Come take a behind the scenes look at how our audio team finds the perfect voice and gets it into game. To take a peek behind the curtain we have Chris O’Neill, PlaySide Studios’ Audio Lead and Rhiannon Moushall, voice for Aelis Syren.
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How do you know what voice a character should have?Chris: Honestly, with a whole batch of directed questions. We start with a lot of internal brainstorming about the character and their individual traits. What do we know about their past? Their motivations? Their day to day mannerisms and behaviours, or their cultural and societal structures/circumstances?
From there, we explore some preliminary script ideas and have a chat with the art department. What has been envisioned so far in terms of concept art and ideas?
An earlier version of Aelis Syren
Aelis' sculptWe will then work with our casting coordinator to help refine our direction and casting packet. Kevin is phenomenal at coming up with solid references for characters, accents and pivotal scenes to use as a compass in helping us narrow down our field. He consolidates all the information we have into a neat little bundle and puts the job listing out into the ether. Within a week or so, a swarm of talented auditions is narrowed down into a top 5-10.
We then listen through internally to narrow down any of our favourite auditions, and then favourite takes therein. Sometimes the same person does an okay job at a specific speed or emotion, but delivers perfectly when it comes to an entirely different one (perhaps the angrier, grittier line, for instance).
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Once we have a couple of final contenders, the test lines get put into the game for context checking. This makes all the difference, and usually shines a light on the best candidate far quicker than during audio-only assessments. It’s very regular that we think we know exactly which audition best fits, only to have that blown out of the water when tested in context!
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Why was Rhiannon the right fit?She had a fantastic tone and range. The accent was consistent, regal and intelligent, but not to the point of being obnoxious. But honestly? What really sold it for me was when she absolutely let rip in her audition. The rage and pure gravel in her voice made my jaw drop, and was followed by a loud cry of “OH MY GOD” at my desk, without even realising I was doing either.
Now we have the wonderful Rhiannon, voice of Aelis, to tell us a little about her experience and journey with voice acting.You can find Rhiannon Moushall through the links below:
www.rhiannonmoushall.com
https://twitter.com/rsmoushallHow did you get into voice acting?Rhiannon: I was a stage actor and then the pandemic hit, so I was more unemployed than usual. I was privileged and fortunate enough to have some savings and a partner with a steady income, so I took 2020 to invest in the training and equipment I would need to become a full-time voice actor. I started out doing serial comedies with my friends at The Penny Peepshow Podcast, and then in 2021 I just went for it with all my strength. I’ve been pulling it off ever since and inadvertently discovered it was my dream job!
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As a voice actress how do you get yourself in the zone for different characters?I start by reading the brief and/or their background, soaking in the key characteristics – hunting for all those juicy adjectives – and if there’s character art, that’s a huge bonus! Then, with those words and images at the forefront of my mind, I read through the lines and play with those characteristics within the context given. I’m a deeply empathetic person (often, to a fault) so this comes quite easily to me. I only read the lines through once or twice before getting in the booth and recording them out loud. My best work usually happens in the first couple of reads, because that spontaneity and ‘gut reaction’ to scenarios is easiest to create when the words are genuinely coming out of my mouth for the first time.
What kind of characters do you like to voice?ALL OF THEM! I like the sweet, idealistic princess; the bloodthirsty queen; the beleaguered ship’s captain; the rambunctious little boy; the decrepit crone; the materialistic valley girl; the loyal soldier; the snivelling coward; the world-weary detective; the well-meaning murderer… I’ve had the pleasure of voicing a wild range of characters, and I hope I continue to get those opportunities.
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What's it like having to switch emotions for different voice lines?
It depends on the role. If I’m playing a larger role in the context of a scene, the build of emotions is usually gradual and quite natural. If I’m playing a smaller part that has less lines through which to react, I have to do the non-verbal acting behind the scenes – I run that character’s thought process between the lines to ensure that even though their emotional state has changed, the listener can understand ‘why’. Sometimes I get lines out of order, in which case I rely heavily on the context and do my best to be present in that moment. However, emotional whiplash is almost always part of the process. Aelis was a series of one-liners, so with the help of the wonderful directors Kevin and Chris, we concocted scenarios that would give the lines palpable intent. Hopefully, that came across!
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That's all for today! Thanks for reading, and let us know what you think. What else would you like to see from the team?
If you're heading to TwitchCon in Amsterdam this weekend, make sure to check out Age of Darkness: Final Stand at the Team17 booth!
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