Matt Challands

Voice Description

My voice is in its element as a character for commercials and narrations where warmth, friendliness, edginess or humour are important.

I have also used my voice to communicate more professional and serious company safety rules procedures and goverment information to viewers.

My voice will gain attention, whether it be through distinguishing itself from regular voiceovers, providing the pitch with originality or by using humour to great effect.

It can go from fairly deep and serious (edgy and dramatic) to lighter and warmer (commercials) to higher and funnier (humour).

Voice Genders and "Ages" I Can Perform

• Teenage Boy
• Young Adult Male
• Middle Age Male

Language(s) of Which I Am a Native Speaker:

• English - British
• English - North American

I Offer my Services for these Recording Purposes

• Commercials
• Promos
• Training, business presentations, sales, and web sites
• Audiobooks
• Documentaries
• TV shows and movies
• Movie and game trailers
• Podcasts
• Adult content
• Others (on-camera, infomercials, live announcers, spokespersons)

Jobs I Am Willing to Take (Union-wise)

• Non-Union Jobs

• Jobs for ACTRA (Canada) signatories

• Jobs for AFTRA (US) signatories

• Jobs for British Equity signatories

• Jobs for SAG (US) signatories

• Jobs for Union des Artistes (Canada) signatories

My Union Affiliations and Memberships

None

My Recording and Delivery Capabilities

• I will go to any designated studio in my area
• I can record and then deliver the audio files via Email
• I can record and then upload the audio files via FTP
• I can record and then deliver the files by regular mail

Pre-, Post- and Production Services I Offer

• I offer copywriting services
• I offer translation services
• I can deliver edited and finished voice tracks
• I have a music library and can add music to any project
• I can add special effects to any project

My Home Base

Paris, France

Accents, Impersonations, Characters and Dialects

Accents/Dialects:
British Oxford English, British Bourgeoisie, British Westcountry, British Northern (Yorkshire, Lancashire), British London (Cockney,)American black, American Southern States, Northern Irish, French, Eastern European

Characterizations:
Ignorant redneck, American rapper, upper class British, crafty Frenchman, CNN reporter, BBC reporter, camp sounding gay/effeminate man

My Voice Experience

Finding the right voice for your film, TV production, commercial or narration is challenging. And even harder is finding the voice talent that makes you stand out from the crowd and get noticed. Original and quirky sounding voice talents will help you achieve better results than standard voices. Remember, the idea is to get noticed.

I began sending auditions for voiceover jobs a few years back with no expectations and got selected every time. Now, I work in voiceover full time. I have experience in TV and radio commercials, films, documentaries and even company training videos. My real strength is in acting and therefore films and commercials where I bring something extra and unexpected to the character(s) I play. This means the director is often getting more than he or she bargained for.

Below are my recent VO highlights:

10/2010 - Trashmaster, Paris France - (independent animated thriller production, 90 minutes long) nominated to Montreal new film festival 2010.
Characters played: Niko (VO and dialogue), Niko's boss, 2 of Niko's colleagues, CNN reporter, BBC reporter

07/2010 - French Connection Productions - Gongoni Kik Off Mosquito Repellent commercial - screened in Africa, I provided the comic VO

06/2010 - MTV France - I provided the British voiceover n French (with a British accent) and in English for My Incredible Birthday

04/2010 - Wall St Institute, Paris, France - Neutral British accent for learning to speak English programme

02/2010 - Carrefour, Paris, France - radio commercial for British tea Lipton (French with comic English accent)

12/2009 - Canal +, Paris France - VO for radio commercial advertising English premier league soccer in France

10/2009 - Imageo - Ponticelli Brothers safety video

07/2009 - Dubbing Brothers - Radio BBC reporter for "Sous le Soleil" TV soap opera

05/2009 - Dubbing Brothers - quirky British voice for TV Show "Numbers" (character: Marshall)

04/2008 - Imageo - African voice(s) for immigration documentary & narrative

My Training

Schools:
2002-2004 Guildhall school of music and drama
1996-1998 Stagecoach Theatre Arts Edinburgh

Short film acting:
Year Role Production Venue Director
2008 James Kite Hashish London Gary Scott
2008 Rob Understandable Glasgow Yoav Factor
2007 Martin Eurozone Paris James Tenniswood
2005 Howard Fallout UK Yoav Factor

Theatre:

Year Role Production Venue Director
2010 McTavish Lost In Scotland UK Joanne Allan
2007 Whiner The Dog’s Bone London Robert Smart
2007 Bruce Ozzies are out! Sydney Alan Baxter
2003 Ben Jago Easy Cream London Paul Dicker

My Studio Equipment

Hardware:

PC advanced audio Realtek HD soundcard
Rode NT1a microphone with anti-pop screen
VoiceLive vocal processor (tuning, harmony, singing, effects)
Audio mixer for noise reduction and mixing

Powerful PC with software:

Reason (for track production, assembling and sound effects)
Soundforge (for sound recording and optimising)
Sony Acid (for mastering)

Additional Skills

Working as a major account sales manager for years meant I developed a sensitivity for knowing what people want and why. Tuning in to people's emotions and presenting the tailor-made pitch to appeal to people and call them to action is my speciality. This works very well both in copywriting and in voiceover. Often, an idea I suggest to the director will be used to good effect in a commercial or a film. Other times, I'll try different approaches and voices to test the impact.

I also write scripts and have many characters (generally comic) in my mind. Occasionally, these characters will surface unexpectedly and to good effect. As a copywriter, I understand that getting noticed is a priority and this translates to my voiceover work.

Finally, I can record anything from my home studio in excellent quality. Generally, a few instructions by email or telephone is enough to get the voice as you need it. My experience as a musician sees that the recording is very efficient and of satisfactory quality.

Payment Methods Accepted

• PayPal
• Personal checks, cashier's checks, or money orders in my local currency
• Wire transfers

Contact Information

To contact Matt Challands by email or phone, please click here.