Joined: Feb 2008 Gender: Female Posts: 4,537 Location: Southern CA, USA
[REVIEW] Crispin Freeman's VAing Workshops « Thread Started on Jan 18, 2010, 3:41pm »
Teacher: Crispin Freeman - http://crispinfreeman.com/ Class Attended: Beginner + Intermediate Voice Acting Workshops Cost: $185 (each + $10 convenience fee if you use credit card) Date Attended: January 17th, 2010 Time(s): Beginners' Class = 10 AM – 2 PM // Intermediate Class = 3 PM – 7 PM Class Size: 8; The size of my classes were 4 and 5 respectively, which allowed much more intimate feedback Additional Information: http://www.crispinfreeman.com/classes.html
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Intro Where to start... Well, I have 2 years of voice acting training under my belt. I came from a speech background more than a theater background—I learned how to use the power of the voice and diction to affect my audience before learning how to act. However, through lots of practice and attending a variety of classes, workshops, and seminars taught by many industry professionals, I managed to pick up the skills necessary to get pretty far under relatively little time and I consider myself a fairly competent voice actress. I have recorded for a professional production in studio before. I've been working on my demo throughout the duration of my winter break (4-5 weeks) in hopes of pursuing more professional work once it was finished since I believed I was ready to do so. That said, I really wanted to skip the beginners' workshop prerequisite and go straight into the intermediate workshop where students get to experience voice acting at industry speed since I already knew the basics and I wanted to learn something new and challenging to test my limits—I did not want to pay a lot of money just to show off. It was strongly encouraged that I take the beginners' class regardless of my experience, so I gave in, believing that professionals always practice the basics anyhow. I worried about my flap-matching skills being subpar.
Beginners' Class 10 AM – 2 PM Good. God. I was expecting the beginners' class to be about following studio procedures and the sort of things you'd learn from a convention (ex: “Voice Acting for Dummies”), but boy was I wrong and glad that I was. Crispin's class began with his friends, David and Jennifer Skelly, getting everyone warmed up through improv games that touched on many different skills necessary to be a successful voice actor. You wouldn't think improv games have anything to do with voice acting except for just thinking fast and getting stuff done through quick reactions, but each game emphasized different areas like where you draw and redirect your energy, how you create and react to different situations, and even how well you take direction... Now, when I first began voice acting, it turned out that I unconsciously wasn't the best at taking direction and have been improving my direction-taking since, but these simple improv games alone were able to expose the lingering weakness I thought I eliminated. I sure was happy to learn that “Yes, and...” is good direction-taking and while “Yes, but...” and “Yes, although...” may be said politely, it's technically resisting the other person you're trying to help look good (the director) and hardly anything gets done. By the way, if you are perceptive enough, you might notice Crispin carefully observing how you play these improv games to give better feedback—He's very subtle about it while participating with everyone.
After the improv workout was mic time. Aside from skipping technical things like explaining what a mic was, how sensitive it is, and why you shouldn't touch it without asking, I was surprised when Crispin off the bat asked us which characters we were best at portraying. In other voice acting workshops, the teacher would give more general scripts to work on before narrowing down instead of jumping straight to what the student believes is their strength. One important thing about being a successful voiceover is playing according to your strengths (typecasting isn't bad) and by deciding for ourselves who we think we're best at playing, not only could Crispin assess our abilities, but we could also learn if we really are good judges of our skill. As you may recall, I consider myself to be a competent voice actress and I don't intend to pay to show off, so I was the first in the hot seat to see what other weaknesses I overlooked.
Here's my personal crazy-hyper-moment: Those 2 years of training sure did pay off since I was able to deliver a solid performance and do everything Crispin directed me to and he chose to push me even further. Now here's the even cooler part: You know how mistakes are encouraged so you learn from them, right? “The mistakes you see in others are the ones you see in yourself.” Crispin took it to the next level—Mistakes were not only encouraged, but also facilitated. Very much like one of the improv games, Crispin shot a bunch of directions at me until my conscious brain couldn't keep up and the more impulsive one took over. He took that opportunity to teach the class about Actor 1 (the technical, quantitative, “measurable” side of acting) and Actor 2 (the impulsive, qualitative, “emotional” side of acting). Both should be strong to be an impressive performer, though Actor 1 can only go so far and Actor 2 is the one that usually comes to save the day. What soon became the most frequently asked questions to create more believable and better performances were: “What do I want from my scene partner?” (being in the moment of the character; Actor 2) and “What would you steal?” (learning from how professionals approached the character and listening critically to go beyond hearing Actor 1 and hearing Actor 2 more)
Regarding feedback, Crispin gives insanely thorough, well-articulated feedback that goes beyond general tips and tricks for people starting out. He even draws from the observations he took during the improv workout. For the longest while my peers and mentors have told me that my performances were solid and I needed to unlock a “sparkle factor” that they had trouble describing beyond it being a special edge that would make me stand out from others and get me booked. The most common remedy was to accumulate more acting experience. My Spartan approach to voice acting trained my Actor 1 to be incredibly strong and solid, while the more subtle aspects that come from acting experience (Actor 2) were not as developed. Crispin picked this up and was willing to help us understand how Actor 2 is responsible for the special qualities that would help us get jobs. He explained how a variety of conscious and subconscious psychological factors come into play during a performance. He even used anecdotes and other examples to help provide further understanding (“Oh yeah, huh” moments were had) for better application, like how we never stutter or stumble when we're simply expressing ourselves but may do so when we're out of our element, like while performing. Another example is how Actor 2 will slow or quicken a read depending on the character's (or your) objective more naturally than Actor 1 being aware that a read was too short or long for matching flaps. That takes care of my Actor 1 worries about matching flaps, doesn't it?
