Today we’d like to introduce you to Mark Wisehart.
Hi Mark, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I started in puppets in 1975, Billy bear and Henrietta hippo, to be exact, two puppets my parents got me for Christmas to keep me from using their socks. During that time, I watched ridiculous amounts of Children’s television. Not just cartoon shows with meaningful stories, but one of my favorites was Kookla Fran and Ollie with comedian Fran Allison. Later, I was just blown away by Jim Henson as The Muppets made their irreverent debut. I worked for years to hone my gift but went into radio and television production. In 2005, when I lived in California, I was a lull in work/life when Tim O’Day called me and asked if I’d do the Voice of Marshmallow Pardoned Presidential Turkey with the Godfather of Podcasting, Michael W. Geoghegan. My Voiceover career officially began, and shortly I was in San Diego doing Jonathan Park Radio Drama, which was a blast. My Wife and I moved to Disney World in 2006, and I was curious how my VO career would continue. One day, I was over at Universal running sound for an event by the Godfather of Storyboarding, Mark Simon. A young couple came up, and we got into a conversation, my Voiceover came up, and they happened to be looking for someone. The Couple was Darren and Tina Lutz of Believe Animation (Balance Studios), and the rest was History! I’ve done work for The Walt Disney Company, Ford, Nascar, The National Railroad Museum, The Federal Veterans Administration, Les Paul, and Heritage Hill State Historical Park. I’ve performed/motion capture (body dots) and am Rex in the Children’s educational cartoon DinosaurUS ExploreUS (Believe Animation). I wrote the theme song for the show as well. A couple of years ago, I worked with Duncan Wardle of Disney’s Creative Inc. and helped their team write the lyrics to their Summer Nightastic event and was the first to put music to it. This is where I started working with Mr. Lee Kitchen and began creating a ton of content for the internal teams at Disney.
Please talk to us about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned. Would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
That’s a punch line. Voiceover is always a challenging road. I went back to school in 2012 and got two TCs in Video editing, a passion of mine, and I needed the tools to tell my own stories. I am also a Nature Photographer, and my wife and I travel extensively. Of all things, I was asked to do some Animation and completed about 4o short animations, to my surprise! I say all this because I don’t believe any VO professional leans solely on their VO career. I have a mantra that has worked well for me over the years: “Go where the Momentum is.” Because I’m a Multipotentialite (see Tedx) and am gifted and talented in many areas, I can pivot when the dry times come. I’m getting gigs after nearly two and a half years of nothing during the Pandemic. When the dry times come, I usually search for better education; right now, I joined a design company because I am hungry to learn all there is to know about Framing art. It is fascinating! I’m constantly hungry for knowledge.
Thanks – so, what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
Before 2006, I would not have believed you if you had looked at me and told me I was creative. My Grandfather was a minister, My Dad, at 90, is still a minister, and for 23 years, I was a minister. I gravitated from Pastoral to Television Production, Voiceover, and so much more. Now, I find myself moving into a more Spiritual role and dramatically away from religion. The main reason I’ve done this is that my love and passion have coalesced with my vocation, and it has become just one amazing everyday experience. After around 17 years as a Creative Consultant, I immerse myself in the creative process nearly every day and hang out with people who do the same. I was recently in a field in England, near Hadrian’s wall, at about 5 am flying my drone in the misty morning with about a hundred sheep staring uncomfortably at me. Only a few days before, I stood at the Louv’re in Paris, looking at the incredible work I had become familiar with as a child. As I stood in that field, I took a picture. It hangs in my room and reminds me daily that I am just as much of an Artist, only in the digital realm. I strive to make each piece of my life’s work unique and fun, and I hope it tells a story.
Before we let you go, we’ve got to ask if you have any advice for those just starting.
When I get in circles with other artists and people who have crazy desires to make their life about VO, it always seems technical. What mic do you use? What DAW do you use? How do you take hiss out? How do you put scratches in? Where do you find work? The list of questions is just endless. I like to spend my time talking about creating unique characters. Characters you can sustain over a long period. Read tons of books to your nephews, nieces, and grandkids in those voices. Get good at the story, record it all, and your career will find its way. My sister worked for Riverside county in the Zoning Dept. in 2006. One day a man named Pat Roy came in because he was going to build a garage. He and my sister made small talk and came to find out. Pat was the creator/writer for Jonathan Park. She said, “Hey, my brother does voices!” He said, “Have him shoot me a reel!” I had the recording, and I sent what I had. It changed my life. It changed my life because I was practiced and ready to go. On another note, my name is Mark E Wisehart; if you google Mark Wisehart, Mark A Wisehart will populate. Mark A Wisehart is on Death row, and we’re friends.
Pricing:
- $25-35hr -Video editing, Motion Graphics
- $50hr -VO, Animation
- $50hr/Expenses- Creative Consultant
- $30-50hr- Drone work
- Free-my opinion
Contact Info:
- Website: markwisehart.com
- Instagram: @g1cre8tive
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQbnZK5e3r6Ca7IyJiKem1g
Image Credits
All Photo’s were taken by Mark Wisehart (Disney shots were with my Camera/Phone and taken in public or in a setting where other members of the public were involved).
