Nick Hudson Murdoch (left) in a recording session with some of his fellow voice over actors
Nick Hudson Murdoch is a prominent figure in the voice over world, who has voiced over one hundred characters in animated series and video games to date. After establishing himself as an actor and musician in South Africa, Murdoch relocated to Los Angeles, California, where he has found success in Hollywood. FangirlNation’s Catie Kovelman had the opportunity to ask Murdoch about his journey to get to where he is today, and all about his current and upcoming projects.
Catie Kovelman: How did you become interested in Voice Over?
Nick Hudson Murdoch: I was working as a standup comedian in South Africa (doing a lot of bad impressions and even worse songs!), and I was approached after a set by a producer from one of the big radio stations there. She enjoyed my Nelson Mandela impression and asked if I’d be willing to come down to the studio to record a bit for a segment that they were putting together for Freedom Day. I cautiously said yes, explaining that I really didn’t know what I was doing and that they should probably expect something to set on fire as a result! The next day, I reported for my first session, which involved me reading a whole two sentences in my Mandela voice. We were done in under ten minutes and we all had teary eyes and aching sides from laughter at that point! They asked if I’d like to come back and do more in the future and I wholeheartedly accepted, I was hooked!
CK: Can you tell me about your personal journey to pursue voice over acting?
NHM: After leaving drama school, I basically became a nomad – traveling the world for years, acting in any and every project I could find! I started to be recognized for my work on TV, commercials and in the theater, and was building a name for myself behind the camera too! It was a wonderful snowball effect where work generated more work, and I was in for the ride – right up until the snowball crashed.
At the height of my career, I started a new venture, and I didn’t see at the time that the project was doomed from the start. I kept pushing and pouring every resource I had into it, and when I finally realized what was going on, it was too late – It had taken almost everything from me and killed my desire to do anything creative.
I returned to Johannesburg, took up a corporate job and spent the next couple of years behind a desk, growing more and more miserable. I had let my health go and eventually had a near death experience that served as the wakeup-call I desperately needed! I was rushed to the ER with Acute Pancreatitis and a failing liver, and spent fourteen days sedated in the ICU. When I was released, I knew that life was too short to not pursue what I loved.
I’m very fortunate to have a dear friend and mentor in Charlie Adler, an Emmy award winning voice actor and director, who’d taken it on himself to help me hone my skills and trained me in the finer points of animation acting. He invited me to come over to LA and get a feel for the local Industry, which I eagerly accepted, never dreaming that I’d actually wind up here! I attended classes, vocal workout sessions, social events and quite quickly built a network for myself which all then led me to meeting with a producer who was keen to work with me. So, with the truly incredible support of my family back home, I set about establishing myself as an Animation Actor in Hollywood and I feel like it’s one of the best moves I’ve ever made.
CK: Where can our readers see your work today?
NHM: You can catch me as a few characters in “Walt”, a short series from the genius minds at Floyd County Productions and a part of FX’s “Cake”. I’m also in Steve Oedekerk’s hysterically fun film “Thumbwars IX: The Thighs of Skyskipper”, where I play a bunch of folks, and I’m in “Brightheart” which is a dubbed film releasing soon in which I play the villainous Hamster, King Cyrus, as well as the goofy, Frog Sidekick, Albert. If you’re part of a more mature audience, you can hear me in FUSE TV’s “Sugar and Toys” from the brilliant pens of Carl Jones and Brian Ash!
CK: What projects do you have coming out in the future?
NHM: I’ll be in a wonderful new show for Disney Europe which I’m aching to talk about, but it’s unfortunately still under the tarp, and I’m also working on a couple of podcasts which I’m really excited about! The first is a reworking of a project that I started years ago called “The Revenge of The Martian Moonlight Philharmonic”: it’s an old-style radio show revolving around a rather grotesque parrot, and the other is a round-table discussion with other actors on life; love; acting and numerous other topics to which our opinions are essentially meaningless!
I’m also working on a preschool show which has become one of my favorite projects! Again, I’m afraid I can’t name it for reasons of secrecy, but when it comes out, hopefully soon, I’ll be swinging from every social media chandelier, calling out its name and urging everyone to watch!
CK: Do you have a favorite project that you’ve worked on?
Nick Hudson Murdoch (center) with some of his fellow actors from Stok!
NHM: I’m really in love with most of the projects I’ve worked on, but my favorite of all has to be a theatrical show that I was involved with in South Africa named “Stok!”. It was an absolutely mad combination of sketch comedy, incredible music and twisted, lateral, deep social commentary. I learned more in those productions about performance and acting than in any conservatory or class before or since.
CK: What’s a fun fact about you that helps you?
NHM: I speak several languages and sing opera!
CK: What advice do you have for someone who wants to pursue a career in voice over?
NHM: My advice for someone interested in voiceover is “Wanting to do this is, by itself, not enough”. I urge newcomers – before you blow hundreds of dollars on a microphone or room treatment to rather spend that money on training. Take an acting class, even if it’s not specific to Voiceover and if you can’t do that then join a production through your local community theatre, but learn how to build a character and work a scene before you start worrying about what you sound like.
CK: Where can we follow you on social media to stay up to date on all your projects?
NHM: I’d love it if you’d join me on Twitter (@THATNickMurdoch) or on Instagram (Nick.h.murdoch)! Hope to see you there!
All photos are courtesy of Nick Hudson Murdoch.
Please note, some answers may have been edited for length and clarity.