At this point, you can easily see how Crispin places a high emphasis on acting in voice acting. In other voice acting classes and workshops I attended, there was an unintentional pressure to match the copy and to please peers—The teacher would give the girls and guys the same script or character to work with and the students would try to put on a voice, unconsciously or not, even when the teacher discouraged it to focus more on acting. By providing a variety of material for us to play to our perceived strengths (and even picking material we aren't familiar with to better simulate the voice acting experience), Crispin eliminates this pressure. He barely mentions the use of our vocal range and when he does, it's when we try to use it and he gives good reasons as to why it wouldn't work for the time being until we mastered acting believably with our own voices first. It's possible to give off the vibe of a 12-year-old even you have the voice of a grown woman! Using our vocal range on top of our acting range is for another class of his (Character Archetype class), so rest assured that he isn't neglecting vocal range.
Intermediate Class 3 PM – 7 PM Basically, the intermediate class is all mic time to focus on specific strengths and weaknesses to work on for each and every student. No warm ups, no “Voice Acting for Dummies”, just straight to the voice acting. I don't know when it happened, but I could've sworn someone stabbed an adrenaline needle into me after watching a returning student demonstrate how fast and well a voiceover must perform to meet industry standards... And he added that he needed to be even faster. In the past I've sat in on recording sessions and watched professionals do their work, so I know how fast they need to perform to do their job well. It was mind numbing to see how skilled a student got by taking so many classes of his.
I felt a little nervous about being a part of this class, especially after learning about my newfound weaknesses and coming to the conclusion that I'm not entirely ready for the pace I witnessed. Normally I would discourage people from rushing into their next class so they can practice everything they learned from the previous one (to keep up with the next one), but the intermediate class was a great complement to the beginners' class because the fundamentals were still important in making performances work. Crispin made sure that each student worked as fast and well as they possibly could rather than dumb everything down or shove them into a breakneck pace. That said, I wanted to experience for myself how fast and well I could perform to see if there were other areas I could work on. I gotta say, the feeling of my brain breaking never felt so good (same method of brain breaking, a la tiring out Actor 1 by processing every given direction correctly until Actor 2 comes in to really liven things up).
By getting more mic time, we got more extended feedback after he got a better feel of our abilities, like talking about psychological inhibitions that keep our Actor 2 restrained. In example, our culture greatly stresses self-control rather than let our impulses run wild (it's how we learn in school). People also tend to have certain “reasons” for restraining our Actor 2, like not understanding what we want from ourselves and our scene partner and self-restrictions like personal fears—Though you may be perfectly capable of doing a certain accent due to constant exposure to it, you might not be able to do it even if you want to because of personal fears holding you back. This even affects your ability to perform certain emotions in certain situations, like overwhelming happiness. I like how Crispin wants us to better understand our fears so we can help him help us. Since he gets repeat students and his wife is always around to be another set of ears, we all end up getting to know and helping each other out too.
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Verdict: I HIGHLY recommend Crispin's classes! You're getting MUCH more than what you're paying (to encourage coming back for the intermediate classes) and the detailed, thorough feedback is nothing compared to the kind of feedback I would hear from other classes. He actively promotes his classes, especially at conventions, so if you want a smaller class size for more personal feedback, try to take the classes before convention season.
Re: [REVIEW] Crispin Freeman's VAing Workshops « Reply #1 on Jan 24, 2010, 4:30pm »
Wow back to back sessions, that's real hardcore. I also had a session within the Adventure's in Voice Acting with Tony Oliver. Thank you so much posting your experience. These sessions are a real asset to voice actors, if only they were a lot cheaper but that's just me being greedy.
Joined: Feb 2008 Gender: Female Posts: 4,537 Location: Southern CA, USA
Re: [REVIEW] Crispin Freeman's VAing Workshops « Reply #3 on Jan 26, 2010, 2:42pm »
I personally prefer Crispin's class over Bang Zoom's.
I took Bang Zoom's classes a long time ago though, so I'm not sure how much they compare now unless I take another class with them.
