What Is Voice Acting?

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Think about your favorite video games or animated TV shows.Voice actors were essential to all of them. If you have strong or interesting vocal skills, you could follow in their footsteps, but it’s a good idea to know a few things about the industry before you start down that path.

What is voice acting?

2Voice acting is a performance art where actors use their own voices to entertain,narrate,ormarketproducts forcommercials1commercial（电视或广播里的）商业广告。, animation,audiobooks, video games, and educational content.Inaddition todoing impressions2impression（对某人言谈举止的）滑稽模仿。,mimicry, or character voices,a voice actor must also possess acting skills. Since voice actors are rarely seen on-screen, their voice is their only means of expressing their emotions.

3Voice acting requires the ability to change inflections3inflection 语调的抑扬变化。, provide different deliveries, enunciate impeccably, and alter your tone to get the necessary performance for the program or soundbite.Aspiring, intermediate, and veteran actors must train and practice religiously4religiously 很有规律地，十分认真地。,always improving their vocal skills to deliver the best performance possible.Many professional voice-over artists set up a soundproof home studio to record,audition, or practice.

想一想你最喜欢的电子游戏或动画电视节目。配音演员对它们而言是不可或缺的。如果你有突出或有趣的发声技能，也可以做同样的工作。不过，在你踏上配音演员这条路前，了解这个行业的一些情况是个好主意。

什么是配音？

2配音是一种表演艺术，演员用自己的声音为广告、动画、有声书、电子游戏和教育内容配音，激发受众兴趣、录制画外音或营销产品。配音演员除了进行滑稽模仿、声音模拟和角色配音外，还必须掌握表演技巧。由于配音演员很少出现在屏幕上，声音是其表达情感的唯一途径。

3配音需要多种能力——变换语调、演绎不同的表演风格、准确无误地发音，以及改变语气以获得节目或话语片段所必需的表现效果。有志入行的、中等水平的和资深的配音演员都必须不断训练，持续提高他们的发声技能，从而尽可能地实现最佳表演效果。很多职业画外音艺术家会配备一个隔音的家庭工作室来录音、试音或练习。

A brief history of voice acting

4The art of voiceover began in 1906 with Canadian inventor Reginald Fessenden. He was the first person to broadcast over radio, in this case a Christmas compilation of music, festive messages, and Bible verses.

5The next milestone in voice acting history is Walt Disney’s 1928 portrayal of Mickey Mouse5米奇的第一任配音是华特·迪士尼本人。他最后一次为米奇配音的电影是1847 年迪士尼推出的第9 部经典动画《米奇与魔豆》（Fun and Fancy Free），这是他最后一次在电影中为米奇配音。inSteamboat Willie. The fame of both figures at the time made the occasion quite momentous and paved the way for modern animation,starting with the likes ofLooney Tunes6华纳兄弟早期推出的卡通系列之一，其中的著名角色包括兔八哥、达菲鸭。.

6Since these landmark broadcasts,the voiceover industry has boomed through every imaginable media that needs recitation. Other sectors connected to voice acting—technology, marketing, customer service—also evolved with and because of it.

配音简史

4画外音艺术起源于1906年，由加拿大发明家雷金纳德·费森登创立。他是第一个通过无线电进行广播的人，在1906 年这第一次广播中，他播放了一份由音乐、节日祝福和《圣经》节选组成的圣诞专辑。

5配音艺术史上的第二个里程碑事件是1928 年《威利号汽船》中华特·迪士尼对米老鼠的塑造。迪士尼和米老鼠在当时声名大噪，使有声动画备受瞩目，为以《乐一通》及类似影片为开端的现代动画铺平了道路。

6从这些具有里程碑意义的节目开始，各种可以想见的需要朗诵的媒介带火了配音业。与配音相关的其他行业——技术、营销、客户服务——也受其促动，随之发展起来。

唐·拉方丹

Famous voices

7Don LaFontaine was a juggernaut7juggernaut 强大的力量。of the business, specializing in commercials and trailers. If you want voice acting tips in these categories, make sure to check out any of his thousands of credits. Just look for the phrases “In a world...” and “the voice of God”.

8Mel Blanc was the first voice behind most belovedLooney Tunescharacters like Bugs Bunny, Daffy Duck, and Tweety. His vocal range is still a standard that artists strive for, especially when aiming for a career in animation.

9Nancy Cartwright, a.k.a. Bart and Maggie Simpson, is another name to look up to. Her list of credits in animation go on and on to include Rufus fromKim Possibleand Chuckie Finster fromRugrats. Aim for this kind of versatility when working on your vocals.

10 James Earl Jones is the heartmelting voice of Mufasa in The Lion King. As if that alone didn’t make him one of the most recognizable voice actors in existence, he also happens to be Darth Vader8自1977 年乔治·卢卡斯拍摄第一部《星球大战》以来，詹姆斯·厄尔·琼斯一直为达斯·维德配音。2022 年，91 岁的琼斯宣布退休，决定将声音授权给乌克兰初创公司Respeecher。Respeecher 通过从前的录音和专有的AI 算法，用琼斯旧的声音创建新的台词。. The talented artist has physically appeared in a range of movies and TV shows too.

