We’re excited to introduce you to the always interesting and insightful Tim Heller. We hope you’ll enjoy our conversation with Tim below.

Tim, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. Have you been able to earn a full-time living from your creative work? If so, can you walk us through your journey and how you made it happen? Was it like that from day one? If not, what were some of the major steps and milestones and do you think you could have sped up the process somehow knowing what you know now?

I have, yes! I’ve been earning a full time living in voice acting and voiceovers since 2020.

Starting out at the end of 2017, VO was just a side gig to my stage acting in NYC and something that was incredibly fun. However, chronic back issues flared up in the beginning of 2018 and doctors said I shouldn’t be pursuing anything that required me to be on my feet, which included theatre and TV work. I took two days to mourn the loss of that career path, pivoted, and focused all my energy into VO work.

The beginning of the journey was focused on training, failing forward, and auditioning a TON. This built a foundation of knowledge on how to use my equipment, which genres of VO work I liked working in the most, and solidified that I did indeed want to make this my full time job.

Years 2-4 were spent taking different classes, working with a coach, and really trying to develop a portfolio of work and clients that would keep bringing me back for more work. I was extremely lucky that during the pandemic, VO work was in high demand as it was one of the only parts of the entertainment industry that was still running when everything shut down. It also revealed that remote sessions were going to be the way forward and opened an opportunity for my wife and I to move to Austin for a change of pace. We’ve been here almost two years now, bought a house, and I’ve built my dream studio!

Something I really wish I would’ve done earlier, especially before the pandemic, was finding community. The first two years I struck out mostly on my own and it wasn’t until later that I found the Voice Actors of NYC Facebook group and made some friends that I’ve been close to even without having met in person yet! Besides just having the community to support you, I do think it may have expedited my journey to full time because of the classes and other resources that the group provides.

As always, we appreciate you sharing your insights and we’ve got a few more questions for you, but before we get to all of that can you take a minute to introduce yourself and give our readers some of your back background and context?

I’m Tim Heller! My main line of work is in voice acting and voiceovers. I record with clients all around the globe from my home studio here in Austin, TX. In addition to voiceovers, I host a podcast – 2nd Cup, produce audiobooks, and consult with companies and individuals on how to create content and use it to grow your business.

There are a few things that I think make me unique to client’s I work with. The first is my directability; with my background in theatre it brings an ability to really be able to translate the direction from the client into exactly what they need, when they need it. I’m also not afraid to just “go for it” when they suggest something a little more goofy or outlandish. I feel like not taking myself so seriously and removing my ego, it helps not only with my own mental health but also in creating a truly collaborative and safe relationship with my clients. Even more than reading the scripts and bring their work to life, I love connecting with people on a true human level. (Making them laugh is just a bonus!)

Can you share your view on NFTs? (Note: this is for education/entertainment purposes only, readers should not construe this as advice)

Short answer: They’re brilliant. Especially for artists and creatives.

Long Answer: THe NFT boom of last year saw some really special new technologies being implemented to protect artists and their bodies of work, and also cast a light on the ugly side of Web3 which was the scams, rug pulls, and misuse of power in some of the NFT communities. The wonderful side is that NFTs and blockchain technology open the doors for artists to build a community and then that community can directly access and support the artist they so adore. No record labels, no “Go Fund Me” and no middle men. It also creates a digital “breadcrumb trail” so to speak that cannot be duplicated or copied, therefore eliminating, or significantly reducing, risk of copyright abuse or a delay in royalty payments. It’s still very early days but I’m excited for the future of this technology and its positive impact on the entertainment industry as a whole!

Any insights you can share with us about how you built up your social media presence?

Towards the end of last year I found myself in a consumption swamp. I was constantly taking in and consuming other peoples content and was feeling unfulfilled and uninspired in my own creative skills. I took that feeling of sitting in a swamp and, at the beginning of 2022, committed to making the equivalent of 1 video each day for a year and just see what would happen and what I’d learn.

I started out with silly videos and sketches and it slowly evolved into more of a mix of vulnerable and educational content and once I hit that, I saw my following and presence grow.

The main advice I have for those looking to start building more of a presence on social media would be to be consistent, and be yourself. If you stick to those to little nuggets, and know that it’s gonna feel weird and uncomfortable, you’ll start to reap the benefits!

Contact Info:

• Website: TimHellerCreative.com
• Instagram: @TimHellerCreative
• Facebook: Tim Heller Creative LLC
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thcllc/
• Twitter: @THCreativeLLC
• Other: 2nd Cup Podcast – https://anchor.fm/tim-heller

Image Credits
Sydney Goodwin Photography