Family

Using Our Voice Overs to Make a Difference

October 13, 2017 by Rosi Amador

The Amador family, Brian, Alisa, Sonia, and I, have always enjoyed doing work geared toward making the world a better place. That’s why we were thrilled to provide voice overs for both the English and Spanish versions of La Familia Verde, an environmentally-themed PSA campaign.

Amador Bilingual Voiceovers - The Green Family - La Familia Verde PSA Want to find out how to save money on your energy bills? Want to learn how to stay healthy in a changing climate? Meet the Familia Verde, The Green Family! Their enthusiasm for saving energy may seem a little exaggerated, but they’d love to be your guides to a green, healthy lifestyle.

On this project, we had the pleasure of working for the first time with ChavoBart Digital Media. They’re a media production and distribution company specializing in short-form environmental and educational content. ChavoBart created the delightful Familia Verde segments as part of a campaign sponsored by the Yale Program on Climate Change Communication.

Hear La Familia Verde in English:

Hear La Familia Verde in Spanish:

All in the Family

As a family of bilingual voiceover artists, we love being able to work together. This is especially true when we get to record meaningful content in both English and Spanish. We hope to be able to lend our voices to many more projects like this – projects that connect our skills with our values. Given the current tendency to ignore science and promote environmentally-damaging energy policies, it’s especially important that we do all we can to protect our planet.

One-Stop Voiceovers

As a family business, we pride ourselves on providing our clients with a one-stop shop for a wide range of voices and languages. Improving the voiceover experience for our clients is something we always strive for! Producers often need to search far and wide to cast their commercials or PSA’s. Not when they come to us! At Amador Bilingual Voiceovers, we can provide all the voices they need in one location. Let our avatars tell you all about it.

Guest Blogger – Allison Schneider of StudySync

November 4, 2016 by Brian Amador

allison schneider guest blogger It’s our great pleasure this month to feature a guest blog by one of our favorite clients, Allison Schneider of StudySync, developers of digital Language Arts curriculum. The entire ABVO family (Rosi, Brian, Sonia and Alisa Amador, plus our honorary Amador, engineer Camilo) have had the pleasure of recording a LOT of wonderful literature for Allison and her team in English and Spanish.

About StudySync

Allison here with StudySync. It’s a joy to share a bit about the work that StudySync and the Amadors do together. As a digital English Language Arts/English Language Development curriculum, StudySync engages students with media and technology. One of the foundations of our product is a growing library of over 1,200 text selections, many of which include voiceover readings to help students better access and understand the text. That’s where the Amadors fit into the StudySync picture, and it’s where they’ve made a lasting impact on students across the country. I’d like to share a couple of particulars about what makes our collaboration with them so rewarding.

Engaging Students Through Literature

In their work with StudySync, the Amadors engage and inspire students through great works of literature in English and in Spanish, exposing them to the works of prominent multicultural authors including Sandra Cisneros and others. The voiceovers provided by the Amadors help bring Spanish-speaking students along on Tom Sawyer’s adventures by voicing a Spanish translation of Mark Twain’s beloved work. They’ve contributed several dozen voiceovers to StudySync, and with each one, they strengthen our ability to inspire students of diverse backgrounds.

A Shared Passion

StudySync’s work with the Amadors is especially strong because they share our passion for education. That shared commitment shows in every voiceover that they create for StudySync. It makes every project that we work on together meaningful.

A Family Affair

When you work with the Amadors, you’re working with family. Working with the Amadors and their team is a true family experience. First, you don’t get just one talented voiceover artist—you get five! Second—and most importantly—they make you feel like you’re a part of the family. The Amadors don’t just bring talent to the table. They bring friendship and a collaborative spirit.

As StudySync’s curriculum continues to grow, we look forward to having the Amadors along for the journey. Gracias, Amadors, for sharing your talents with us!

