Let’s Talk Voiceover - Episode 37 - Mark Estdale The Voice Director Presents: Let’s Talk Voiceover

Mark is one of the most well-known and credited video game directors in the world, casting and directing actors in titles such as Warhammer, Tropico, Wallace & Gromit, Need for Speed, and so many more.  He's been at the forefront of the creation of the industry. and he's still a bit of a mad scientist: creating, tweaking, and pushing the technology envelope.  He has his own definite style and a deep love of the craft of acting.  We got to have a rare in-person interview with him, where he put us in separate booths so we could experience "the lab" that is his London studio OMUK.  This is what came out!
Randall Ryan:
You want to do a sync clap? Just like one, two, three? It'll just make it easier for me to sync the three feeds.
Gillian Brashear:
All at the same time?
Mark Estdale:
Yeah. You're recording now. Do it now.
Randall Ryan:
Let's do it now.
Gillian Brashear:
Okay.
Mark Estdale:
Okay.
Randall Ryan:
All right, here we go. Three, two, one. Way to go, Mark. You didn't clap.
Mark Estdale:
Oh, you want me to clap as well?
Randall Ryan:
Yeah, all three of us.
Mark Estdale:
Okay.
Randall Ryan:
Three, two, one. Perfect. Close enough.
Mark Estdale:
Ish.
Gillian Brashear:
Nice.
Randall Ryan:
It's ish, it's ish, yeah.
Gillian Brashear:
Right. We're ready to roll here.
THEME MUSIC
Randall Ryan:
Mark Estdale is one of the more fascinating personalities in our industry. Over 25 years, he's directed more than 140 video game titles, including some very well-known franchises, Warhammer, Tropico, Need for Speed, Wallace & Gromit, The Witcher, and Tales of Monkey Island. He's an innovator who really pushes the technology envelope when it comes to casting and recording. Gillian and I had a rare in-person conversation with him at his London studio, OMUK, which he refers to as the Petri dish.
Gillian Brashear:
Mark Estdale, let's talk voiceover.
Mark Estdale:
Let's do that.
Gillian Brashear:
Yeah.
Mark Estdale:
And you're in the lab.
Randall Ryan:
We are in the lab.
Mark Estdale:
Yeah.
Gillian Brashear:
It's a bit of a mad lab.
Mark Estdale:
It is a mad lab.
Randall Ryan:
Mark, when did we first meet? Do you even remember?
Mark Estdale:
F**k knows. I have no idea. It's a few years ago anyhow, so.
Randall Ryan:
Interesting conversation that you and I were having just a minute ago about how you got into this because ... Mark, hey, look at the guitars. Are you a musician?
Mark Estdale:
No. I play for myself. It's a meditation. I ended up messing around with music, which, fundamentally, has to do with being with people and doing interesting creative stuff. I think musicians have, people have a degree of competence and can produce music. I doodle and from doodling sounds happen. Connecting those sounds is another art form. I doodled all my life. And I went to run a studio for a record company and I brought my doodle tapes. I would get my mates into the studio. We would just experiment with stuff. It was the beginning of digital. The only music I was working with was experimental industrial stuff in the '70s and early '80s. And you were going out recording foundries and factories and noises. And then making tape loops and running tape loops in the studio and experimenting with all that kind of stuff.
Mark Estdale:
So the art of replacing sounds with other sounds was about cutting tape and doing all that kind of stuff. So, my deal was the studio. They paid me fuck all. When I wasn't in session, I had free rein of the studio to do what I wanted. So I just record staff and have friends around and some of the musicians, we'd just experiment with things. So I basically transitioned to another studio with my tapes. The owner of the record company went, I want to give you a deal. And I went, great. And then, suddenly, it became work. And all the pleasure went out of it. And I went blind in the sense of there's no way I can mix my own stuff. I can't direct myself as an actor. So I'm on a journey as an actor right now. So I'm doing training righ