Voice-over

Voice-over (also known as off-camera or off-stage commentary) is a production technique used in radio, television, filmmaking, theatre, and other media in which a descriptive or expository voice that is not part of the narrative (i.e., non-diegetic) accompanies the pictured or on-site presentation of events.

[2] It is usually prerecorded and placed over the top of a film or video and commonly used in documentaries or news reports to explain information.

Voice-overs are used in video games and on-hold messages, as well as for announcements and information at events and tourist destinations.

It began in the early days of radio and has since expanded into various media including television, film, video games, and the internet.

Voice-over work expanded to include off-screen narration and character voices in television shows, particularly in animations and commercials.

This period also saw the growth of dubbing foreign films and shows, expanding the global reach of media content.

Home recording technology and high-speed internet made it possible for voice-over artists to work remotely, democratizing the industry.

For an audition, people should study the target audience, warm up and try to arrive early so they can prepare and have the best chance at getting the role.

[4] In Herman Melville's Moby Dick (1956), Ishmael (Richard Basehart) narrates the story, and he sometimes comments on the action in voice-over, as does Joe Gillis (William Holden) in Sunset Boulevard (1950) and Eric Erickson (William Holden) in The Counterfeit Traitor (1962); adult Pip (John Mills) in Great Expectations (1946) and Michael York in its 1974 television remake.

Noteworthy and versatile voice actors include Mel Blanc, Daws Butler, Don Messick, Paul Frees, and June Foray.

For example, in The Usual Suspects, the character of Roger "Verbal" Kint has voice-over segments as he is recounting details of a crime.

Sometimes, voice-over can be used to aid continuity in edited versions of films, in order for the audience to gain a better understanding of what has gone on between scenes.

[7] The edited version, which circulated for years, used narration to conceal the fact that large chunks of the film had been cut out.

The voice-over artist might be used to entice listeners of the station name or as characters to enhance or develop show content.

During the 1980s, the British broadcasters Steve Wright and Kenny Everett used voice-over artists to create a virtual "posse" or studio crew who contributed to the programmes.

In the early years, before effective sound recording and mixing, announcements were produced "live" and at-once in a studio with the entire cast, crew and, usually, orchestra.

The industry expanded very rapidly with the advent of television in the 1950s, and the age of highly produced serial radio shows ended.

The sound recording industry uses the term "presence" as the standard of a good quality voice-over and is used for commercial purposes in particular.

These technological advances have increasingly diminished "the noise of the system...and thus reducing the distance perceived between the object and its representation.