Should I ever take another one though, I'll write up a detailed review about their workshop too. Right now I'm sorta working on Kyle Hebert's voice acting consultations.
Re: [REVIEW] Crispin Freeman's VAing Workshops « Reply #4 on Mar 1, 2010, 7:07pm »
A friend of mine and I attended both classes last Saturday had a great time. It was raining outside, but we paid no attention to that as we went over different rolls of scarred princess and challenged to bring 'actor 2' as he calls it, in harmony with 'actor 1'. I liked the experience and would also recommend it.
Joined: Jun 2012 Gender: Male Posts: 1 Location: tucson,az
Re: [REVIEW] Crispin Freeman's VAing Workshops « Reply #6 on Jun 12, 2012, 10:56pm »
Hello there! by way of introduction my name is Jason Montgomery I am a retired USN corpsman! I just took Crispin's class this past weekend Jun10th! This class was everything I hoped it would be and more!
I have very little acting experience, high school drama over 20 years ago. My love of anime, and a decision for a new course in life brought me to Crispin's class. You explained the class flawlessly!
What i enjoyed most, was his enthusiasm for teaching and the feedback he gives. If you go into this class just thinking your going to play around with a mic and talk anime, you gravely mistaken! This is a great, thorough introduction on just how hard it is to act, with a mic, by yourself! Whether you have experience or not. Crispin thoroughly critiques your performances! The improv in the beginning, I think was key. Even if you have never done anything like that, myself included. It really got your creative juices flowing. It also builds camaraderie and trust between the students.
The first class was improv, followed by doing your first dub and "YOU" decide what type of arch type you think you are. Crispin indulges you and away you go. Now his direction is fantastic. You just need to put any ego aside open your mind and listen to what he is telling you. I cannot begin to tell you how much I learned in those first 4 hours! He brought me out of my comfort zone which I welcomed! Also as you watch the anime you and other students are dubbing to you really get a sense of what a good dub/ Horrifically bad dub is! For myself, actor 1 was sound! My problem which Crispin picked up on instantly was actor 2 and not letting him in the room which I dont think I was able to do all day! This was OK. All in the learning experience. If I dont know what is broken how can I fix it! What I found really terrific, was that he doesn't just listen to your performance. Then tell you 2 things and go, 'Next'! He really gets involved in breaking down your performance and lets you make mistakes, his patience with each student was Incredible. Also his challenging questions Post dub kept you thinking all day!
Now the second class was all the same students as the 1st class so we were able to take it away right where we left off. This time though, he and his wife Izzy, who also had fantastic feedback, paired you with a character arch-type they thought each person best fit. This really brought people out of there comfort zone and made us all work for it! I thought this was brilliant! I am a vet and haven't been that nervous since being overseas but it is a good nervous! your being challenged! Why? This is because Crispin TRUELY cares about his students, and it shows! I could tell he really wanted us not, to just have fun, but to really learn about acting and bring out the best in us. Cowboy bebop, is one of my top 5 all time fave anime. So when he and his wife thought I would be a great "Jet" I wanted to sceam out "I AM SPARTACUS!" To say I was stoked and honored to dub such a great character was an understatement, whether I did the character justice or not! So for almost 40 min I had the mic to myself with Crispin's phenomenal Direction. Not only are you learning, but your working. Both classes, has taught me I have a long way to go to become a VA! I accept this challenge, and I can honestly say because of Crispin and this class I caught the bug! One thing he said that resonated with me was "If you think you can hit a fastball in the major leagues then your ready to make a demo. Meaning studios and agents already have a stable of actors in their repertoire, so until you are satisfied that you can out perform them, keep practicing! So in closing. If you are serious about becoming a VA and you want honest, well critiqued and nurturing feedback, this is the class for you. It is two days later and I am still thinking about what I was taught and how to make myself a better actor. So finally I want to thank my fellow students,and Izzy freeman for her feedback and also love of anime and acting. Thanks again Crispin Freeman for sharing your Vast knowledge and experience with me! I am definitely going to take his arch-type and script class and I am seriously thinking of taking these two classes again. You may think it is expensive, but I CANNOT STRESS this enough! The amount of knowledge given and the way it is presented is PRICELESS! Remember this going in. He wants you to be good! Crispin wants you to succeed! His love of acting and Anime shines through with each second of the class so again if your serious about this course in life TAKE THIS CLASS! Jason Montgomery USN/FMF/retired!:);):)
Re: [REVIEW] Crispin Freeman's VAing Workshops « Reply #7 on Jun 20, 2012, 12:41pm »
I was fortunate enough to attend both his Voice Acting Workshop 1& 2 setup and his Character Archetype/Scene Study Classes a couple of months ago, and I must agree. Crispin is a fantastic teacher, and anyone who is able to should take at least one of his classes. Now that he has expanded and is offering some online, I expect there will be even more glowing reviews coming soon.
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