Just a moment in time..
Yesterday when I was reading journals, Judith Heartsong ( http://judithheartsong.blogspot.com/ ) asked about if we could take some more educational classes what would they be? I commented in her journal and went back today to read what others had said, (as well as to read any new post).
I think what I read in the comments was that when young our choices seemed to be more towards what is expected, and classes that would lead to better paying jobs. Not so much towards following dreams.
I believe part of that is the push to learn something (anything) that will help you most financially. But asked what you'd like to study as an older adult, I saw subjects that made each person happy even if it didn't lead to a well paying job. I chose as others did, I wrote subjects that I felt I wanted to know more about and I would enjoy.
Of course as for myself being older then most that commented, there was also absolutely NO PRESSURE to even pass the courses! If I found part way into a subject that I didn't have the interest I thought I would, it wouldn't matter if I dropped it or didn't pass it. This would be equivalent to: working because you wanted to and not because you had to! All pressures off of you would make a big difference in how you felt about the job, knowing you could leave if you so chose to and that it wouldn't matter.
Never had having the financial means to go beyond High School I don't think I ever found my "one true love" (not meaning my mate). There are a number of things where I find once there I don't want to leave, but that changes now and then. They all do seem to rotate though and come around again and again.
So I wonder sometimes what would have captured my interest "way back when" compared to the "here and now".? Some things in life never get answered.
Anyway, that said and after reading others comments at Judith's journal, I remembered something that hasn't come to mind in some time. When I lived in California, along with a then friend, I took 2 adult classes at a local college, that I thought I'd be afraid of but wound up having one heck of a good time doing it!
The classes were for "voice overs". In the world on Entertainment voice-overs is a form of "acting" when you don't see the person but only hear the voice. The best example of this is when you listen to the radio. The actor doing the commercial that you hear but don't see. Another would be all of the actors that lend their voices to Cartoons.
When my friend asked if I'd be interested in doing the classes with her, I figured.. ok, what the heck, it's being heard and not seen so I didn't have to be young and beautiful, I only had to be able to talk... this I can do! heh.
The first class mostly taught about commercials. You were given a script to read and told to stand in front of the class and "sell the product". Ummm, I have to say even though it was a small class stage fright was still an issue, and not just to me. Which was good since we all were slightly terrified of doing this in front of others, no one had an advantage. After you were up there and after your first, what they called Cold Read (cold read is reading without having read it before) the teacher would say.. "ok, now expand yourself". (like, did he expect me to gain weight right in front of him????)
Seeing that "what the heck are you saying" expression on my face he would continue... " read it with an accent". I can remember looking him right in the face when he said that and asked out loud.. "you mean my Jersey accent isn't an accent?" He wasn't expecting that and laughed.
I think the laugh broke the ice for me. I began to do the commercial (which if I remember right was trying to sell a car) as if I was Mae West flirting with him! I think here is where I tell you he was a red head.. and red heads blush easily! From that day on the teacher and I got along great! (though at times he was almost AFRAID to call on me haha)
The second class I took was with the same teacher (poor man!) and it revolved around doing cartoon voices, and learning things like Looping. Looping is when you go back and try to match words to a cartoon (an action) that has already been done. In that class one thing we had to do was to make a cartoon voice of our own.
He then had a whole script (this particular one was Rocky and Bullwinkle) and we had to "audition" for each character. He would then choose who was which character and then we all sat around with microphones and read the script as if it was a real cartoon show. Later he played it back for us and it was really neat to hear everyone doing the voices of the characters... we were all given a copy of the tape, oh how I wish I could find that tape!
The second thing we did was the Looping. Here he had a section of a cartoon and had taken the voice off of it and each had a turn to read the script and try to match it with the movement on the screen. (I'm about to pat myself on the back here!...) The cartoon I had was a piece from The Little Mermaid. And yep, even though I was in my 50's "I" was the little mermaid!
In the scene Ariel and Flounder were swimming away from a shark and into an old shipwreck. There was some dialogue that i forget at the moment but i remember it ended with Ariel giggling and saying "ohhh, Flounder" (like in the tone of: you silly thing you)
Well.. I Nailed It!!.. oh yes!! Not sure how, but I nailed it good!
When he ran the cartoon back for us to see it was Perfect!! OMG! I can't tell you how fantastic it looked and how I felt watching it!
My "moment of greatness" lol.. for one whole minute I WAS THE LITTLE MERMAID! hahahaha.. should I sell autographs now? lol lol.
