Monique Danielle

Voice Over Actor

Mo@MoniqueDanielleVO.com

(647) 385-6454

creative voice over

5 Reasons Creativity is Important in Your Voice Over Actor

Right brain, Voice Over

You may not realize it, but creativity is pretty difficult to define. On Dictionary.com the definition is “the ability to transcend traditional ideas, rules, patterns, relationships, or the like” i.e. “originality, progressiveness or imagination.” This is second after the less exciting definition of “the state of being creative.”

So what is creativity? Is it an ability? A state? A trait?

Wikipedia may not always be the most reliable source but I appreciated one author describing creativity as “a phenomenon whereby something somehow new and somehow valuable is formed.” WOW! A phenomenon! I can tell his author appreciates the value of creativity as their definition seems somewhat reverent.

So creativity is a phenomenon, the ability to transcend, a state of being. It sounds magical! And creativity is magical. It’s anything and everything. It lives in a place without lines, labels or boundaries and for some folks that can be very scary! But for others it is freedom.

You may be thinking, that’s nice but so what? Why does this matter to me? And why would it be important to hire a creative voiceover?

#1 Creativity is memorable

A great video is great! But in the age of Instagram and TikTok is great enough? A creative video will be remembered. And you want your audience to remember! Which commercials do you remember from 10 years ago? Come on, I know you remember some. And I’ll bet it’s because they were creative! Whether it’s the product you’re advertising, the service you’re explaining or an eLearning module training a learner, creativity will make your content memorable.

#2 Creativity inspires others

Creativity is contagious and one creative idea often leads to another. Ever heard of brainstorming? It’s a group creativity technique that takes advantage of the inspirational nature of creativity! Having a creative voiceover in the booth adds to the creativity already in the room from the creative director, the writer and all the other collaborators building the project. The voiceover actor brings another creative perspective to bring your copy and video to life.

Just for fun, here’s some brainstorming ideas from Post-it®. Post-it® notes are the mascot for inspired ideas as they were created by accident! (And they come in really handy for brainstorming.)

Creativity’s inspiration is also key for your audience. You want them to take your video and imagine applying your ideas to their lives. So it’s not just inspiring for your team, you’re looking to inspire the creativity of your audience as well!

#3 Creativity is dynamic

If one idea doesn’t work creativity always has another. That’s the beauty of creativity, it’s boundless and infinite by its very definition! And new creative ideas can turn great ideas into awesome ideas. And awesome ideas can go viral!

One of the best examples of the dynamism of creativity can be found by watching children. Children are an endless source of creativity because they’re not bound by rational thinking. Don’t believe me? Have a look at what Dropbox has to say about it!

Creative voiceovers like kids, in the best way possible! They tap into that limitless place not constrained by logic. And that place is full of ideas.

#4 Creativity lifts words off a page

Have you ever thought “being a voiceover isn’t so hard, it’s just reading!” Well, if you still think that you’ve obviously never tried it. Or maybe you’ve only heard good voice over actors! If you’ve ever listened to someone reading directly from their notes, you’ll know the importance of creativity. A creative voiceover can lift the words of the script off the page and make them come to life. This is crucial to engage your audience and connect with them.

It can be the difference between a voiceover just speaking out loud versus the one who pictures exactly who they’re speaking to. The one who personalizes the message to create the emotional tone needed. The one who creates a character to tell the story. These differences can sometimes be subtle, but trust me your brain catches them. And the listeners’ brains do too!

#5 Creativity is FUN!

Last but certainly not least, creativity is so much fun. And we all need more fun in our lives! Remember, all work and no play makes Jack a dull boy. Now your name may not be Jack, but I bet you enjoy when your work day is more fun than work. Creativity does just that, adds fun to work! Trust me, working with a creative voice over actor is absolutely going to be a fun time. Your face just might hurt from smiling!

Still not convinced? Send me an email at Mo@MoniqueDanielleVO.com and let’s work together. I’m confident that I can prove it!

Hire a Voice Over Who is Professional and Creative

Voice Over

What is a left brained / right brained voiceover?

Our brains are incredible. They really are the greatest supercomputer ever created. And most of the things our brains do are automatic, which makes them even MORE incredible! If you’ve ever seen a picture of a brain, you know that your brain has two halves, or hemispheres. (If you’ve never seen one, don’t worry! Have a look below!) There’s a theory that people are either left-brained or right-brained which was based on the research of Roger W. Sperry.

Sperry won the Nobel Prize in 1981 for this theory “for his discoveries concerning the functional specialization of the cerebral hemispheres.”  Fun fact: Sperry actually won a half share of the prize, which seems kind of fitting given his research. The theory says that left-brained people are more analytical, logical and may be more detail-oriented. Think the math genius from your high school. Alternatively, right-brained people are the free thinkers, creative types who live more in the subjective. Think the art student in high school who was always covered in paint.

Scientists have since debunked the left-brain versus right-brain dominant theory, but you probably still know about it because it became very well known in popular culture. Though each half of our brain is responsible for different things and there are as many personality traits as there are people, it turns out these personality traits and those attributed to Sperry’s research aren’t controlled by a more dominant hemisphere on its own.

What this means to me

So why call myself the left-brained / right-brained voiceover? Well as I said above, I’m taking advantage of a popular figure-of-speech from pop culture that people recognize almost immediately.

In addition to being a full-time voice over actor, I’m also trained as an accountant and received my designation (Chartered Professional Accountant/Chartered Accountant or CPA/CA) which in the past would be considered a very left-brained thing to do.  And because I have always been very logical, detail-oriented and quite good at math I used to think that I wasn’t a creative person and I was DEFINITELY left-brain dominant.

But then again, I have been dancing before I could walk and singing before I could talk (as ABBA would say!) I was a ballerina when I was 5, art used to be my favorite subject in school, I danced again in high school (even going on a class trip where I learned at the Laban Centre for Movement and Dance) before becoming “one of those drama kids,” acting in any role I could get. Before getting my degree in accounting I was enrolled in theatre and education to become a drama teacher. So CLEARLY I was right-brain dominant.

You can see the issue with the theory here. How could I definitely be left-brained AND clearly be right-brained? The truth was the whole time I was that one-of-a-kind mix of left and right brained! Logical and objective while also creative and subjective. A mystery wrapped in an enigma!

What this means for you

So what? After all that theorizing and debunking, accountant versus actor, why does it matter to hire a left brain / right brain voiceover talent?

It matters because I bring the best of both sides to the table, or rather to the booth! I’m a consummate professional, or a professional’s professional if you will. That means I always deliver on-time or earlier, I ask the right questions, I’m easy to direct and I’m always client focused. The biggest ‘why’ I do what I do is because of you, the client, the listener, the audience. Without someone listening there’s really no point in talking (I’m looking at you, Twitter.)

At the same time, when I’m behind the mic I can be endlessly creative. I bring in multiple voices, styles and interpretations. I’m an actor studied in improv so I can make you laugh or roll with the punches when something changes last minute. You’re trying to find the best way to tell your story and with my creativity I will surprise you, delight you and satisfy your audience.

So there you have it, Monique Danielle the left-brained / right-brained voiceover. A voice talent who works with professionalism and creativity. A voiceover actor who works fast, friendly and fun! Now that you know why this is important for you I’d love to make your job a whole lot easier. Contact me and let’s chat about your story and how we can bring it to life!