Character Voices

Voice style: Strong, mysterious, authoritative, sensual

7 elements of a character voice

Pitch - How high or low the voice is.

Pace - The speed with which the character talks

Colour - The textural qualities that give the voice it’s character

Rhythm - The phrasing, pauses and emphases of the speech pattern

Intonation - The rise and fall of the voice. Helps to express emotions

Placement - Where the voice seems to be physically coming from

Mouth Work - How the shape of the mouth, lips and cheeks effect the voice

how to formulate a character voice

Along with the character profile, Its extremely helpful to be shown an image of the character you are voicing. Whether consciously or subconsciously looks resonate with architypes we

can all associate with. Architypes are a sort of cliche but are very useful as a short cut to understanding a character.

No matter how you aquire it, whether research or personal experience, it is essential to hold some sort of mental picture of the character inside your head.

Some physical attributes will directly effect the voice of the character.

Age and size for a start. A person with a stoopy, hunched posture will sound very different to someone who stands stiff and upright. Likewise a sad, droopy mouth as opposed to a cheerful mouth.

Then there are the attributes which can’t be seen (but maybe implied by the architype) The character’s nature: Are they busy and efficient or lazy and slobbish? What are their motives? Their psychological makeup is a fascinating and can be an endlessly complex part of what goes into the mix.