You're listening to Voice Acting Mastery, episode number 170.

Welcome to the Voice Acting Mastery podcast with Crispin Freeman.

Voiceactingmastery.com is your place to learn both the skills and the mindset you need to become a professional voice actor, even if you're just getting started.

In each episode of this podcast, you'll discover valuable tips, tricks and insider information

to help you portray characters in animation, video games, and beyond.

And now here's your host, voice actor Crispin Freeman.

Hi there, my name is Crispin Freeman, and I'll be your guide through the world of voice acting.

If you'd like to know more about me, feel free to check out my personal website at www.crispinfreeman.com.

For today's episode, I want to share with you the first part of my interview with the

incredibly enthusiastic and completely inimitable Darren DePaul.

Darren took the voice acting world by storm the moment he arrived in Los Angeles in 2013.

You may know him as the voice of Blackhand in World of Warcraft, Warloads of Draynor,

Emperor Valcororian in Star Wars

the Old Republic, Arden Azunia in Final Fantasy 15, Revenant in Apex Legends, and one of my

personal favorites, Reinhardt in Overwatch. Darren's passion for voice acting is infectious,

and he has become a fixture at many different fan

conventions, including Blizcon, where he often hosts panels and events. As we begin our discussion,

Darren recounts to me the unique and serendipitous journey he took into the world of voice

acting. Darren began his acting career in the theater. He spent many decades acting both in Florida,

where he was born and raised, as well as in New York City. While his focus was on stage performance,

he had always had a fascination with character voice acting work. Unfortunately, most of the people

he spoke to in New York told him that the majority of voiceover work in the area

...