Greetings from far south Texas

rdsmith · 11-06-2007, 01:20 PM

Hi everyone,

Roger Smith here. New to the forum. Greetings from far far south Texas. I'm in McAllen (in the middle of the Rio Grande Valley), that's about as far south as you can get before crossing the border. Originally from Oklahoma. Did live in L. A. (Burbank) in the early 90's. Prior background in sales and commercial photography (once managed pro sales at the old - now gone - Pan Pacific Camera on La Brea in Hollywood).

I've posted twice before on the new products to review forum. Thought I'd introduce myself to everyone here.

New to the V/O world. Got involved while working as a ghostwriter for a publisher friend in Oklahoma. She suggested I voice & produce the audio-book version of the manuscript I was working on for her.

Those are all small books for the Christian market. Small distribution, ultra low budget. Since then I've produced five and am finishing up my sixth right now. That said I'm still learning!

Wanting to take advantage of what little experience I've had with audio-books and transition into voice-overs.

What little instruction has come from Dan Balestrero's CD/workbook set "Mastering the Art of Voiceovers" and Pat Fraley's "Billion $ Read". Hungry for training and materials (as the budget allows).

I've read that it takes (I think I have this right) 1,000 hours working at something to gain competence at it, 5,000 hours to achieve mastery, and 10,000 hours to become a virtuoso.

That marks me as a rank beginner, even after several projects in the can. Hungry for input and advice. I'm enjoying how welcoming everyone is on this forum.

Roger Smith

Sameera · 11-06-2007, 04:57 PM

Hey Roger, welcome to the forums and the VO industry!
If those numbers you gave out were correct, then I think the only thing I'm extremly skilled at is eating and sleeping... :)

Good luck!

JoeActor · 11-07-2007, 02:19 PM

Hi Roger - nice to meet you!

I miss that Texas BBQ and steaks...

Welcome aboard,
Joe J Thomas
Joe J. Thomas Acting Portfolio

AlanSimmons · 11-08-2007, 09:31 AM

Roger,

Greetings from the bustling metropolis of Bentonville, AR! Looking forward to hearing more from you on the forum...

~Alan

chucktaylor · 11-08-2007, 10:04 AM

I miss the South Texas Coastline (not the hurricanes tho) and the great South Texas Mexican food! Not as much good Mexican food in DFW as there was in Corpus Christi!

rdsmith · 11-08-2007, 03:28 PM

Thanks to all for reading my post. Appreciate the warm welcome.

To Alan, I'm originally from Tulsa - It could be a good regional market for you to work, it's fairly close to where you live.

And Joe, when I lived in Burbank I remember a decent barbque place around and up the hill in Sunland called Love's.

Roger

11-06-2007, 01:20 PM	#1 (permalink)
rdsmith User Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 13	Greetings from far south Texas Hi everyone, Roger Smith here. New to the forum. Greetings from far far south Texas. I'm in McAllen (in the middle of the Rio Grande Valley), that's about as far south as you can get before crossing the border. Originally from Oklahoma. Did live in L. A. (Burbank) in the early 90's. Prior background in sales and commercial photography (once managed pro sales at the old - now gone - Pan Pacific Camera on La Brea in Hollywood). I've posted twice before on the new products to review forum. Thought I'd introduce myself to everyone here. New to the V/O world. Got involved while working as a ghostwriter for a publisher friend in Oklahoma. She suggested I voice & produce the audio-book version of the manuscript I was working on for her. Those are all small books for the Christian market. Small distribution, ultra low budget. Since then I've produced five and am finishing up my sixth right now. That said I'm still learning! Wanting to take advantage of what little experience I've had with audio-books and transition into voice-overs. What little instruction has come from Dan Balestrero's CD/workbook set "Mastering the Art of Voiceovers" and Pat Fraley's "Billion $ Read". Hungry for training and materials (as the budget allows). I've read that it takes (I think I have this right) 1,000 hours working at something to gain competence at it, 5,000 hours to achieve mastery, and 10,000 hours to become a virtuoso. That marks me as a rank beginner, even after several projects in the can. Hungry for input and advice. I'm enjoying how welcoming everyone is on this forum. Roger Smith

11-06-2007, 04:57 PM	#2 (permalink)
Sameera User Join Date: Aug 2007 Posts: 51	Hey Roger, welcome to the forums and the VO industry! If those numbers you gave out were correct, then I think the only thing I'm extremly skilled at is eating and sleeping... :) Good luck! __________________ Sameera Assistant to Julie Williams "Voice-Over Chocolate" Last edited by Sameera; 11-06-2007 at 07:02 PM.

11-08-2007, 09:31 AM	#4 (permalink)
AlanSimmons AlanSimmons Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Northwest Arkansas Posts: 156	Roger, Greetings from the bustling metropolis of Bentonville, AR! Looking forward to hearing more from you on the forum... ~Alan __________________ Alan Simmons the studio of alan simmons

11-08-2007, 10:04 AM	#5 (permalink)
chucktaylor This is NOT here! Join Date: Oct 2007 Location: Ft. Worth, TX Posts: 184	I miss the South Texas Coastline (not the hurricanes tho) and the great South Texas Mexican food! Not as much good Mexican food in DFW as there was in Corpus Christi! __________________ Chuck Taylor *Taylor Made Productions* "For audio that fits like a shoe!" chuck.taylor@texascountdown.com

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11-07-2007, 02:19 PM	#3 (permalink)
JoeActor Administrator Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Los Angeles, CA Posts: 1,531	Hi Roger - nice to meet you! I miss that Texas BBQ and steaks... Welcome aboard, Joe J Thomas Joe J. Thomas Acting Portfolio

11-08-2007, 03:28 PM	#6 (permalink)
rdsmith User Join Date: Oct 2007 Posts: 13	Thanks to all for reading my post. Appreciate the warm welcome. To Alan, I'm originally from Tulsa - It could be a good regional market for you to work, it's fairly close to where you live. And Joe, when I lived in Burbank I remember a decent barbque place around and up the hill in Sunland called Love's. Roger