Voiceover (VO)
Galadriel's narration over the prologue — the voice that speaks from beyond the frame, before the story begins.
A voiceover (abbreviated VO in production scripts) is recorded audio — a narration, commentary, or any spoken content — that plays on the audio track of a video while the speaker is not visible on screen. The voiceover is separate from on-screen dialogue (where we see and hear the person speak simultaneously) and different from on-screen presentation (where the speaker is visible). Instead, the voice is heard over the visual content — footage, motion graphics, screen recordings, or any other visual material — providing a parallel audio layer that comments on, explains, or emotionally frames what the viewer is watching. In script notation, lines intended for voiceover are typically marked "VO" in parentheses.
The most common forms of voiceover in B2B video include: explainer video narration (a professional narrator explains the product or service over animated graphics), product demo narration (a narrator explains what's happening on screen as a screen recording plays), documentary-style corporate narration (a narrator provides context and structure in a case study or brand film), and recorded presentation narration (a pre-recorded voice is used instead of a live presenter for asynchronous delivery). Voiceover can be recorded during or after production — "scratch VO" recorded during editing to establish timing is replaced with professional VO before final delivery.
Recording quality for voiceover has a high impact on overall video quality — poor microphone quality, excessive room echo, background noise, or inconsistent recording level in a voiceover are immediately perceptible and create an impression of low production value even if the video and graphics are excellent. Professional voiceover is recorded in an acoustically treated space (sound booth, professional recording studio, or home studio with acoustic treatment) using a quality condenser microphone and preamplifier, with editing to remove breaths, pops, and inconsistencies. For B2B teams without recording facilities, AI voiceover tools (ElevenLabs, Murf, Descript AI voices) have reached sufficient quality for many production contexts, providing consistent delivery, perfect pronunciation of product names, and easy revision without re-recording.
Related terms
- Narration— 'The world is changed. I feel it in the water.' — Galadriel's off-screen authority: invisible, omniscient, inarguable.
- Voice of God— 'All we have to decide is what to do with the time that is given us' — off-screen authority, inarguable.
- Audio Track— The Pensieve of your edit — every captured sound, waiting to be summoned.
- Mixdown— Every audio track in the galaxy reporting to a single stereo file — the final Council of Elrond, but for sound.
- Teleprompter— The Remembrall for presenters — ensuring no one forgets their lines under lights, cameras, and live pressure.