He emailed this morning with links to a couple of videos he did for Back Stage magazine. If you are a newbie to the voice acting business, Marc has some good pointers for you.

I always find it interesting which ads are remembered and liked by folks versus which spots viewers  actually recall what product or service was being touted.  They are not necessarily the same. We all capture information differently.

Ad Age magazine has it’s annual Nielson report on likability vs. brand recall for this year’s crop of Super Bowl ads here.

Marc is an L.A. based voice talent, director, writer and commercial producer. He is coming to Dallas to conduct a workshop the weekend of February 12-13 at CakeMix Recording.

Marc works on both sides of the glass both as a talent and as a producer and has done so for many years. I’m looking forward to what he has to teach us from that point of view.

Oh, and we are going to get a report card at the end of the class.  I wonder whom I’ll  have to show it to and get it signed.  My agents? Does this mean I’ll actually have to pay attention? Crap.

Kidding aside, here’s an email he sent yesterday with details of the class:

There are still a few seats left
in my two intensive 1-day V-O workshops for
Beginners/Intermediates and Advanced/Working pros!
Limit: just ten people for each workshop.
Here’s the info:

Beginners/Intermediates
“The ‘Cashman Cache’ Commercial V-O Workshop”
Saturday, February 12th, 2011, 10A-6P
at Cakemix Recording

Just four seats left!

Just getting started?
My direction and instruction will kick-start your V-O experience,
laying the strong foundation that every voice actor needs.
If you’re an Intermediate student and have a few V-O courses under your belt,
I’ll help you on your way to achieving solid competence in voice acting,
giving you the tools to diminish or eliminate your weaknesses and maximize your strengths!
With my proven, practical techniques, you’ll learn to:

*Find your signature voice
*Sound conversational
*Size up a script in 60 seconds or less

All with exercises designed to prepare you for the real world of voice-over.
And of course, time will be set aside at the end for Q&A.
You’ll also get the famous “Cashman Cache” V-O Report Card, an X-ray of your abilities,
where you’ll be graded on a 1-10 scale in eight critical V-O categories.

Advanced/Working Pro Master Class:
“Are You As Good As Your Demo?”
Sunday, Feb. 13th, 2011, 10A-6P
at Cakemix Recording

Just three seats left!

Got a bunch of classes under your belt?
Got a V-O demo or ready to make one?
Auditioning and/or working part-time or full-time?
I’ll help you hone your talent and give you the tools and confidence you need
to catapult your performances to the next level and book more V-O jobs!
And if you have a demo, the question will be answered in this humbling workshop:
Are you as good as your demo?
This workshop will be highly individualized, cover multiple genres,
will concentrate on the acting part of voice acting, and will reveal:

* The tricks for great self-direction
*How to submit stand out, winning auditions
*How to discern your target audience instantly
and much, much more.

Plus, the famous “Cashman Cache” V-O Report Card is included.
What do you think your GPA will be?
And there’ll be no wasted time rehearsing in this workshop.
I’ll be sending you your scripts (and tons of materials) ahead of time, before class starts,
so you’ll be ready to hit the ground running.
If you want to experience a fun, challenging, rigorous V-O workshop,
this is the one to mark your calendar in 2011.

But don’t take my word for it.
Read the testimonials in the attachment!
Dozens of my students are currently working full-time in voiceover,
AND LOVING IT!

Breakfast, Lunch and Snacks included!
Just $350.
No VISA, AMEX or Paypal or cash–sorry.
Checks, money orders or postal orders fine.
Call or email me to reserve your seat before it’s gone!
And contact me with any questions anytime.
I look forward to seeing you in Dallas!

P.S. If you know of anyone in or near Dallas who’d be interested,
please forward this email!

Sincerely,
Marc Cashman
661-222-9300
cashcomm@earthlink.net
www.cashmancommercials.com

Representing the fashion world,  Margo was very nicely dressed at the session, workaday chic, as you see in a couple of shots of her in the film.

Representing the voice-over world,  I was dressed more like a hobo.

Phat Albert – Documentary about Photographer Albert Watson from Chris Rupert on Vimeo.

The 15 minute full length documentary of Master Photographer, Albert Watson shooting the legendary Neiman Marcus Fall 2010 ‘Art of Fashion’ campaign. The piece is the first ever presentation of Watson on set – with exclusive interviews and insight to all that goes into creating this iconic campaign.

15 Min Version with in-depth interviews of Albert Watson.

Directed by: Margo Weathers
Filmed & Edited by: Chris Rupert
Production by: Stacy Volgwell

See end credits for complete list.

“Every job is a self portrait of the person who does it. Autograph your work with excellence”-Anon

Source Connect allows you to connect to another studio that also has the software or to a bridging service that facilitates a hookup to an ISDN equipped studio, all via the Internet tubes.

But here’s the problem. The Internet speed needs to be fast and steady.  Firewalls can be an issue.  All of which is pretty easy to deal with at home, but when traveling, one is often at the mercy of whatever flavor of Internet connection provided by the hotel, (or the WiFi at Aunt Molly’s.)

George Whittam of El Dorado Recording has a great blog post that provides a check list for the traveling voice actor who uses Source Connect.  George provides bridging services between SC and ISDN and knows first hand the problems you can run in to.

Thanks George, for some really useful information.

You’ll get more details here.

That is all.

Marice is one of the finest voice over coaches in the business today. She has helped my work tremendously.  Find details  here about the retreat and what to expect.

In this case, what goes on in Las Vegas shouldn’t stay in Vegas. Take it home in your head and in your heart.

Kevin has details here.