[[Note: To give all a fair shot, No casting will be decided before the deadline on May the 15th. Deadline may be extended]]
Hey and Welcome to the MGS2 Audiobook project.
First, the male roles are all read by me as a personal challenge, so female voices only. No Male characters are available; Sorry to disappoint.
Second, this is an UNOFFICIAL NON-Commisioned, and NON-PROFIT audiobook version of the book Metal Gear Solid 2 - by Raymond Benson, which is in turn an adaptation of the classic videogame of the same name.
You can see my adaptation of the first book where I also used a female cast here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RTW0Fjl_dqk
For those of you unfamiliar with the story:
The story mainly follows rookie super-spy 'Raiden' (aka Jack), as he infiltrates a recent terrorist seizure of an oil decontamination facility ('Big Shell'). On the way he faces off with various foes and gets help from unexpected people. The plot is from Hideo Kojima who is notorious for creating bizarrely surreal yet serious stories and this is no exception.
The general plot is an action-adventure, though there is a slight romance plot and breaks for humor.
I've (painstakingly) managed the dialog for each chapter in a play script format, so you just have to read it like a movie scene. I've been working on this too close for a while, so I may have glazed over the context. If you're cast and have the script, I'm happy to elaborate/clear up any oddities. I've tried to be consistent, but I don't have a background in script writing or anything, and I am juggling the pov of 4 different characters.
Expectations
I am NOT looking for a 100% voice-match to the original characters. I'm pretty flexible about the interpretation as long as it's in the ballpark. My Colonel Campbell, for example, is no where near Paul Eiding's performance superficially, so I did my best to match the energy and cadence, rather than try and imitate a perfectly pitched rasp.
I DO expect relatively clean audio with little/no background noise, a decent microphone, and clear articulation. For the purposes of Auditioning, please do slate with just your name.
If your audio quality is overwhelmingly sub-par, I cannot consider your audition. I have access to some noise reducing tools but it's not ideal.
Deadlines
The deadline for auditions is TBA . I will repost the project as necessary. After being awarded an audition, you will be given the full scripts and then 2 weeks (flexible upon request) to get the recordings back to me at which point I check for needed revisions and then I will complete payment.
Payment
This is a non-commercial, not-for-profit production. The budget is out of my pocket at no profit to me. I'm posting the final product to youtube at the mercy of copywrite; therefore while I'm more than happy to accredit your contribution, it may be something you choose not to have credited (which I will respect). There is a large possibility the project will barely reaches any public circulation. I'm fine with that as this is a project to challenge myself, rather than a commodity to sell.
I calculated all of the prices at $300 per finished hour. The most finished product time estimated is Rose at 16 minutes. The format for the dialog has been (painstakingly) converted into script form from the book by me. if the GofundMe exceeds expectations I will double the rate, but it's subject to change
As for revisions as mentioned in 'deadlines', if I am at fault for missing something critical and need an updated version then we can negotiate a fee to add to your pay. Being a voice actor myself, I try to be pretty reasonable and fairhanded about what merits extra effort and therefore pay.
If something unclear in this posting, feel free to comment and I'll try to amend it!
Visit the GofundMe for this project:
https://www.gofundme.com/f/help-complete-the-mgs2-fan-audiobook
We've extended the audition deadline to Tuesday on request. We will be listening to the auditions starting today and following up with any that are bettween now and Tuesday. Up until now I have been purposely not listening to give everyone a fair shot.
Thank you to everyone who auditioned!
Rose is Raiden (aka Jack/the protagonist)'s lover and has managed to get a radio support role alongside Campbell in Raiden’s mission despite Raiden's objection.
Age ~25y/o
{ Author’s initial description} “A pretty brunette, Rose was dressed in a beige suit with a blue blouse, revealingly unbuttoned. A pair of earrings and traces of makeup completed the somewhat unreal effect.”
{Director’s notes} “Up until the penultimate final acts, Rose is Raiden's girlfriend first and his support agent second. She is passionate about Jack and is very emotionally attached. She grounds him to a humanistic reality in Raiden’s otherwise cold and clinical approach to the mission and life in general. Vocally, her voice should warm, caring, and concerned as well as very informal (shy away from sultry). Unlike many of the characters, she doesn’t really have an over-the-top voice texture; not too cutesy, not especially high nor low pitched.
I'm not expecting a voice match, but for reference, here is how she sounded in the game/source material:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nNs7lTPVjzI
~<3000 combined words
3000 @ 3 Words Per Second = ~16 minutes finished product
16 minutes @ $300 per hour [aka. $5 per minute] = $80
If fundraiser exceeds limit, may multiply x2 = $160 potentially
*aloof*: "Do you know what day it is tomorrow? No? Oh well, I'll keep trying until I hear the answer. I'm going to let you go now, Jack. Take care."
*remincing*: "Ah, It was so beautiful. I could look down on the Chrysler Building from a hundred and twenty stories above ground."
