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Post here if you need voice actors for mods, or if you'd offer you


simplywayne90

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I've recently found what may be a bit of a loophole in using voices of actors and things, so this may interest some modders.

 

The inspiration was the ED-E mod using all the movie quotes.

So assuming the moderators have seen that, then that may possbily mean:

 

1. Using a sentence or two from movies is not enough to cause trouble.

 

2. You can use any sound bytes you find online for free. (I assume this since thats where the author said he got his voices from)

 

3. Using the voices of someone without directly naming them. (For instance, it may be illegal to use Jack Nicolsons voice with a character named Jack Nicolson or one of the parts he's played, but not illegal to use his voice on an alien that has to ties to him whatsoever.)

 

A personal idea was using clips from interviews and things of that sort as I don't think that the actor would copyright those, since you see them chopped up in news papers and on E! etc.

 

Just a thought let me know If I'm completely wrong on any of them so as I don't get in trouble for using voices.

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This goes to those who are capable of adding additional feature to the whole forum.

 

Can anyone make a a database where potential voice actors can sign up with details and a sample of their voice so that other modders can listen to the samples and contact them if required?

 

This would speed up mod production a lot.

 

The advantages of this could be beneficial for a lot of games, so I suggest making a general voice actor database as opposed to a thread where you have to sift through a lot. Doesn't even have to be on the nexus. Anyone who have any idea about PHP+MySQL can do it, using their Nexus profiles as the contact point as opposed to email.

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This in regards to using voices and copyrighted material. I have asked Dark0ne for a little more direction on some other copyright issues to help people avoid being banned for copyright violations.

 

As far as voices are concerned you can do imitations of people's voices as long as you declare them to be imitations. That is usually sufficient, it really comes down to the the impact (if any) on the person being imitated (financially, reputation, etc.).

 

Here is a link to the Google excerpts of the book "Law and the Business of the Entertainment Industries" by Donald E. Biederman, Martin E. Silfen. (ironically Google's use of excerpts such as this have come under fire by copyright holders).

Read from Page 241 forward.

So to be safe I would stay away from voices of actors who are associated with gaming projects as imitating their voice for your project could be seen as competition, although since these

projects are released for free, the damages to the actor being imitated would be low or non-existent.

As far as doing lines from a movie, it becomes a little more complex. The next "quoted" text is quoted from http://www.intelproplaw.com/Forum/Forum.cgi?board=copyright;action=display;num=1169569730

"Generally speaking, quoting a song lyric or line from a movie can be done so long as it's accompanied by a citation to the song/movie title, the author/owner. This is most often argued to be acceptable under the fair use provisions of the Copyright Act. <br siber__q92dpb7seovvtbh5__vptr="7730e20"> <br siber__q92dpb7seovvtbh5__vptr="776c540">However, there comes a point where the use of lyrics or lines goes beyond "fair use" and enters the realm that requires permission/licensing. Unfortunately, it's not a completely bright line to see where you cross over to the need to license. Many folks would say that less than five quotes from a single work, spread out over 200 pages or so of text, would be ok. But this is not an absolute, and it's evaluated (if you get sued) in the context of how you used the quotation. <br siber__q92dpb7seovvtbh5__vptr="7ae2400"> <br siber__q92dpb7seovvtbh5__vptr="7730110">Most known artists/authors ALWAYS get permission, even for the slightest use of a quote, simply to avoid this issue entirely. Stephen King is a great example. He loves to quote 60s song lyrics ... and does so at the beginning of most of his books. But you'll always find a statement on or near the copyright page that indicates that he used the lyrics with permission (which can sometimes be as simple as sending a letter to ASCAP explaining what you're doing and what you want permission for)." end of quoted text.

Permission is actually easier than you would guess. I have written to many music artists (or their labels) and received permission for use of songs in podcasts and machinimas. I have received emails and even a letter by mail from recording stars giving me non-commercial rights for my project for free and they were flattered I chose their material. Movies are tougher as there are usually multiple owners of the work sought after (screenwriter, owners of movie, writer of original work on which the movie is based, etc.).

Copyrights, Trademarks and other intellectual property have many laws and many exceptions to those laws. As I am not an attorney these are merely my interpretation of the US laws.

Please contact a board certified copyright attorney (or equivalent in your country) for a opinion on your particular issue. Also unlike the US, some countries have more strict copyright

laws that do not allow for "Fair Use", while others have no copyright laws (just for the record Eastern European countries like Russia have copyright laws, they are just not usually

enforced.)

I know this is a confusing subject, but I hope this helps!

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Hey there,I am doing an AvP mod soon and will be needing voice actors for that.Heres a link to the Bethsoft WiPZ thread.Also,would this mod infringe copyright in any way?and if so how?

Link: http://forums.bethsoft.com/index.php?/topic/1148811-wipzaliens-vs-predator-vs-courier/page__p__16796846__fromsearch__1#entry16796846

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  • 2 weeks later...

Some Voices needed for Machinima based on FO3 and FONV

 

 

 

 

Cops in the Wasteland III (Blade Runner New Vegas), Episode #2 is ready to be voiced. Episode #1 can be viewed here

 

Voices needed:

 

Sasha Ashe - 20 to 30ish White Female police lieutenant (soft easy voice)

 

Charlie Johnston 20-40ish African American male (any accent or dialect)

 

Chief Harkness 30-40ish White Male (Harkness is an android. Speaks normal, but little emotion in his voice)

 

The complete script, plus breakout scripts for characters needed are attached in .pdf format. If you need Word or other format let me know..

 

If you want the part just record the script, (any sound format is fine) and email to me at [email protected]. First come first served (within reason).

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