SUCCESS UPDATE UPDATE: I've had a lot more happen since my last success update when I first wrote VFA. I voiced an actor-read product testimonial for a wood preservative product; spiritual readings for website videos; voiceover for an iPhone application and I'm the narrator for an upcoming internet play titled "They Did Take It With Them", by Retro Radio Plays. I've also had the opportunity to be on-camera as well. I auditioned for a local cable company commercial that needed a voiceover experienced actor. Since I didn't have on-camera experience, I didn't think I'd get the part, but I did! I was also able to get a part in a movie as a "snitch". My character was pistol-whipped by a corrupt FBI agent in the movie, Tarts, Fools and the G-Men. I owe all of this to Voices For All, because if it wasn't for VFA I would have never had the necessary tools to make this happen! Thanks again! SUCCESS UPDATE: Since the class: I did the voiceover work for a marketing company in my hometown of Portland, OR. I narrated their website sales video and created "how-to" tutorials for their existing customers to help them navigate the website. Thanks for giving me the tools to make this happen!

Hello Voices For All Team! First of all, thanks so much for the Voices For All Master Class! I had so much fun learning about the voiceover world and what it takes to get started. Voice acting has been something I've always been interested in, but didn't know how to break into the industry. John our instructor was a fabulous teacher and great at explaining the in's & out's of voiceover and how to get started. I absolutely enjoyed the 2 hour one-on-one in the recording studio; that was so fun and my demo turned out sounding incredible! Thanks again for making this a reality for me!

The VFA crew has been wonderful. They do right by you and mean what they say about Customer Service! Andrea is an awesome instructor and advisor!

SUCCESS UPDATE: I thought I would give a quick update on my voice acting career following my June 2007 Masters Class. Unfortunately, I had a delay getting things moving due to recovering from a disability in late 2007. So, recently I finally invested in the recommended home studio. I realized that before I stepped off the audition bridge and commit myself as a professional voice actor, I better be in a position to respond to the needs of my prospective clients. It has been two years since my Masters Class. So, I spent months practicing in the studio, getting comfortable with the equipment, and studying the VFA guide. Most of all getting to know the Pro Tool software! Paul from VFA, and Martin from FullCompass, get a lot of thanks for getting me on the right track with my studio. ProTools is a fantastic product. Although the VFA template gets you going, and is a fast track for voice acting, one must still be efficient about editing and generating the necessary files to your customer in a timely manner. I feel the practice has set the stage for being successful and responsive. For me, it has been slowly but surely. I am now on a steady course for making this all happen. Thank you VFA!

When I was sold on the idea of attending the Master class, I was skeptical. I was concerned about the value for my investment. Wow! What a great value. Completing the Master Class and having access to the related resources was definitely worth the time and money. It far exceeded my expectations, and actually prepared me to be a “professional� voice-over artist. Truly, I experienced a paradigm shift related to my understanding of the art and the business side of voice acting. The Master Class was not only a great value, but I also enjoyed the entertainment value of John Pruden’s presentation, his command of the class, direction and his coaching. THANK YOU!

Dear Andrea,

I have been wanting to write to thank you for the amazing Master Class of a few weekends ago.

I have been a teacher for over thirty years, and one of the occupational hazards, Ive learned, is that teachers dont always take too well to being taught. We spend a lot of time in conferences where presenters presume to teach us methods to better conduct our classrooms while employing none of them themselves. I actually left an adult education class in Italian, a language I was eager to learn, because the teacher was so ineffective.

So it was with great admiration and respect that I was so wonderfully a part of your three-day seminar. You have all the qualities of a fine teacher: you are personable, receptive to your students, clearly an expert in your field, and efficient beyond imagining.

Never once in the two-hour Friday presentation (after a full days work and a two and a half hour drive), the nine hour Saturday session (whew! who works nine hour days?), or the three more Sunday morning hours, did your energy flag or your optimism droop or your plans go awry. Your students attention never wavered, not even when you talked about things we didnt necessarily understand or in which we didnt necessarily have an abiding interest. Your presentation was aptly mixed between the technical and the hands on, between our participating and our listening.

Materials, too, for which Im sure your input was vital, complemented the activities of the class. (Yet never once did I feel as if I was simply being read to, as happens so often of late with Powerpoint presentations and handouts.) You taught us to use the notebook and familiarized us with its content, but provided us with information, inspiration and intelligent commentary far beyond its covers.

