Turn print text into VO demo scripts in yet more genres. Part 4 of 4.

NOTE: This is the fourth post in a 4-part series. Click here to start at Part 1! Click here to start at Part 2! Click here to start at Part 3!

In this series, we’ve looked at the various parts of a print ad, and which of them can be used in a Commercials demo script. Then we looked at the process of cutting a script for time. And last week, we showed how to convert print copy into demo copy for Narration, Explainers and Telephony. Can you also do this for Animation and Games, or Corporate Narration, or even Museum Tours? Let’s see …

This process works for almost any genre. Sometimes the difference is in the type of source material, and what you pull from it. Here are three more, just for example.

Writing Animation and Game characters

SOURCE:

• Reader’s Digest
  http://www.rd.com/jokes/funny-stories/“I got asked about punctuality. I went on about how it was good to speak clearly and politely, and it was nice to use proper grammar in speech and writing.”

SCRIPT:

Ask me anything. I know about periods, and commas, and semicolons. I’m the champion at a madcap dash. You wanna hear me use an exclamation point!?? Yessiree, I know everything there is to know about punctuality.

NOTE: In telling a joke, it’s usually best to put the “surprise/payoff” word last. So we moved the reference to “punctuality.”

Jokes are just one source of inspiration. Depending on the desired type of animation, the audience, and/or game theme, you could check sites for military tactics, mind games, educational lessons, and so on — in fact, anything that would be voiced by the character(s) you want to demonstrate.

Writing a Corporate Narration

SOURCE:

• Fortune Magazine: “The 15 Best Workplaces in New York”
  http://fortune.com/2016/03/22/best-workplaces-in-new-york/On our list since 1998, this family-owned and operated supermarket chain now has more than 88 stores in the Northeast, with more than a dozen new ones on the drawing boards (including one slated for the Brooklyn Navy Yard). Yet, it has maintained a family feel. Says one worker: “Management cares about its employees and always asks how we are doing when we come into work or are just shopping.” Employees are able to submit changes pertaining to their availability and scheduling by logging into the company’s online system, and may take unanticipated time off as needed by talking with their manager. Wegmans also promotes employee wellness with immunizations, yoga sessions, cooking classes, and a Store Wellness Champion at each location, where a pharmacist does health screenings and cheers employees on as they make healthy changes.

SCRIPT:

In each of our 65 stores, management and employees work as a team. Do you need time off unexpectedly? Your manager can revise your work schedule. Or you can do it online. And, you can add yoga sessions, health screenings, even cooking lessons.

NOTE: We changed the details enough that the actual company is not identifiable, but not so much that they would not be realistic. In searching for likely sources of input, keep your eye out for interesting stories and broadly applicable situations. A greater number of potential clients will relate to them.

Writing a Museum Tour

SOURCE:

• Encyclopædia Britannica
  https://www.britannica.com/sports/basketballFor that first game of basketball in 1891, Naismith used as goals two half-bushel peach baskets, which gave the sport its name. The students were enthusiastic. After much running and shooting, William R. Chase made a midcourt shot—the only score in that historic contest. Word spread about the newly invented game, and numerous associations wrote Naismith for a copy of the rules, which were published in the January 15, 1892, issue of the Triangle, the YMCA Training School’s campus paper.

SCRIPT:

In today’s fast-paced pro basketball games, the score often totals hundreds of points. But that wasn’t always the case. In the first game, in 1891 (depicted here), only one basket was scored. And it was a shot from center court!

NOTE: Although the point of your demo is to show off your voice acting skills, if your content is also entertaining or interesting, so much the better. Whatever keeps them listening.

Important note

Always rewrite whatever source material you find; don’t use it verbatim. In addition to avoiding copyright and identification issues, this will help assure that nobody else’s demo is exactly like yours.

ADDITIONAL READING:

Can you use copyrighted material in your demo? (Part 1 of 2)
http://www.edgestudio.com/blogs/turn-print-copy-commercial-script-your-v…

Can you use copyrighted material in your demo? (Part 2 of 2)
http://www.edgestudio.com/blogs/can-you-use-copyrighted-material-your-de…

Should you write your own demo copy?
https://www.edgestudio.com/blogs/should-you-write-your-own-demo-copy-avo…

Do you have a comment or suggestion? Please send to [email protected].