I wrote my opinion which was the pros of p2p sites along with the caveat if he didn't do well with V123, then he shouldn't renew. Especially if it didn't pay for itself.
Later, one of the more opinionated vo actors on the site proceeded to say something along the lines of, "Anyone who claims to succeed on these sites are either very lucky or trying to get money out of you."
I'd like to post something here along the lines of what I posted over there.
Voiceover like Acting is one of those careers in which no one knows how to be successful but it seems like everyone has the answers. This doesn't happen in every other career, if it does it has the unfortunate label of being a "Get Rich Quick" scheme. The fact is, every one who tries to get money out of you and claims to know about the secrets of VO and CANNOT firsthand get you jobs, is just trying to make money off of you. Period.
Casting directors can get you jobs. Work with them. If you work with them for a month or so and they don't call you in for anything. Move on. Casting directors who don't call you in for an audition maybe 1 time a month, doesn't have confidence in you. Move on. If they do let you audition, they are saying that you are good enough and they want you to get a job so that they can make even more money off you, which is good, because at that point, you are making money.
That's the unfortunate part of this industry. It's full of people trying to get money off other people. Admittedly, Voices and Voice123 are making money off us but they give us opportunities for direct jobs. They don't guarantee that I can quit my job, they don't guarantee thousands of dollars, they just get you auditions.
Now, here's my major frustration with this.
Before I start, If you are a successful VO actor or SAG-AFTRA then this is not for you. You won't get enough auditions through P2P sites and I'm guessing the competition is going to be insane for those high paying jobs. This is for the new kids.
My frustration is that when you start doing VO, you take a few classes, you buy a microphone, you've got everything you need and you hit a point of "What do I do now?". A lot of people just keep spending money on more classes, seminars, webinars, or even worse demos. There are tons of horror stories about useless $2k demos.
P2P provides two things. First, a place to practice auditions and recording with the stake of real money at hand. Second, it provides a barometer to figure out if you're good or if you need to take more classes.
If you don't get any jobs in a P2P site, then you should not be marketing yourself or making a demo. You're not quite competitive yet. If you can pull 1 out of 30-50, then you're pretty good. If you can't pull anything and you're about 4 months in, take a class or do a one on one and say, "I want to get better at this specifically, I'm not getting jobs and I want them." Perhaps, bring an audition to your one on one and have a casting director direct you into it. With one on ones with casting directors, they may linger on skills and stuff, but it's your money, come in with print outs of todays Voices.com or v123 auditions and record those.
There is literally, NO other places where you can do that. Sure, you can listen to commercials and redo them at your house. Sure you can take classes and get the Stamp of approval from a teacher. But, P2P sites show you how good you are by getting you jobs.
I am not the best VO artist in the world. I rarely get the big national vo auditions. I use that P2P money to keep me a float, keep me in the city, keep me going, so that when the big job comes around, I'm not scrimping and saving to get there.
I have never made a single dime off of a fellow VO actor. And I won't ever. The sucky thing is that I know I could and I don't have the heart to hold peoples dreams and aspirations and just send them off with nothing.
What I will offer is this. If you're looking at getting better at conversational voice over. Not character, not audiobooks, just plain speaking clearly not trailer. Feel free to email me at justindtorres@gmail.com. Email me an audition you were working on and I'll give you notes. No charge, but also I have to limit it to one message per person, I will be extensive and I will give my honest opinion.
I feel like I can be completely honest because I don't want anyone's money at all. I also cannot offer any introductions or opportunities for new jobs beyond recommending various P2P sites.
Money is hard to come by, don't give it to fellow VO actors. Don't give it to marketing schemes or pdfs. Give it to equipment, making your studio, Give it to 1 p2p site, not all of them. Then work your ass off, and use the money you earn to invest more into yourself.
As a response to this statement,
"Anyone who claims to succeed on these sites are either very lucky or trying to get money out of you."
I say this.
"Anyone who claims to know how to succeed in voice over is a liar and is trying to get money out of you."
In conclusion, I don't have all the answers. I can't say P2Ps will get you money. But, it is the closest most direct way to get you auditions for jobs without getting an agent or a casting director on your side. There are also free sites to post up your demo and stuff and I'm sure those may work for people but you're not gonna get 40 auditions a week there. You'll be lucky if you get one. There are very few avenues to get you voice over work. Agents, Casting Directors, Your website, Friends of Friends, P2P sites, and various websites that give you the ability to post your demo. The first three can end up costing you a heck of a lot of money. Friends is kind of due to luck. P2P sites provide it easily. At the very least, you know what you're getting for the amount your paying. You're a well of $300-400 a year to them. Some people, agents, casting directors, may see you as a bottomless well, if you get my drift.
Sorry if this sounded pissed off, I just don't like people getting taken advantage of.
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