I think what I read in the comments was that when young our choices seemed to be more towards what is expected, and classes that would lead to better paying jobs. Not so much towards following dreams.
I believe part of that is the push to learn something (anything) that will help you most financially. But asked what you'd like to study as an older adult, I saw subjects that made each person happy even if it didn't lead to a well paying job. I chose as others did, I wrote subjects that I felt I wanted to know more about and I would enjoy.
Of course as for myself being older then most that commented, there was also absolutely NO PRESSURE to even pass the courses! If I found part way into a subject that I didn't have the interest I thought I would, it wouldn't matter if I dropped it or didn't pass it. This would be equivalent to: working because you wanted to and not because you had to! All pressures off of you would make a big difference in how you felt about the job, knowing you could leave if you so chose to and that it wouldn't matter.
Never had having the financial means to go beyond High School I don't think I ever found my "one true love" (not meaning my mate). There are a number of things where I find once there I don't want to leave, but that changes now and then. They all do seem to rotate though and come around again and again.
So I wonder sometimes what would have captured my interest "way back when" compared to the "here and now".? Some things in life never get answered.
Anyway, that said and after reading others comments at Judith's journal, I remembered something that hasn't come to mind in some time. When I lived in California, along with a then friend, I took 2 adult classes at a local college, that I thought I'd be afraid of but wound up having one heck of a good time doing it!
The classes were for "voice overs". In the world on Entertainment voice-overs is a form of "acting" when you don't see the person but only hear the voice. The best example of this is when you listen to the radio. The actor doing the commercial that you hear but don't see. Another would be all of the actors that lend their voices to Cartoons.
When my friend asked if I'd be interested in doing the classes with her, I figured.. ok, what the heck, it's being heard and not seen so I didn't have to be young and beautiful, I only had to be able to talk... this I can do! heh.
The first class mostly taught about commercials. You were given a script to read and told to stand in front of the class and "sell the product". Ummm, I have to say even though it was a small class stage fright was still an issue, and not just to me. Which was good since we all were slightly terrified of doing this in front of others, no one had an advantage. After you were up there and after your first, what they called Cold Read (cold read is reading without having read it before) the teacher would say.. "ok, now expand yourself". (like, did he expect me to gain weight right in front of him????)
Seeing that "what the heck are you saying" expression on my face he would continue... " read it with an accent". I can remember looking him right in the face when he said that and asked out loud.. "you mean my Jersey accent isn't an accent?" He wasn't expecting that and laughed.
I think the laugh broke the ice for me. I began to do the commercial (which if I remember right was trying to sell a car) as if I was Mae West flirting with him! I think here is where I tell you he was a red head.. and red heads blush easily! From that day on the teacher and I got along great! (though at times he was almost AFRAID to call on me haha)
The second class I took was with the same teacher (poor man!) and it revolved around doing cartoon voices, and learning things like Looping. Looping is when you go back and try to match words to a cartoon (an action) that has already been done. In that class one thing we had to do was to make a cartoon voice of our own.
He then had a whole script (this particular one was Rocky and Bullwinkle) and we had to "audition" for each character. He would then choose who was which character and then we all sat around with microphones and read the script as if it was a real cartoon show. Later he played it back for us and it was really neat to hear everyone doing the voices of the characters... we were all given a copy of the tape, oh how I wish I could find that tape!
The second thing we did was the Looping. Here he had a section of a cartoon and had taken the voice off of it and each had a turn to read the script and try to match it with the movement on the screen. (I'm about to pat myself on the back here!...) The cartoon I had was a piece from The Little Mermaid. And yep, even though I was in my 50's "I" was the little mermaid!
In the scene Ariel and Flounder were swimming away from a shark and into an old shipwreck. There was some dialogue that i forget at the moment but i remember it ended with Ariel giggling and saying "ohhh, Flounder" (like in the tone of: you silly thing you)Well.. I Nailed It!!.. oh yes!! Not sure how, but I nailed it good!
When he ran the cartoon back for us to see it was Perfect!! OMG! I can't tell you how fantastic it looked and how I felt watching it!
My "moment of greatness" lol.. for one whole minute I WAS THE LITTLE MERMAID! hahahaha.. should I sell autographs now? lol lol.
posted by DesLily | 1:30 PM
2 Comments:
What an interesting thing to do! I've been interested in doing voiceovers myself, but I didn't know there were classes - wow! And I think it's VERY cool that you were perfect doing Ariel. That's a movie I've watched a few times with Xander, and yep, I think you should sell autographs!
:)
Judi
Woo Hoo!
Made you feel great, huh?
V
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