Six Months Inside the Belly of SOVAS
By Kayla Bowles, November 16, 2023
I first stumbled across the Society of Voice Arts and Sciences (SOVAS) website while researching potential places to study voice acting. I could only dream of one day finding a place where I could learn from incredible people and experience training like no other. When I read about SOVAS I knew I had to connect with them.
Six months ago my dream came true. I was in a one-on-one session with my voiceover coach, Joan Baker. I had recently completed an eight-week voice and speech class at The Acting Studio in New York City and in my second year of undergraduate studies at Sarah Lawrence College. Joan and I had been discussing what I wanted to do next with my career, and she suggested that I work as an intern for The Society of Voice Arts and Sciences. I instantly agreed, and a few weeks later, following a phone interview with Rudy Gaskins, I started working.
Right away, I felt a sense of belonging. Rudy and Joan were and are extremely warm and welcoming, and encouraged me to take this opportunity to learn everything I can. Despite only doing one or two professional voiceover jobs before joining SOVAS, I believed I had a good sense of how the industry worked. Six months later, it is incredibly humbling to be able to see things from another point of view. I am now clearer as a result of both conducting interviews for this column and reviewing hundreds of the entries for the 10th annual Voice Arts Awards were instrumental in shifting my perspective about what success as a voice actor truly means.
Many of my interviewees stressed to me the importance of allowing your passion to inform your performance and propel you forward. A few that stand out to me in particular are my interviews with SOVAS Ambassadors Angely Baez and Susie Valerio. Angely was very adamant about the importance of working hard to cultivate both the artistic and business sides of one’s voiceover career and not to favor one over the other. She shared with me that when she first started out in the industry, she could only see the “romantic and passionate side” of the industry, and that over the years, her goals and point of view evolved.
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I definitely could relate to the idea of looking at the voiceover industry through rose-colored glasses. For some time, I associated success in voice acting, particularly in the animation space, with the number of ways one could manipulate their voice and create a unique sound, and believed it was one’s skill in this area that gets someone hired. Both my years of training and my time at SOVAS have opened my eyes to a fuller picture —yes, talent is a vital factor in creating a successful career in voice acting, but it is one of many. I now know how important it is to maintain a healthy balance between the business and creative sides of the industry.
Angely also shared how important it is to cultivate oneself in this business, and to not let fear and mediocrity inform one’s decisions and performance. She said, “Responsibility, punctuality, discipline, respect, and constant training are the keys to growing and staying in this industry. Hard work kills talent when talent doesn’t work hard”. That’s something I will carry with me throughout my entire career, and for that, I can never thank her enough.
Susie Valerio shared something just as special with me. For the most part, I tend to conclude my interviews by asking what my interviewees think the most important thing someone entering the industry should know. Susie defined working in the entertainment industry as a “life choice” as opposed to a job. She explained that earning a steady income and having an established career in our industry takes many years of training, a lot of patience, unwavering desire to do well against all odds and sheer hard work; noting that if you love the industry enough to weather the inevitable challenges without losing the spark and passion for the craft, then this is definitely the path for you. That sentiment truly encapsulates my time here at SOVAS. I am so unbelievably grateful for everything I have learned and the experiences I have had thus far and am so excited to see what the future holds.
While Angely and Susie definitely touched something personal inside me, I was intrigued and deeply moved by the inspired careers journeys of each person I have been fortunate enough to interview for my column. In fact, the idea of having a voice acting column that touches a global audience had never occurred to me. It was not part of the plan. My boss, Rudy Gaskins says, “When you have a plan, and your work your plan, good things manifest in your path, and you get to choose what you fold into your journey.” Flash forward to now, and I have booked my flights to Los Angeles to attend the 10th Annual Voice Arts Awards after having worked with the very organization that produced it. I truly cannot express how blessed I feel to be doing the work I love most in the world and learning from some of the industry’s greats. This journey has only just begun.
Kayla Bowles is assistant to Rudy Gaskins and Joan Baker, founders of the Society of Voice Arts and Sciences (SOVAS), creators of That’s Voiceover! Career Expo, and the Voice Arts Awards. She currently studies the art of voice acting with Joan Baker, and has studied with Real Voice L.A., The Acting Studio, and Broadway Evolved. Though new to the voiceover business, Kayla has already booked a local TV commercial, a role in an indie animated series (in development), and lent her voice to various passion projects. She is currently an undergrad at Sarah Lawrence College in Bronxville, NY.
From the Society of Voice Arts and Sciences
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