*Confessing*: "What I really wanted was for you to see the real me. It hurt to play out this —this artificial romance. It was worse to lie to myself than to you. The more love you gave me, the more it hurt—because I knew the person you loved was just a character"
Authors description of Olga - {“Olga was beautiful—in a boyish way. There was no trace of fear on her face.”}
Director’s note: Olga is a tom-boy archetype with short blond hair and a soldier’s fit muscular build. She’s pregnant at this time though it is seemingly not a big concern for her. Her voice accent is distinctly Russian and she speaks straightforward but with a tongue in cheek sense of humor when the situation calls for it.
Her age is roughly 20s or 30s
She also escapades as the unknown Mr.X in secret.
I'm not looking for a strict voicematch, but here's a clip of how she sounded in the game.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XEpzI_Can9Q
est 1600 words @ 3 Words Per Second = ~9 minutes finished product
9 minutes @ $300 per hour [aka. $5 per minute] = $45 guaranteed
If fundraiser exceeds limit, may multiply x2 = $90 potentially
Casually shouting exposition mid-battle: "I've been with the unit since I was born! I grew up on the battlefield. Conflict and victory were my parents!"
Gritted Threat: "Just a reminder. I'm going to say this again, one last time. Don't try anything on us."
To the protagonist: "Your nanomachines—they're transmitting your vital signs to the Patriots. If you die, my child dies. Do you understand?"
Emma Emmerich – Stuck after the decontamination facility’s hostile takeover; She’s a nerdy programmer and sister to Hal Emmerich. Her program is essential to the plot and stopping the antagonist.
[Author’s initial description] (I swear I don’t write these things) -. “Raiden was surprised by how cute she was. She was dressed in a two-tone T-shirt with black short pants. Her bare legs were pretty and youthful. Her brown-red hair was secured behind her head with two chopsticks. She had an adorable face and wore red-framed glasses, giving her a nerdy, yet sexy, persona.”
Director’s Description – Emma (18y/o) is a petite young genius programmer. Her voice is in a high-ish register, but not necessarily nasally. Predominantly neutral accent. She has a fear of water/swimming.
I'm NOT expecting a voice match, but here is how she sounded in the game/source material (you can skip to about the 1min mark):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YxFAE2CL4D0
(edit: updated typo - NOT expecting a voice match, take your own spin if you feel it's justified!)
~1800 combined words
1800 @ 3 Words Per Second = ~ 10 minutes finished product
10 minutes @ $300 per hour [aka. $5 per minute] = $ 50 guaranteed
If fundraiser exceeds limit, may multiply x2 = $100 potentially
*Pouting*: "No! He left me,” *sniffle* “-my mother—when we needed him the most! When my father died all he could think about was himself!"
stalling at the suggestion of swimming: "I don't think I can do it. I'm not good at holding my breath."
"It's not really a virus. It's more like a worm cluster. It's actually a delayed- effect autonomous program that's designed to invade G.W's cerebrum and render its nerve connections useless."
Helena (aka Fortune) is a roughly 30 years old, strongly built, African-American woman. She has the nickname ‘Fortune’ as she can seemingly repels bullets and explosions. Generally speaking, she has a very serious/deadpan demeanor, as she’s lived through lots of trauma. She sees her ability as both a blessing and a curse; and generally conducts herself as being invincible yet melancholy. Her counterpart voice actress gives her a moderately-deep, rich tone as well as a deliberate/matter-of-fact way of talking. No accent/American
Author’s description: {It was a woman, tall and slender, with long, curly blonde hair. She had an almost regal demeanor and was dressed in a black leather coat as dark as her skin; the hem fluttered lazily in the sea breeze. Otherwise she was dressed in a black leather corset, something a bondage mistress might wear for an adventurous client. Her long legs were bare except for combat boots on her feet. An M9[pistol] rested on her hip, and she carried a massive, heavy rail cannon weapon as if it were a feather. .}
I'm not looking for a voice match, but for reference here is how she sounded in the game/source material (you can skip to about the 2 minute mark):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sCUY6q8i3Yw
~800 combined words
800 @ 3 Words Per Second = ~ 4 minutes finished product
4 minutes @ $300 per hour [aka. $5 per minute] = $ 20 + $5 extra = $25
If fundraiser exceeds limit, may multiply x2 = $50 potentially
*ominously*: "I can't tell you how happy I am that you are alive after all. I knew this moment would come."
*aggressive*: "Show yourself and finish me—like you finished my father!"
*spitefully*: "Do you think anyone believes your lies?"
This role subject to small change.
I decided to open up some of the unnamed characters so guys can practice walla/battle efforts. pay will be variable based on how many 'roles' you play.
The characters are Navy SEALs (ie; special forces) that are engaged in (various) firefights, but the context is generally bizarre; like fighting a telekentic woman or a vampire. Should be played straight though.
Seals(any): Shouts! (both battlecries and of fear+injury)
Seal Alpha: "Damn! I cant hit that thing! It's like some bad dream!”'
Seal K (on grenade failure): “A dud!” (do an ABC style take – informative, questioning, befuddled)
