Voice actor and coach Mike Delamorte joins us to talk about getting started in voice acting, finding creative purpose through performance, advice for new actors, and the joy of helping other voice actors grow through coaching.
1. What inspired you to start voice acting
I’ve always had a love for impressions and vocal experimentation (as well as movies, animation, and video games), but it was during my time as a frontman for my previous band Glass Divide that prompted me to start my journey. During the course of the pandemic, we were recording a new EP to try and keep ourselves sane, and our longtime sound engineer and collaborator Rico had me pulling out all these strange and interesting spoken vocal layers behind the screamed lines for our newest batch of songs. I had already been feeling this kind of “itch” in the back of my mind for some time concerning voice over and acting, but when I began asking Rico( he had done some work in ADR) he didn’t really have any direction for me. So I just started pouring myself into researching everything I could, and then eventually began auditioning. My stimulus money actually bought my first round of equipment. It’s funny because I’ve always been a creative, but through all the mediums, from illustration to music, there was this nagging feeling that there was a greater something else I was “meant” to be doing. It wasn’t until I plugged into voice acting I realized this was IT.
2. What advice would you give new actors?
Be patient. Take your time. Be diligent, and yes, stay organized. But also please… be kind to yourself, and give yourself the time and mental space to breathe and to grow in your art. There will always be other opportunities, ALWAYS, so you can let a ton of them go while you snag the few ones you really connect with. And don’t smother yourself with some obscene grind of forgettable auditions in the pursuit of chasing numbers; being a good actor means giving yourself to a process that takes time, focus, and real energy in connecting with reads, and developing characters worth listening to. We don’t like machines taking over our art right? So don’t forget to be human 😉
3. What has been your greatest success story so far as an actor?
My greatest success story as an actor is having found this creative outlet, and in spite of so many challenges, continuing to stay the course long enough to watch things flourish. Honestly, I had a pretty rough start in life, and had to do a lot of tough, internal emotional work on my own to catch up and become a “functional adult”. Art as a whole has always been instrumental in that, but voice acting has helped me heal and grow in wonderful ways, all while getting a chance to give back to others in the process. I get to reclaim some of my childhood back in the play of some of the characters. And getting to watch my stepchildren enjoy the things I help create is extremely special.
4. You also do coaching! Tell us about that
I do! Coaching is something I started doing just this year, and it’s been an amazing experience, both for myself and the voice actors who join in. Though I initially began with a basic methodology that worked for me, my approach to teaching has adapted and evolved a bit as time goes on. This is an idea that has carried over from my time as a martial arts instructor, but in teaching students, I’m also learning from them, coming up with new ideas and approaches in directing the read. There’s something about having to communicate and tap into direction quickly and on the fly, especially with students from different walks and abilities, that really helps build those fast-twitch mental muscles. I also love to see that in many cases, voice actors I’ve worked with are going on to shortlist and book using these methods, which is super satisfying for everyone. Their wins are my wins.
5. What are some things you discuss with other actors in your courses?
Much of my focus is in character work and crafting better auditions, both from a performance standpoint, and a marketing one as well. I think auditioning is a great place to focus on, because the skillsets you learn from taking short sides and expanding them into scenes with fully fleshed characters is absolutely going to help you with your work once you’ve booked the role. On the marketing side of things, it’s all about considering the experience of the casting director who’s ear is probably ready to fall off after listening to hundreds of auditions, and making bold choices that’ll make your takes rise to the top of the pile. Voice actors have a lot of freedom in the auditioning process, and there’s a lot of creative space for you to make a pitch for a character that’s fun for both you and the listener. The bottom line is: You’re not being compensated to do all these auditions; why wouldn’t you find ways to have fun recording them? Making the process fresh, and fun, and exciting for yourself also ties to creating habits that will keep you invested and prevent burnout.
6. Where can folks support your work?
Follow me on X, and stay tuned! I have a few ongoing productions and games I’ve been a part of I’m providing links for. There are a few upcoming pilots as well, including parts in Detective Jake, Hard Evidence, and Alfred Around The World that are in the works, and I’m excited to share the news about those as it comes 😀
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