The Perfect Voiceover Dog

March 1, 2016 by Brian Amador

The Perfect Voiceover Dog Like many small businesses, Amador Bilingual Voiceovers is a family-based enterprise. Our entire family participates in the business to some extent. Rosi and I both work as bilingual voice actors, as do our twins when they’re not busy with school or other work. And then there’s Azure, the 9-year-old Chihuahua-Long Haired Dachshund mutt we inherited a few years ago. (We still haven’t decided if he’s a Chihuachshund or a Dachuahua.) Azure contributes to the business in his own ways. In fact, he’s the Perfect Voiceover Dog!

Quiet is Good…

If you have a voiceover recording studio in your home, one absolute requirement is that noise be kept to a minimum. This requirement can be at odds with owning a dog, as often they like to express themselves vocally. Fortunately for us, Azure is the strong, silent type. Or at least the silent type. He doesn’t scratch at the door. He doesn’t whine. He almost never barks, except when he’s outside and sees a bigger dog. Which in his case is almost any dog. Inside the house, he’s like a little Zen master, meditating in his bed or in a sunny spot on the floor, or occasionally coming downstairs to the studio if he wants company.

But What Does He DO?

Of course, the absence of negative behaviors is not enough to qualify Azure as the Perfect Voiceover Dog. It’s also about the positive things he brings to our business, and to our home.

Many studies have shown that petting, holding and cuddling with a dog lowers stress in humans and makes them feel calmer and happier. People who live with dogs don’t need the studies to tell them that.

Another advantage of having a dog is that he needs to be walked a couple of times a day. Which serves as a reminder that I need to be walked a couple of times a day. Many voice actors spend most of their time cooped up in their little voiceover caves. My dog gets me out of my cave and into the world.

And That’s Not All

Of course just about any dog can make its humans feel calmer and happier and help them get a little fresh air and exercise. But the Perfect Voiceover Dog can also IMPROVE YOUR PERFORMANCE! Say what!!!?? That’s right. If I get a script that calls for a warm, empathetic, reassuring read, all I need to do is pick up my little buddy, or even just imagine holding him, and POOF! I sound more warm, empathetic and reassuring. Imagine holding something as cuddly as a baby and as wise as Yoda, and you get an idea of the feeling he inspires.

To my fellow voice actors I say, if you’re wondering what’s missing in your studio or in your life, maybe you need a Perfect Voiceover Dog. If you’re not sure of what breed to look for, I recommend a Dachuahua.

Merry Navidad! or How We Stopped Worrying And Found Our Own Way To Celebrate The Holidays

December 17, 2014 by Brian Amador

2002: Christmas with 6-year-old daughters. Does it get any better?

It’s that time of year again! Christmas trees. Bells ringing at shopping malls. Children sitting on Santa’s lap. Non-stop Christmas carols, from the classic to the bombastic. And of course, a relatively new annual tradition: the call to arms in the “WAR AGAINST CHRISTMAS!” We’re told that if someone wishes you a “Happy Holiday,” it’s because they’re trying to kill Christmas. I always thought that whether someone wishes me Merry Christmas, Happy Hanukkah, happy holidays or season’s greetings, they’re wishing me well, and I appreciate it. But then again, I don’t have a full-time staff working tirelessly to find things for me to be mad about.

Maybe my laissez-Nöel attitude has to do with the way our family has come to celebrate Christmas; it’s bilingual, bicultural, and so idiosyncratic that we would never expect anyone else to celebrate the same way we do. Rosi is Jewish, and although my parents tried to raise me Christian, it didn’t really take. Still, Rosi’s Jewish-Argentine-Puerto Rican family did have a tree, celebrate Nochebuena (Christmas Eve) and share gifts, and Christmas has always been one of my favorite holidays. One of the things I like most about it is how it has always absorbed elements from different religious and secular traditions and synthesized them into a much more universal celebration of peace, hope, giving, and light in the darkness.

