Any gamer will tell you that these days video games are more than just something to pass time. They are interactive movies with rich story lines, detailed characters and a "choose your own adventure" story that puts you in the center of the action.
Red Dead Redemption 2 and Overwatch are two massive games with record-setting scope. I interviewed actors Kaili Vernoff (Susan Grimshaw in Red Dead Redemption 2) and Jen Cohn (Pharah in Overwatch) about their careers, the business of voice acting and their part in bringing their skills to these and other popular game titles.
Also in this episde: Social Media gone wrong, voice acting in the lean times, NDA nightmares, fake horses and straws for cigarettes, the important difference between a cut scene and a cartoon, plus LATKE MANIA!!
This episode was recorded in front of a live Zoom audience during Covid lockdown as a Mentor Monday event. These were a series of interviews for aspiring voice actors to hear from the pros and gave them a chance to ask questions. They were always fun and informative, and did double-duty as UnSung podcast episodes. I'm glad to finally dust these off and share them!
Kaili Vernoff has a long career acting in movies and TV series (IMDB) ranging from The Cosby Mysteries in 1994 to six different Woody Allen features, and popular series like Law and Order, The Path, House of Cards and much more.
She brought the fiery character Susan Grimshaw to life- and quite a fan base- in the game Red Dead Redemption 2
Jen Cohn is a multi-talented actor, voiceover artist, and fashion designer! She's not only the voice behind the hugely popular character Phara in the Overwatch series of games, but she was also Lord Zash in Star Wards: The Old Republic, Red Dead Redemption, Grand Theft Auto 4 and more. She was also Ursa in the animated series Avatar: The Last Airbender, several characters in the series WordGirl, and many other IMDB credits for films, games and animated series.
Tune in to this episode everywhere you listen to podcasts. Thanks as always to John Beach for voicing the show intro and to Christina Andretta for the in-show announcements.