emmy award for The Adventures of Paddington). Now this will be followed by an interview and questions and answers period with Sharon who will talk about her experience and the importance of character within animation.

There will also be plenty of time to network with fellow producers, writers, actors and other animation industry colleagues, as well as a live DJ and dancing.

For the last year, Scripts Out Loud has been a place for writers of children’s animation scripts to hear their words brought to life and voice actors to get to do what they love best by creating characters. It’s also a venue where producers may find a new hidden gem.

In addition to connecting writers, voice actors and producers in delightful events like the ones described, Scripts Out Loud offers assistance in the development of rich and relatable characters that truly connect with children and bring a writer’s script to life.

To attend the birthday party, get your ticket on Eventbrite. To learn more or to get involved, visit ScriptsOutLoud.com

Scripts Out Loud Promo video

News 5: U2 And ‘Sing’ 2 Collaborate With Education Through Music For ‘Your Song Saved My Life’ Video

Do you remember the animated feature film, Sing? A sequel is on its way.

As reported by uDiscover Music, in advance of Sing 2, Illumination, Universal Pictures and Republic Records have joined forces with U2 to support nonprofit organization Education Through Music (ETM)—which provides music as a core subject for all children in under-resourced schools across North America.

As part of this partnership, Education Through Music figures prominently in the music video for the first release from the Sing 2 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack, U2’s “Your Song Saved My Life.”

The engaging video was directed by Aya Tanimura and stars students and teachers from the ETM program. Voiceovers and subtitles tell their stories of finding support, strength and joy in music and underlines the importance of the organization’s mission to provide thousands of children in under-resourced schools across America with access to a high-quality music education.

The Sing 2 Original Motion Picture Soundtrack is set to be released Friday December 17, 2021. This soundtrack accompanies the release of Sing 2, which opens in American theaters on December 22, 2021.

“Your Song Saved My Life” marks the first new music from U2 since 2019. Bono, lead singer of U2, makes his animated film debut in Sing 2 as the voice of Clay Calloway. The band are very familiar with creating original songs for film, having received two Academy Award nominations for Best Original Song among their many honors over the years.

Vox Talk Community Spotlight: Extroverts in Studio with Marco Cammarota

Stephanie Ciccarelli: Welcome to the Vox Talk Community Spotlight! Do you ever find yourself itching to get outside of your studio? If so, you might be an extrovert! Marco Cammarota joins us today to share how he finds ways to stay energized even when working at home, alone.

Marco Cammarota: Hey everybody, so great to be here! My name is Marco Cammarota. I am an opera singer turned voice actor. It’s my two-year anniversary as of November 11th; I’m very excited. Moving into year 3 and excited for what’s to come. I wanted to talk about being an extrovert in an isolating environment. Voice over as we know gives us a lot of freedom but at sometimes, it can be difficult to be alone all the time. So while I don’t have a ton of tips as I navigate this, I would say the most important thing is to be not afraid to reach out to people. Reach out to new connections on LinkedIn, reach out to other voice actors, reach out to your friends and family and just touch base. Don’t be alone all the time. I spend most of my day, my phone is right next to me, and while I do have periods of intense focus, I believe it’s important to be in communication with people. I thrive off of others and while I can’t see them in person, I like to think that even being able to reach out to them on social media, having a discussion about the business, talking about life, the things that are bothering us, whatever, that’s a really important thing, so don’t be afraid to reach out to people and meet new people. Grabbing coffee with strangers over the Internet has honestly been one of the best parts about this whole pandemic or whatever we want to, you know, say about it, it’s been rough and good and bad, but getting coffee with strangers and getting coffee with friends even if it’s virtually has made this whole experience a little bit more tolerable, so I would encourage you to do that as well. Thank you so much!

Stephanie Ciccarelli: Marco, thank you so much for sharing. I can totally relate as an extrovert and I think a lot of people listening can, too. Making connections and staying connected is so important and that’s one of the reasons why we do this show is that we can have connection with each other and be in community.
Wrap Up

Well, that’s how we saw the world through the lens of voice over this week. Thank you for joining us and for staying subscribed! A hearty welcome to any new listeners and a friendly hello to those who have been companions on our voice over journey for some time. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to give us a feedback rating and review so that others can find Vox Talk and experience community with us as well. I’m your host, Stephanie Ciccarelli from Voices. Looking forward to seeing you next week.