It seems that everywhere I go someone supposedly in charge cant make the decision, doesnt know where or how to seek the answer, is on the phone to someone else, or cant figure out what Im talking about, or, if trying to conduct business on the phone, I am lost in a labyrinthine trail of voice messages that gets me no where.

So watching you stand gladly, firmly, assuredly, intelligently, gently in control, and ready, willing and able to teach us what we needed and wanted to know, was such a thrilling relief and a testament to true teaching that I wanted to cheer, or cry. It is so good to know that hard work and a healthy attitude still exist. (Just the little things, like coming into the room and your already having the technology up and running - are you aware of how truly seldom that happens? - was refreshing.)

So thank you. Thank you for teaching me about voiceovers. Thank you for making me understand how to set up a home studio. Thank you for showing me that ProTools might not be impossible for me to learn. Thank you for your careful coaching at my recording session.

But thank you, too, for your can-do attitude, your old-fashioned connection to family, your far-too-rare-in-this-modern-world decision to do things rightly and well, and your ultimate efficiency!

When I stumble on this new career path, I will remember your smiling voice saying "Stan's Surf Shop", and I will try harder. Its a relief to know there are people in the world who still care about a job well done.

As a training developer and director myself, I was very impressed by the quality of the VFA workshop. It was intense, fast moving, and filled to the brim with everything one needs to know in order to start a voiceover business. Not a moment was wasted, and with the interesting and varied mix of topics interspersed with some brief voice exercises, the class time flew by.

John really knows his stuff, both in theory and in practice, and shared it in a way that was fun and understandable. Our class was full, intense and set the table for us to succeed.

The Master Class I took with Andrea Langworthy was top notch. The session was well organized and Andrea is both an excellent listener and helpful coach. I recommend this course to anyone wishing to learn how to be knowledgeable and successful doing voice overs.

SUCCESS UPDATE: I wanted to let Voices For All know how the Master Class has impacted my life. I completed the class in June of 2008 in Bellevue, WA. John Pruden was the excellent and encouraging teacher. It was the highlight of my year building my confidence and inspiring my imagination. While it was clear that one could expect to make money with this training, I am enjoying a reward of another kind. I work at University Presbyterian Church (UPC), a very large congregation in Seattle, WA. We have about 3500 people in worship on Sundays. My pastoral role involves developing ministry for those in the second half of life. As our church is getting more and more tech savvy, with many web-based communications and opportunities, it occurred to me there is still a layer of oldsters who are not computer people. So with the encouragement of my husband, I began a ministry out of our home that anyone with a phone can easily access. It is called Pray the Word. I brought in a 2nd phone line and every weekday, I prepare and record a 4-minute outgoing phone message of scripture and prayer that people can dial up and hear anytime of the day. The recordings are produced out of our simple home recording studio, which the VFA class helped me design. After a couple of weeks, UPC asked us to put Pray the Word on a church phone line, which we did. In the course of a few weeks nearly five dozen people stopped me in the halls of UPC or emailed me with words of appreciation for this offering. I was somewhat surprised that people in age groups other than seniors were listening. A request for a podcast soon followed. At the beginning of May, a Seattle radio station, AM 630 KCIS Radio picked it up for their Quiet Time program which reaches 50,000 listeners every weeknight.

SUCCESS UPDATE UPDATE: Our audio ministry, Pray the Word, (PTW) is celebrating its 1 year anniversary on Jan. 13. PTW is a 4-minute recorded message with a few verses of scripture and a brief reflection on that scripture. As of today I have written and recorded 255 different scripts which are now heard every weekday on two telephone lines, online at www.upc.org/secondwind, and on AM 630 KCIS a local radio station. I've developed quite a "tribe" of listeners! What a ride! The Lord is good! So is VFA-- Thanks! ~ Ann

My purpose for making the investment in the VFA Master Class and the creation of the demo has to do with the Call I believe God has on my life using the gifts He has entrusted to me. It has been a great blessing to be able to use my voice in ministry as a pastor over the last 16 years. The VFA Master Class has offered a positive and natural next step in my pursuit of that Call. My personal mission is to use the spoken word to encourage people to recognize God's sincere interest in the daily doings of their lives. Through voicing audio books, narrating documentaries, and/or instructional materials, or developing "slice of life" commentaries I can encourage people with humor, hope, and wonder. The instructive guidance I received in the class and the high quality demo that is now posted on my Webpage confirms my desire to continue on the path toward the dream that has been rummaging around my heart ever since I could speak. John Pruden is an inspiring teacher. He demonstrated a depth of patience that got the best reading out of every person in the class. For my demo, he selected scripts that not only built on my strengths but also zeroed in on my personal convictions. He directed my recording session (at the end of a very long day, I might add) with focus and great encouragement. The resulting demo is drawing positive comment. I wouldn't be hearing these heartening accolades without the incredible Master Class. Thank you, Voices For All, for this professional and hope-giving experience. It has been a blessing!

