Your French voice-over brief,
ready in 3 minutes.
You can check your script's length at a realistic voice-over pace, find the words for the tone you have in mind, and leave with a clear brief.
Your French voice-over script and its speaking pace.
You can see how many words per minute your script needs, and whether it fits your video.
Your script stays in your browser. It is only sent when you submit your brief.
If you're adapting an English script into French, your French version is often around 15 to 20% longer. Your video may need a little more room.
Your script also has to sound right.
You can hear straight away how well your script works for a voice-over when you read it aloud. A passage may sound too written, alliteration may make it a mouthful, or a sentence may run too long. You still have time to change it.
The details that prevent another take
Acronyms, names, technical terms… Should "ROI" sound like the French word roi, the letters "R-O-I", or "retour sur investissement"?
You may already have a storyboard, music, an edit or a final script. The more you can share, the better the voice can sit within your video from the first take.
0 of 4 elements ready
The words for your French voice-over tone
You can find most voice-over directions in these six families. Choose up to four nuances, from whichever families feel right to you.
Upbeat
To carry people along from the first line.
Natural
As if you were simply talking to someone.
Warm
To put people at ease straight away.
Assured
Calm, clear and quietly authoritative.
Storytelling
To make people want to know what happens next.
Playful
To raise a smile and stay this side of silly.
"A bit of spark", "like a chat between friends", "a trailer voice".
A link, a title, an example.
Your brief, ready to send.
You can see your brief take shape from what you've shared above. Add anything else you need, then copy it or send it to me.
An intention, a constraint, a reference… or nothing at all. We can talk it through together.
Your brief will take shape as you fill in the sections above. Tone and extra details are optional.
You can send it to me and receive your quote within 24 hours, with a free sample using your script if you'd like one. You can also copy it and keep it for your project.
Why 150 words per minute in voice-over, rather than 120 or 180?
Your voice-over needs room for breaths, emphasis, silences and the images on screen. At around 150 words per minute, a natural read keeps that space. At 180, the delivery becomes noticeably brisker, and you can hear the difference.
Natural read: 30 sec ≈ 75 words · 1 min ≈ 150 words · 1 min 30 ≈ 225 words · 2 min ≈ 300 words
Brisk read: 30 sec ≈ 90 words · 1 min ≈ 180 words · 1 min 30 ≈ 270 words · 2 min ≈ 360 words
Do you book voice-overs regularly?
The Voice Over Briefing Guide is also available as an editable PDF: the same method in a document you can keep and share with your team.