Voice acting in Flash movies.

Remember the early days of the portal when voice acting in Flash cartoons was a rarity, but was done rather well most of the time. Back then it was just Evil Dave (who needs to make some new cartoons), Sharem Ma'Ten (the original voice of Miss Dynamite), Jason Buck (who Ben Spurgin had as the Stick Slayer), Mike & Andy Parker, Mike Roach (co-creator of The Lloyds), and the guy who created Portal Detour (which is the precursor to How 2 succeed on NG). Of course, this was before people started taking animation too seriously. If you are going to voice act in a Flash cartoon, at least put some effort into the actual acting part like the aforementioned did. Look, I may not think highly of the VA Club or the VA Alliance now, but they emphasize on high-end equipment over actual acting skill. Having a microphone that (almost) matches that of a studio will not make you the next Mel Blanc, Bill Scott (from Rocky & Bullwinkle), Walker Edmiston, Ian James Corlett, Jon St. John (from Duke Nukem 3d), or what not. At least study a few old cartoons and observe how the voices are done a bit. Now to discuss a few voice actors on this site:

1. Egoraptor: Even though his Awesome Schtick is getting stale, but at least he knows how pull off character voices for all of the flash he did. However, I think it's time he focused on his own projects for once instead of doing stuff for other cartoonists. Besides, not every cartoon he does voices for is worthy of a high score. (Fun fact: He also used to draw custom sprites at some point.)

2. Kirbopher: Although I did not like the stuff he did after Mario RPG: Rawest Forest; He is still much better than most of people that the VA Club and VA Alliance when comes to character voices. What bugs me is why aren't people having him in their flash cartoons and games? Plus, I know plenty of stuff that he can be cast into.

3. Hans Van Harken: What's the big deal about this guy? I can credit him for being able to draw and animate; however, as a VA, he's nothing special. And seeing him get voice roles over Cailen Denton (from TTA and the Parody Rangers) or Chris Zito is rather lazy and uninventive.

4. Francine Louise: I don't see anything interesting about her. Her voices come off rather flat at best, or somewhat annoying at worst. Honestly, there are much better VAs than her, such as Rebecca McCarthy (from Griswold the Goblin 2) or Princess Aurora.

5. Chris Zito & Cailen Denton: How come nobody's having these guys in their cartoons and games? Seriously, they're seriously overlooked and I think it's time they did something other than the latest Kirbopher cartoon. The reason that I'm lumping them together because there isn't anying I can say about them without repeating myself to the point of sheer annoyance.

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D-Mac-Double 2009-03-31 09:36:46

"They emphasize on high-end equipment over actual acting skill." Well, that's blatantly not true. Also, if anyone deserves to be in everything, it's John Mondelli.
<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=776vqkl9MMQ">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=776vqk l9MMQ</a>

Will add a lot more when I'm less busy, as I've been meaning to get back to you.

D-Mac-Double 2009-04-07 16:05:43

1. Egoraptor: Brilliant performer in both comedic, and even serious styles (see: "That Damn Right Arm" on his SheezyArt page). His versatily and energy go almost unmatched in online voiceover. He's does a ton of non-"awesome" voicework too, which constantly goes overlooked by his critics and fans alike. At the same time, he's -always- working on projects of his own.

2. Kirbopher: Very smart actor and can deliver some incredible energy. I think his range is very limited outside of "average teen" and "tough Brooklyn accent", though I may yet be proven wrong. Sonicmega works a very similar style but with better range, although I consider Kirbopher the smarter actor of the two. Kirb would be in more flash animations and games if he were more proactive about pursuing roles. It's his own choice, really.

3. Hans Van Harken: I'm actually surprised you're not a fan. He has a very "old school" style approach to most of his work and influences, and is a -very- smart director. His range can be rather impressive too. I know full well that impersonations aren't everything in acting, but watching "Hans Van Harken does Family Guy" on YouTube makes it blatantly obvious: The guy can go.

4. Francine Louise: Raaange. You'll be hard pressed to find a more versatile female in amateur voice acting. Character ages from children to elderly, accents from British to Jewish to Slavic - she can pull these off. It's hard enough finding a female AVA who even -attempts- them. Her energy has really lacked in certain roles, I will agree, but if she's being directed well, that no longer becomes an issue. She's definitely capable of getting her energy up there.

I'm a HUGE fan of Faye Mata/PrincessAurora's voicework by the way. But once again, she hasn't been pursuing online roles heavily at all. Otherwise, she'd probably be EVERYWHERE. I suppose I'll need to play through Griswold 2 at some point, but Rebecca McCarthy's prior work has been very hit or miss for me. But if you want the very definition of flat delivery, look up any role of Katie "Voicegirl" Dehnart. Not... good. And she doesn't seem to even care.

5. Chris Zito is an AMAZING comedian, and there was a time when he was in -many- things. I might be waaay off in thinking this, but it seems in recent years that voiceover has become less of a priority for him, and I feel the quality of some of his more recent performances has slipped a little bit as a result. But still not enough to keep him from being the great talent that he is.

Cailen Denton. I'm... not sure I even know him. Was he the Green Ranger in Parody Rangers 2? That was actually my least favourite performance in the animation due to it being so underplayed, and the poor mic positioning only hurt it more.

But the bottom line is: The VAs who pop up in the most Newgrounds productions will remain those who dedicate the most time and effort to their craft. Constantly practicing, auditioning, looking out for new roles, improving and marketing their demos to the right crowds.

Having natural talent is a big help of course, but VAs who aren't yet established, and truly desire to be, can only look to themselves for not taking these steps. There's a ton of room for more vocal talents on NG, so blaming those who've already worked long and hard for their noteriety, is simply meaningless.

FightingSeraph 2009-04-07 16:05:43

You have made a very good point.