著名的声音

7唐·拉方丹是配音行业的巨头，他专精于广告和预告片。你若想在这两类作品的配音上获得指点，一定要从他的数千部作品中挑一些来看。你只需要搜索词组In a world 和the voice of God。

8梅尔·布兰克是动画《乐一通》中兔八哥、达菲鸭和崔弟等最受人喜爱角色的第一任配音。他的音域现在仍然是配音艺术家们努力追求的标准，对有志从事动画事业的人来说尤其如此。

9南希·卡特赖特也值得敬仰，她又以巴特·辛普森和麦琪·辛普森这两个名字为大众所熟知。她配音的动画角色不胜枚举，包括《麻辣女孩》中的皮皮和《尿布一族》中的恰吉·芬斯特。以培养她这种能为多种角色配音的才艺为目标，训练自己的发声吧。

10詹姆斯·厄尔·琼斯演绎了《狮子王》中木法沙那融化人心的声音。原本仅这一个角色也足以令他成为最具辨识度的在世配音演员之一了，而达斯·维德碰巧也是由他配音。这位才华横溢的艺术家也在一些电影和电视节目中露过脸。

11 Kristen Bell became a hallmark name for playing Anna in all Frozen productions, but the multitalented ac-tress was already taking over the enter-tainment industry. Other popular credits include Pam from Big Mouth and Lucy Stillman from Assassin’s Creed.

5 types of voice acting

12 Even if you have a good voice,voice-acting jobs aren’t easy to obtain,but there are many avenues to explore.Here is a list of the different types of voice-acting jobs available:

Character: Video games and animation (like cartoons9cartoon 通常指西方动画。and anime10anime 通常指日本动画。) employ talented voice-over actors to provide the voices for various characters. Like liveaction actors, voice actors read from a script, performing several takes11take（一次连续拍摄的）镜头。in different ways until they achieve the right performance for the project. Character acting requires immense creativity and a full embodiment of the role.

Dubbing: Sometimes voice-over jobs include performing dubbed transla-tions for foreign programming so that international audiences can understand it. Dubbing replaces the original audio with the same or similar dialogue in a different language. The actor must match the tone and delivery12delivery 表演风格（或方式）。of the dialogue to express the same intention, ensuring that the story’s message is clear to all audiences. Dubbing can also include automated dialogue replace-ment13即后期配音。(ADR), in which the original voice actor re-records lines for clarity or to improve delivery.

11 克里斯汀·贝尔因在《冰雪奇缘》全部作品中为安娜配音而成为标志性的名字。但在此之前，这位多才多艺的女艺术家已经在娱乐业风生水起。她塑造的其他广受欢迎的角色包括《大嘴巴》中的帕姆和《刺客信条》中的露西·斯蒂尔曼。

配音的五种类型

12即使你有一副好嗓子，找到一份配音工作也并不容易。不过，有很多途径可供探索。下面列举一些可以找到的不同类型的配音工作：

角色配音：电子游戏和动画（如西方卡通和日本动漫）会聘请有才华的画外音演员为各种各样的角色配音。和真人出场的演员一样，配音演员朗读剧本，用不同方式多次演绎一段台词，直至达到项目要求的配音效果。角色配音需要巨大的创造力以及对角色的充分演绎。

Commercial: The commercial category involves using a performer’s voice to market a product or service in the form of an advertisement that will be presented on television, radio,web or social. These commercials also include promos, where the voice-over talent has a limited amount of time to excite an audience for an upcoming show or event. Commercials usually fall under the voice-acting category when the actor must take on a role other than themselves (like “frustrated dad”or “overworked mom”).

译制配音：有时，配音工作包括为外国节目进行配音翻译以便国际观众能听懂。译制配音用另一种语言的相同或相近的对话来替代原声。配音演员必须使配音与对话原声的语气和表演风格相匹配，以表达相同的意图，确保故事中的信息被清晰传达给所有观众。配音还可能包括自动对白替换——原声配音演员重新录制台词，以提高清晰度或改进表达方式。

商业广告：商业广告配音是在电视、广播、网络或社交媒体广告中使用演员的声音来营销产品或服务。这类商业广告还包括宣传片，在宣传片中，配音演员用有限的时间激发观众对即将到来的节目或活动的兴趣。演员必须扮演自己以外的角色（如“沮丧的爸爸”或“过劳的妈妈”），因而商业广告通常归属于配音类别。

旁白配音：旁白解说指的是用画外音对图像或影片进行解说，从某个角色的视角或作为第三方帮助讲述故事。这一职位需要演员的声音引人入胜、不能单调——想一想由顶级大师大卫·爱登堡配音的纪录片《地球脉动》。旁白配音也适用于有声书。许多个人出书的作者要求配音演员为他们录制出版作品的有声版。一些博主聘请配音演员录制他们的博文并将其制作成播客。

Narration: Voice over narration is when a voice narrates over images or motion pictures to help tell the story either from a character’s perspective or a third party. This role usually calls for a compelling, non-monotonous voice.Think the documentary Planet Earth narrated by the incomparable David Attenborough. Narration can also be applied to audiobooks. Many selfpublished authors require voice actors to record the audio version of their books. Some bloggers hire voice actors to record their blog entries and turn them into podcasts.

Announcements: This is the type of voiceover that can be heard introducing segments of live television or radio broadcasts such as award shows, talk shows, continuity14continuity（节目中的）场景串联。, promo, and sporting events. Besides, companies utilize voice actors to greet their customers, and subway stations and other public venues use voice actors for essential announcements.

公告配音：这是一种画外音类型，用语音介绍电视直播或广播的片段，如颁奖典礼、脱口秀、节目串联、宣传片和体育赛事。此外，企业会用配音演员录制欢迎词来迎接客户，地铁站和其他公共场所也会用配音演员来发布重要的公告。