Trust Francesca Guadagno, you can become a dubber if you really want it, as long as you have an artistic fire in you. Francesca has been a dubber for ages and has dubbed a whole lot of cinema and television stars, including Cameron Diaz and Marisa Tomei, just to name a couple.
«However, investing in training is fundamental. You do not suddenly wake up one morning and become an actor or a dubber. A good acting school is surely a sound starting point, but then you must see for yourself, first-hand, how professional dubbers work. You must knock on the doors of dubbing studios if you want to truly realise what goes on inside. It’s like going to a craftsman’s workshop to see him at work and then trying to imitate him, for there’s a paramount technical aspect, and following it closely is crucial. Dubbing courses do exist, but training on the job is the best thing, even because courses are not always hosted by professional figures of the dubbing world, and a distorted, simplistic view may be conveyed. It should also be pointed out, though, that this is one of the few fields in Italy still based on meritocracy: if you know how to do it, if you’ve got talent, then you surely have a good chance. But there’s no bluffing… Perhaps, as an actor, you might be able to simulate a talent you don’t actually have; a good film director and editing might be able to conceal certain things. But that doesn’t happen in dubbing, because recitation is crucial. Therefore, only talent can lead to opportunities. The advent of new content distribution platforms (Netflix, Amazon, etc.) offers plenty of work, which means there is the need for new, different people. The problem is finding skilled people.»
«Money-wise, you can never expect anything; the situation varies from month to month. You must work a lot to earn a decent sum, considering that VAT and taxes soak up a large part of the revenue. The amount of work fluctuates greatly, some months are better than others, you can never be sure. It’s a job that can actually make you earn very well, but you must always be alert. Sure, the most renowned dubbers, who are very requested by the producers, can charge pretty hefty fees.»
