Korean Job Discussion Forums

[forgesteel]

my boss wants me to help him create some language tapes that they will distribute 'for free' to the TOEIC students. my understanding is that the TOEIC teachers get paid around 10+ million won a month. i am thinking: why the hell should i help these guys out? they are already making bank.

i want to ask for 200 usd per hour for my time. is this too much? too little. what's the going rate?

by the way, the script is already created. they only need my native speaker's voice. that's the only essential service i'll be providing.

thanks in advance,
forgesteel

[peppermint]

No clue what the going rate is now, but 3 years ago when I last did one I got paid 50,000/ hour and considered it good. it's really not hard work after all.

[fancypants]

i have done a lot of that kind of work...i usually got 40-50K per hour.

[supernick]

I did it last year for 50.000 an hour. it was OK but each time I had to wait around for an hour or so to get started. After the recording, I was asked to stick around. They only wanted to pay me foe the recording time which was only 2 hours. The next time I told them that I work only for a 4 hour minimum.

[Kyrei]

As one in the field - the going rate for education recording material is 40 - 50K per hour depending on experience. You are only paid for the recording time (and there is inevitably time spent waiting and monkeying around). Scripts should be corrected within reason, but if you are asked to edit the script that is a different job and paid at a different (and much higher) rate, usually 5 - 10K per page, depending on how bad it is. I usually just walk out if the script is that bad. After all, its my voice and I won't put it on TOTAL crap... only moderately bad crap

For those who do this on the side, make sure you get paid on the spot or at the very least, have the money Internet transferred to your bank account. If you really trust the studio or client, then accept payment later at your own risk. Do not accept andy "tax" crap as it is all illegal unless you are on the F5, in which case you might have to pay up to 12% in taxes (although I never do... I leave it to my manager to handle that).

Good luck to you.
PM for information if you like, but I will not be passing along my manager's name or agency since that just takes jobs/money out of my own pocket.

[Kyrei]

--duplicate posting --

[PRagic]

I do a lot of this type of work, and have over 10 years of experience. For those of you 'in the field' that are working for 40 an hour, STOP! You are either working through an agent that is taking advantage of you, or you are underbilling. This will hurt all doing this type of work over the long-term.

If you have experience, the going rate is 70-80 thousand won per hour, with 10 minute paid breaks between the hour (usually ends up to be 50 minute sessions plus a 10 min. break). You should be getting a MINIMUM of 50 from an agent.

Inexperienced voice actors working THROUGH AGENTS get around 50 an hour, but, then again, the agent is billing anywhere from 70-100 an hour.

Ask in advance if they want the script proofread and, as suggested by others here, tag on some extra fee. If all you need to do is stick in the occasional 'the' or 'an', then I'd just do it for free. If the script is really bad, tell them you will either read it AS IS, or proof it for a fee and reschedule the recording. If this option is taken, they should still pay you 30 minutes for the cancelled session (travel/inconvenience). In most cases, you can 'correct on the fly', making small changes as you go. They appreciate this, and it's not too tough. If you are not in the mood, and they don't ask, then simply read it as is and keep it to yourself.

Good luck.

[fancypants]

[PRagic]

Not possible now. I've been doing this for a long time, and I'm 'legal'. Agents are fine to work through, but don't take less than 50, and don't be afraid to build up your own contacts.

Even if you DO work through and agent, it doesn't mean you'll be busy. They have their 'in demand' voice actors, and those are the people that get the steady work. Some people actually only record for a living here, and do OK by themselves. If you are (or become) good, then maybe you'll pick up more work. However, the people here with 5+ years of experience are the ones that prosper. If you're willing to stay and put in the time, then anything's possible.

[fancypants]

[quote="PRagic"] Not possible now. I've been doing this for a long time, and I'm 'legal'. [quote]

legal...you mean you are on an F2? kyopo?

i know what you are saying...i also did a lot over the years. not so much TOEIC, mostly TV voiceovers, public transport announcments and the like. but " a lot " should be qualifed: i was doing about 2 recording jobs a week for the last couple of years i was in korea. i had a lot of fun and it was kind of icing on the cake of my regular income. and it's kind of fun to hear yourself all over the country and stuff. but i never really took it very seriously. i met a lot of laughable cheesy waygookin showbizzy types "in the biz" who thought they were stars or something and who seemed to be pretty proud that they did voice recording and acting exclusively.

"You're a teacher? I don't do teaching anymore. Teaching is slavery, dude. I haven't done it for a year. And this voice recording gig is just a favour for my agent...I'm getting a starring role in a new film that starts shooting next week."

but then i see the guy a couple of months later and he's all elusive when i ask him about the big role...

but when all was said and done i reckon they spent most of their time preening their coifs, bleaching their roots and waiting for their phone to ring for "the big one" that never materialized.

(i also met some really cool regular people who laughed at it all just like i did but i gotta say they were in the minority. )

anyway, i agree with you that freelance voice recorders get majorly ripped off by their agents but i don't have the foggiest how to go about getting jobs without one. it's even harder than making cold calls in jong-ro offices for business esl classes!

...i am no longer in korea and so i'm not jealously guarding my voice recording turf anymore...if anyone is interested in getting this kind of work, send me a PM and i will give you my ex-agent's contact details.

[PRagic]

If you know an agent, it's either Harry, William, or Jina. There is one more, but they handle the military folk. Like I said earlier, even with an agent, there is no guarentee you'll work. It's tougher to 'break in' than it used to be.

I'm more like you in that I think people that take this seriously are kind of funny. For me, it's a second job, although I must say that I make as much doing this as I do in my other job. I only work a couple of regular studios, so the days of running all over the city are long behind me.

PM me. We might actually know each other. When did you leave Korea, and where are you now?

[fancypants]

[quote="PRagic"]If you know an agent, it's either Harry, William, or Jina. quote]

none of those people were my agent...

[PRagic]

Jinny, then? Or did you work for one of the 'modeling agencies' in Itaewon? Really, there are only 4 voice acting agents in Seoul.

[forgesteel]

great advice!
much appreciated!