How to deal with all the different accents for a Spanish Voice Over? Should I use Spanish or Latin-American voice actors?
If you have doubts, we will help you choose the most suitable accent for your audiovisual project.
With more than 500 million speakers, Spanish is the second most used language globally, only behind Chinese. It’s an official language in 20 countries: 18 in America, 1 in Europe, and 1 in Africa. Also, is one of the top spoken languages in Europe.
An accurate audiovisual localization implies looking into these cultural nuances and knowing your audience deeply, which is much more than a translation or a voice-over job.
Here, we will share our experience and help producers decide which accent is better for each Spanish Voice Over project.
It is very challenging to emulate different accents in a Spanish voice over job. Speaking a local dialect with a native accent requires years of experience and practice.
Locals speak with their natural accents effortlessly because a mother tongue is developed phonetically and grammatically in early childhood. But for a non-native, there will always be some noticeable dissonances.
Working with local talent is a must. The solution is to find a voice talent agency that can provide native voice talents in a great variety of Spanish accents.
Spanish Accents from Around the World
Many people think that Spanish can be broken down into two categories: Spain Spanish and Latin American Spanish. But have we got a surprise for you? There are actually many different Spanish dialects out there.
Many native Spanish speakers will tell you that they can’t even understand other Spanish dialects because of the heaviness of the accents!
You can’t use a Latin-American Translator for a Spanish project and vice-versa. A script constructed with Latin American vocabulary will not work in Spain, even if you use Spanish talents.
Spanish-Speaking Countries and Popular Dialects
Know the countries where Spanish is their official language:
- Spain
- Mexico
- Panama
- Costa Rica
- Argentina
- Bolivia
- Chile
- Colombia
- Cuba
- Ecuador
- El Salvador
- Guatemala
- Honduras
- Paraguay
- Peru
- Dominican Republic
- Uruguay
- Venezuela
- Equatorial Guinea.
Here are some of the most popular Spanish dialects:
Castilian Spanish
Castilian Spanish is perhaps the most recognized of all the Spanish dialects.
You could also listen to Merce, one experienced Spanish Voice Over Artist with Castilian Accent.
Andalusian
The big thing to remember about Andalusian Spanish is that it is very fluid sounding and much softer than other Spanish dialects.
Rioplatense (Argentine)
Spoken in parts of Uruguay and Argentina. Because both countries saw a large influx of Italian immigrants in the past, this dialect has a heavy Italian influence.
Caribbean Spanish
Caribbean Spanish includes the countries of Cuba, Puerto Rico, and the Dominican Republic. While they each have their own dialect, other Spanish speakers associate these countries with Caribbean Spanish.
Andean
Andean Spanish is the dialect that is spoken in Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, and parts of Venezuela. This dialect is influenced by its local indigenous languages and European heritage.
Mexican and Central American
Last but not least, we have the Mexican and Central American dialects. Mexico is the largest Spanish-speaking country in the world, and it is also the heart of Spanish cinema and media.
Each country has unique quirks, but the good news is that all Spanish dialects use the same written standard and are mutually intelligible.
However, that does not mean a single version of your Spanish Voice Over project will work in any Spanish-speaking country.
Best Spanish Accent for a Voice-Over
Colombian Spanish accent is usually considered the one that’s closest to neutral Latin American Spanish, and the Argentinian is said to be the sexiest. However, these are just myths.
What matter is that whatever the variety of Spanish you speak, you are understood by every Spanish speaker, but when it comes to business, you must first study your target market to choose the correct Spanish accent.
No matter where you will exhibit your Spanish voice over project, accents are one of the most crucial topics in advertising. Popular accents used for advertising vary depending on the region you belong to throughout the world.
To capture the interest of a new market, you will definitely need professional support of an experienced Voice Over provider. An agency that can offer you the best strategy to make your product relatable to a specific target.
Who are the Most Famous Spanish Voice Actors?
Seeing our favourite stars acting in our favourite movies is always very special. Hearing their voices as they bring to life some pretty incredible animated characters is even more fun. Some of the biggest actors have landed roles in major animated movies like the Toy Story franchise, Coco, Encanto and others.
Some stars have been part of the animated world on more than one occasion, lending their voices to multiple characters. Megastars like Antonio Banderas, John Leguizamo, Shakira, Horacio Sanz, Gael García Bernal and Ricky Martin; they showed their acting talent through their gorgeous voices and added one more incredible talent to their resumes.
How to Get an Accurate Spanish Voice-Over
Spanish is an important language for global communication, business, and social media projects, and the need for localized translations for Spain Spanish and Latin American Spanish is increasing rapidly among companies braving into new international markets.
A localization agency that can show you precisely what to do, from the initial translation to finding the right talent and then finally recording it flawlessly, is a must in this case.
We strongly recommend GoLocalise, London’s leading voice over, subtitling and translation agency since 2008. They can offer right there on the spot a great number of outstanding experienced Voice Over Artists that are ready to help you with your next project.
All their voice actors are native speakers and can do any combination of language, dialect, gender, accent, pitch, and tone. GoLocalise lets you choose from the best Spanish voice actors and narrators, supported by their state-of-the-art equipment and recording studios.
GoLocalise has dedicated Project Managers and excellent in-house Sound Engineers with decades of combined experience, covering everything from TV commercials to IVR recordings, audiobooks to video games, and everything else in-between!
Do you know that Spanish is one of the most useful languages to learn for translators?