Here’s what we do to celebrate Christmas. Tree? Yes. Lights on, and in, the house? Absolutely, though usually not until all the neighbors have theirs up for a few weeks. (I make up for this by leaving mine up until Valentine’s day.) Gifts? Sure, but not to an extreme, and not to the point of stressing about it. Parties? Yes, we try to have one, complete with lots of food (including pozole, a New Mexican stew made with hominy, pork and chile) and everyone singing Spanish and Latin American carols. Religious observance? Not really, but we do have a ritual that means a lot to us. On Christmas Eve, we sit in a circle around a lit candle. Each family member takes a turn holding the candle and saying what has been important to him/her in the year ending, recognizing any friends or relatives to whom s/he would like to send loving or healing thoughts, and sharing hopes for the coming year. When we’ve all had a turn, each person opens one gift, leaving the rest for Christmas day. Why? Who knows? My family always did it when I was a kid, and coincidentally, Rosi’s family did, too. After all this is done, when we should all be snug in our beds, I always seem to be wrapping presents. Christmas day we finish unwrapping presents, drink coffee, eat, see friends, maybe see a movie – it’s kind of like an extra-special Saturday with no chores!

However you celebrate Christmas/Hanukkah/Kwanzaa/your holiday of choice, may it bring you warmth, joy and relaxation in the company of loved ones. Merry Everything!

Happy (Hispanic) Thanksgiving! A cross-cultural recipe for you.

November 25, 2014 by Brian Amador

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Before I fell in love with a Puerto Rican girl, I had little idea of what the food from that island was like. Soon after Rosi and I started going out, she told me how much she loved eating yuca. The idea seemed strange to me. I assumed she was using the Spanish word for yucca, the state flower of New Mexico, where I grew up. It’s a plant with sharp, sword-like leaves and a tall stalk topped with white flowers, and the last thing that would have ever occurred to me was to try to eat it. Well, as it turns out, yuca and yucca are two completely unrelated plants: what’s called yuca in the Spanish-speaking Caribbean is known elsewhere as cassava or manioc. It’s a starchy root vegetable that can be boiled or fried, and it is in fact delicious. One Thanksgiving it occurred to me that it might be a good idea to mash boiled yuca along with the potatoes, and the result was so good that it immediately became a Thanksgiving tradition in our house. Like so many things in our lives, it’s a mix of “All-American”and Latino traditions. So here’s my contribution to the growing body of Hispanic Thanksgiving recipes. If you decide to try it, let us know how you liked it. Enjoy!

Mashed Potatoes with Yuca and Roasted Garlic
Serves 12 (with leftovers)

– 2 lbs. Russet potatoes
– 2 lbs. yuca root
– 1 head garlic
– milk or soy milk
– salt and pepper to taste
– 1/2 stick butter (optional)

Peel potatoes, or don’t, as you prefer. I’ve done it either way. To prepare yuca, cut it crosswise into sections about 2 inches long. Soak it in very hot, but not boiling, water for about 10 minutes. This will soften the tough outer skin. When it’s cool enough to handle, take a chunk of yuca and make a shallow incision across the skin. Carefully wedge your knife blade between the skin and the flesh and pry the skin off all around. Peel all the yuca in this manner and cut each of the yuca chunks in half lengthwise. There’s a tough fiber in the center that needs to be removed. I usually do this with a paring knife, making two incisions in a V-shape around the fiber and prying it out.

While yuca is soaking, roast garlic by whatever method you prefer. I like to separate the cloves, cut off the butt end, and wrap them in aluminum foil with a drizzle of olive oil, then roast at 350 degrees for 10-15 minutes, or until it smells delicious. Garlic should be soft and lightly browned when you remove it from the skins.

Boil the yuca for about 8 minutes before adding the potatoes, as it takes a bit longer to soften. When yuca and potatoes are done cooking. Mash them together with the garlic, butter (if desired) and enough liquid to get the desired consistency. Add salt and pepper to taste.

How Bilingual Voice Actor Rosi Amador Achieves the Ultimate Work-Life Balance

March 27, 2014 by Brian Amador

Interview with Voiceover Actor Rosi Amador by Lin Parkin

If there’s one thing that most working mothers share in common, it’s the desire to balance work life and home life. Achieving that elusive goal of fulfilling your calling as a parent as well following your passions and career choices can feel like the Holy Grail.
[Read more…] about How Bilingual Voice Actor Rosi Amador Achieves the Ultimate Work-Life Balance