Challenging times for a voiceover artist

By Stevie Cripps

As a self-employed voiceover and audio producer, I am no stranger to the ebband-flow of work, but things are more of a trickle these days since the arrival of COVID-19. The lockdown has affected the voiceover part of my business in several ways with companies closing down, budgets being slashed, launches delayed and advertising cancelled.

Actors who would have ordinarily worked on stage, in television or on film projects are now becoming voiceovers, setting up studios from their homes. This has saturated an already crowded market place at a time when work is at a minimum.

Even though I work in a diverse variety of creative sectors for voiceovers, as well as offering full audio production services, the level of work has dropped dramatically across the board. The most significant impact has come from several customers terminating long-term contracts.

Being a director of my own company, there has been no support forthcoming from the government during the crisis. Small, limited companies, such as mine are struggling to see a way through this and are feeling let down. While I appreciate there is not a limitless pot of money to help everyone, there is a chunk of businesses that has been overlooked for support at this time.

Another challenge that I – along with millions of others – are facing is homeschooling! With three school-age kids, and my wife working from home as well, it's the wobbliest balancing act I ever want to be a part of. From a business perspective, it's not conducive to finding and focusing on work, and sneaking out to the studio to get some peace and quiet is – according to my wife – is cheating (unless of course I am recording).

On a serious note, though, I do at times feel the strain. When I don't have much work, I find it hard not to think about it outside of working hours. Together with Natalie Cooper, a voiceover colleague, I have looked at alternative ways to fill my time.

We have now created a website dedicated to the provision of calming voices, and I am in the process of writing music for relaxation purposes.

This is an exciting and positive new venture and brings some confidence that my business can diversify and ride out this storm. While continuing to support long-term customers, I look forward to welcoming new ones and seeing where this journey will take me.