Word of Mouth Productions - DEMO PROCESS - 2024
You need to be sure you are a competitive Voice Actor
before attempting to record a Demo!
Costs for your demo depends on how many tracks you want: Commercials, Narrations, Character, whatever. Then it depends if you want music and sound effects. You also need to decide if you want your Demo "Blended" to one track each; that is, short excerpts of your scripts for each category; i.e. commercial, narration, etc. OR if you want each script on a separate track. (See: Production Costs.) Your choice will effect how you list tracks on your CD Label. For "state-of-the-art" demos, that is if you plan to market yourself in the Big 3, N.Y., L.A., Chicago, and over the internet sites, you need to have "blended" tracks and use the post production; locally it doesn't matter.
We record state-of-the-art Demos at a professional recording studio; Cost is $90 per hour. Post Production for music and SFX is done by my partner, Steve Harrison, Audio Suite Studio. When you go into the studio to record the Demo, we usually can get at least 2 tracks done in an hour and a half; depends on how organized you are and how prepared.
PREPARATION FOR RECORDING
Lou will work with you in private sessions to develop your repertoire, scripting and polish your final perfor-mances. “I take whatever time is necessary to get to know your personality and help develop your full range of skills. Then we choose or write copy that will present you in the best possible DEMOnstration. I want to make sure you and I are happy with the results. Then when you’re ready, we schedule the Studio Time and I’m there to direct you through the whole process.” Recording is done at Audio Suite Studio on a Digital Computer Work Station. The same is true of post-production which is done in Los Angeles where each spot is carefully produced as if it were an on-air commercial! The Rhythm and Vibrancy of our productions are what make WOM Demos so great!
To make the best use of your time and to be sure we have the best material, I need to know exactly what we're going to record, that means the scripts are edited down to excerpts, so we don't waste valuable ($) time. Once we have decided on your scripts and performances we need to schedule one more Private Session to hear all of your final performances at which time I can also edit the scripts down to exactly what will record. (Or if you want to record at home and send me what you think you want on your tracks, that costs $75 per Category for me to listen and edit scripts; at that point I can determine if you have all the material we want; but you’ll still need an in-person Private Session before we record.)
DEMO COSTS Professional Studio Production—2024
State-of-the Art Demos are produced with Music and SFX so they sound like the Pros Demos. You can choose to have a Demo produced without music and sound effects, but the Music and Sound Effects will enhance your performances and make them unique. Creating this post production requires a great deal of skill and thought. This process takes between 4-6 hours to complete one Demo track. The extra effort we put into the production and editing is what makes our Demos State-of-the-Art. The total price of YOUR DEMO will depend on how well-prepared you are BEFORE going into the studio! (One Track usually takes an hour.) To maintain our level of high quality Demos, we only produce Demos for people we consider to be at a competitive performance level.
Post-Production, (with Music and SFX): Studio Time: (Recording): $90 per hour
Commercial Demo: $650 Lou’s Time: $90 per hour
Narration or Dialogue Demo: $500 Lou’s Editing Costs: $75 per hour
Animation or Characters: $800
Audio Books: (no post required, at Studio & Lou’s costs.)
Demos WITHOUT Music and SFX:
“Blended Demo”: $200 each category.
Note: Preparation and Recording Session fees are due at the time of each session. The estimated turn-around of finished Demos with Post Production is between 3-4 weeks, depending on number of tracks. Demos without Post Production is about a week. Studio fees are due at the time of recording. Post Production fees are due before Demo will be released.