INTERVIEW WITH JOE FRENCH — Let’s go beat up some bots!
◆◆ EPISODE CONTRIBUTORS ◆◆
Gamerland — Interviewer
Want Some — Design
Joe French — Special Guest
✵✵ ABOUT SPECIAL GUEST ✵✵
Joe French is a voice actor located in London, UK. He has been actively working as a voice actor since 2001. He has worked for a diverse pool of clients and brands, such as Mercedes Benz, BMW and Microsoft.
Joe French is a professional voice artist and actor of many years experience. His skills range from subtle, authentic, genuine, conversational warm tones to upbeat character comedy and everywhere in between and beyond. Whatever is right for your project, Joe will deliver with passion and commitment, every time. A quick turnaround is guaranteed and all revisions and corrections are always free, until you or your client are totally satisfied.
❖❖❖ ABOUT INTERVIEW ❖❖❖
In this episode, we had the pleasure of chatting with Joe French to learn more about him. His insights were incredibly impressive, and we extend our heartfelt thanks to Joe for his engaging and thoughtful responses during the interview. We hope you enjoy reading it as much as we enjoyed conducting it!
You’ll find all the essential links and sources at the end of this article. Don’t forget to follow our and Joe’s social media channels and visit our websites for the latest updates.
Please share your comments and thoughts about the interview below. Your feedback is important to us, and we look forward to bringing you more captivating interviews in the future.
▬▬▬ INTERVIEW ▬▬▬
1. What inspired you to become a voice actor, and how did your journey begin?
My journey really began at 16 when I went to college to study theatre. I loved it! When I left education I used to do voicework every now and again for people I knew, it was a side hustle for a little extra money. Eventually I took the (slightly mad) leap to making it my only job!
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2. Do you have any idols, who might you be inspired by? Who are they?
When I was a kid I guess my idol was Harrison Ford, I just loved everything he was in. He had a pretty distinctive voice too!
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3. You voiced Sam in Brawl Stars. What was it like to work on a project and be part of something with a large fan base like “Brawl Stars”?
If I’m totally honest it was just like any other job, great fun! The only difference being that it was fairly high octane in the recording session, keeping that gruff, growly Sam voice going takes it out of you! Plenty of water needed! Also Brawl Stars being big means I get the odd email from players every now and again, one recently asked me to voice their own character!
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4. Is Brawl Stars the biggest project you have participated in? Or were there other bigger games or projects?
So far Brawl Stars is the most wide reaching and popular game I’ve worked on yes.
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5. If you had the opportunity to voice a character in any well-known franchise, who would it be and why?
Well, I guess that would have to be Indiana Jones, looks like Troy Baker got there first though, in the new game out soon. He’s American so that helps!
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6. How do you keep your voice in good condition and prevent fatigue or injury?
Water, water and just a little bit more water. An afternoon nap also helps. To my mind sleep is the most beneficial and easy thing any of us can do to keep well in mind and body.
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7. Do you have any specific practices before starting a recording session that help you get into the right mindset?
A bit like Sam I usually just smash into it. I don’t overthink it and rely on my instincts. It takes a few minutes to get into the groove of course but you (and the director) know when you start flowing and those are the takes that get used.
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8. How do you approach voicing a character in a language that isn’t your native tongue?
Sajnos nem volt olyan munkám, ahol teljesen más nyelvet kellett volna beszélnem. Sok idegen szót kellett beszélnem, és amikor megteszem, alaposan utánajárok a kiejtésnek, és remélem, jó munkát végzek!
Or…
Unfortunately I have not had any jobs where I have had to speak a different language fully. I have had to speak many foreign words and when I do I research the pronunciation thoroughly and hopefully make a good job of it!
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9. Can you share a moment from your career where improvisation played a key role in bringing a character to life?
This is surprising to me but I honestly can’t remember any time I’ve ever been called upon to improvise in a session. It seems clients want the script to be the script, probably because previous to any actors being involved they’ve laboured over it in many meetings and discussions etc! I get that.
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10. How do you handle criticism and feedback from fans and colleagues?
Feedback is part of the creative process and totally necessary to get where you all want to go, a really good thing. As for criticism, well, I couldn’t give a monkeys.
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11. Can you tell us about any funny or interesting moments during voice acting?
There was one time when I was voicing a talking animal that was supposed to be rabid. The director insisted on an immense amount of frothy saliva to be audible during the whole recording. I had to wear a bib and at the end of the session which was five hours long my partner had to take me to hospital due to the fact I was profoundly dehydrated.
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12. How has your approach to voicing characters changed over the years of your career?
I don’t get worried about it any more. I used to get quite nervous and that edginess would come through in the session. Nowadays I remember that you are just working with other, usually very nice, creative people toward the same goal.
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13. What was your hardest period in your career and why was it so hard?
The very beginning. It was a total unknown, stepping on to a path that went I knew not where! Of course the jobs were few and money sparse. I remember securing my first proper paid job off my own back. I did a little dance, I was so happy!
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14. How has your perception of the characters you voice evolved over the course of your career?
I guess I just perceive the characters as extensions of myself, part of me bought out and magnified, sometimes extremely! That hasn’t changed really, or perhaps it will as we all change too, slowly.
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15. Can you talk about a time when you had to voice a character with minimal direction? How did you create the voice?
This has happened many times. You have to go into the world of imagination. Your mind’s eye. Putting yourself in the middle of the action. Again, instinct plays a big part, does it feel right? If so it probably is. Fortunately it’s often been the case that the client has said “Well, we weren’t expecting THAT!” and they’ve been pleased so that’s nice.
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16. What is your approach to voicing characters who are very different from yourself, either in personality or physicality?
I tend to try to move my voice away from it’s signature, if that makes sense. Also getting hold of a feeling that you usually don’t feel a lot of, like anger or bitterness or pure love or whatever, depending on the character, can take you to interesting places.
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17. What role has technology played in shaping your career as a voice actor?
It enables me to do what I do. Full stop.
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18. Some voice actors say AI will replace them in the future, others say no. How do you see the future of the voice acting industry?
The human voice is incredibly nuanced and currently and for quite a while, there will be no substitute for a good, well directed voice actor. If that is what a project needs. It also depends on what the developer wants so if they don’t mind the limited artificial voice, fine, sort of. Actors are being and will be increasingly replaced. If you want real quality though you have to go to the artists. Developers really should do this as a matter of integrity lest their company is one day usurped by AI!
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19. In your opinion, what impact does voice acting have on players’ perception of a game?
It all noughts and ones at the end of the day. The human voice brings the life, the emotion and the spirit. ‘Nuff said.
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20. By the end of the interview, can you share with your future plans in voice acting? What are you planning to do?
I’m just going to be slogging away auditioning everyday as I have been from the start. I’m also working on ‘Land of Nod Sleep Stories’ for children currently. That’s going to be ongoing, a Youtube channel for anyone wishing to enter The Land of Nod oh so very peacefully. Classic tales hopefully told beautifully! I’d just like to say thank you for having me for this interview, it’s been fun! All the best to you all! X
══ SOCIAL NETWORKS ══
Joe’s social networks and links
Site — (www.joefrenchvoice.com/)
IMDb — (www.imdb.com/name/nm4418273/)
Spotlight — (app.spotlight.com/7017-8940-5287)
Voices — (www.voices.com/profile/joefrench)
All other information was taken from official Joe’s site www.joefrenchvoice.com/
Interviewer’s social networks
X (Twitter) — (x.com/Gamerland469485)
Telegram (RU only) — (t.me/Gamerlandbs)