I had a great time at the Masterclass Workshop. Andrea is a wonderful teacher, making things clear, understandable, and fun. I'm looking forward to an exciting new career using everything I've learned at VFA. Thanks guys!

Hi Andrea, I want to thank you, and everyone at the studio, for the wonderful seminar and studio experience that I received. I believe this foundation will help me to achieve my goal in voice acting and I look forward to staying in touch with you and all of my classmates. Their strong interaction and support made my experience rewarding.

Best regards. P.S. "Covergirl"

Attending the introduction to voice-overs in June really peaked my interest. Mike was a great instructor. It was fun and informative. Then, after talking with Levi and getting some feedback on my voice, I knew taking the Master Class was for me, so I signed up immediately. John Pruden was a wonderful instructor for the VFA Master Class. He applied just the right combination of knowledge, passion, humor and coaching. We covered everything we needed to know to get started and more importantly staying on track.

Johns positive attitude, knowledge and humor made this class successful. I walked out of the class confident I was off to a great start. I had a good idea of what I needed to work on and what I did well in. The recording session was fun and challenging. It was great and I was amazed when I heard my demos. I have also received additional support from Casey, Andrea and Paul. Everyone has been very helpful.

Thank you VFA!

I cannot say enough about John Pruden! He was my master class instructor, but his encouragment and support did not end there. There have been numerous e-mails of questions sent to him along the way, and he has answered all my questions quickly and more thoroughly than expected. His help is invaluable!

SUCCESS UPDATE: It was a cold but sunny morning in Bellevue, WA. I was driving down Highway 90E heading to my water aerobics class as I listened to Star 101.5 . As I was exiting the highway the moment I have been waiting for unexpectedly happened ! I heard Becky saying : "Rachel! Great to see you!" Becky was me! My first paid radio commercial. I couldn't believe my own ears. It was a rush ! I had found a gig a while back on Craig's List. A company was looking for a female voice talent. I responded to the ad but they replied that they had already found someone for the spot but that they really like the ranges in my voice and would keep me in their database. And then a couple months later without any action from my side I got the email: "Would you be interested in auditioning for a Sono Bello commercial? We found your VFA demos in our database and would like to hear you." I went to the audition which turned out to be a "non audition". We talked for a while and then the producer took me to their studio. In 10 minutes after 3 takes we had the spot recorded! It was amazing. Thank-you VFA for helping me get closer to my dream job!

I am flying so high in this experience! It's like a drug that I am addicted to now. All my friends that have heard my demo just can't believe their ears. It feels awesome to hear statements like "You are so great, very sensual and relaxed. I could not stop listening to your recording because listening to your voice was so soothing. Why do I go to de-stressing clinics when I could be listening to your voice instead?" John taught an unbelievable class, and was an incredible coach at the recording studio. He has amazing voice coaching and directing talent, and knows how to transport you directly into the script you are reading at the time. His passion and talent for this field is very evident. I see that there a lot of resources to refer back to on your site as well! This is just too exciting!!!! I encourage everyone to take the Master Class: "Fasten your seatbelts and let the journey begin"...

SUCCESS UPDATE: 2011 has been the most rewarding year to date for my voiceover career. I completed a project for my town of Apple Valley, CA called "State of the Town" which, as the name implies, gives the citizens a snapshot of where the town is economically and where it is headed. It is currently on their website, www.applevalley.org.

An even more rewarding experience was completing an audiobook entitled "Ace of Hearts" by internationally known author Jean Holloway. It was quite a challenging endeavour, however I loved doing it. Trying to do several character voices, some female, was the most difficult part. I worked with a great engineer locally and the author was very pleased. It is currently available on iTunes, CD Baby, and the author's website, www.deckofcardz.com. 

I attached a small snippet. A sample is also available on my website, www.mrkeysvoices.com.

Thanks to what I learned at Voices for All for making this possible.

I never thought this was a reality until I heard MY demo! Voices For All has helped me realize a lifelong dream I've had to use my natural talent to reach the ears of anyone and everyone who cares to listen. I am in awe of, and very thankful towards, VFA's amazing teachers (specifically John Pruden) who are indeed anxious and happy to see their students succeed!

Thank you all once again! You are life changers; you are impacting society, and more, in a very positive way!