How obesity and depression shaped one of the world’s most prolific voiceover talents
This story will bother you. But if you love a happy ending, it will warm your heart. That’s because the trials and tribulations of New Zealander and voiceover sensation Chloe Elmore are so horrific, it is impossible to read without experiencing a total mood shift. Her pain and suffering are extreme. Most would not have survived the trauma that Chloe dealt with. Chloe has overcome a lifetime of terrible experiences and is one the strongest women I will ever know.
She is also one of the most successful voice actors of the modern age. Miss Elmore voices in multiple language accents. And all agree, she’s a force to be reckoned with.
But who is Chloe Elmore? How did she rise to prominence? It of course starts with childhood.
Raised “beautifully” by a construction worker and a homemaker, Chloe’s parents saw an indication that something was wrong at school. So, her parents’ home schooled her.
That “something wrong” was four sinister boys in the neighborhood that raped baby Chloe starting at the young age of three years old. Chloe endured this abuse for “three to four years.” Sadly, Chloe’s first memories as a little girl were being sexually abused, non-consensually, by thugs in her neighborhood. She didn’t even know it was wrong. “I had so many barriers to overcome,” she says, “and it took a lot of recovery work to restore my life to that of a normal person.”
The violations led to an eating disorder and Chloe, reached beyond 200 pounds. And this led to chronic depression. “Because no one wants to have a big heavy friend,” she explained. And this depression led to suicidal thoughts at 11 years old. And that’s when she began to realize that things were not right. At eighteen years old and 255 pounds, she entered a recovery program. “They saved my life,” Chloe says.
Despite Chloe’s self-esteem being stripped away, her passion for the arts fueled her past the dark memories of her childhood, saying: “I always knew I wanted to be an actor, despite its’ difficulties”. From the start, Chloe was “fighting so very hard to get a booking.” At the time, New Zealand had no focus whatsoever on the development of the arts. The community was very small, and it placed Chloe at a severe disadvantage being so very far away from everyone in the entertainment world. So far in fact, that she says: “On a clear day, I can see Antarctica from out of my window.”
New Zealand is so far removed from the arts that Voice Actor is not generally recognized as a profession. Sophie recounts an everyday conversation: “I tell people I’m a Voice Actor and they say, ‘What’s That?’”
She had tried on-camera acting, but, “Out of seven hundred auditions, I only booked five,” Chloe tells me.
Chloe had risen past so many setbacks: Sexual abuse, obesity, depression, suboptimal location, lack of support for the arts in general… And yet, Chloe believed that all her obstacles were merely preparation, for the big success that was right around the corner.
Chloe elaborates, “I had a fire in my soul and that burning ember told me: ‘This could be a wonderful life.’” Turns out, she was right. Eventually, the doors of voice over swung open for her.
Chloe’s moment of truth in voiceover occurred when she said to herself, “I have come through the fire, and to do so you need the hide of a rhinoceros, and my experiences have given me one.”
Chloe’s voiceover accent roster, although true and verified, looks like it is made up. Here are the accents she books in:
French
Serbian
Irish
Italian
Middle Eastern
Australian
British
Scottish
Russian
Hungarian
New Zealand
American (various regional accents)
“I’m not snobbish about any genre, I like them all. I’m not just a commercial voice or a video game voice, I like to straddle all the genres and aspire to be the Swiss Army knife of voice talent.”
In a bittersweet way, Chloe’s past, uniquely prepared her with strengths and mannerisms that benefit her in the VO space. Because little girl Chloe was so alone in the world, she had imaginary friends that she talked to every day. But now, it’s something she uses professionally. She says “That’s what I do every day for a living, because when I cut audio for a game or for any show with other people, there is no one else there. So my imaginary friends have turned out to help me immensely.”
Now 32 years old and living comfortably in Auckland, Chloe’s career trajectory has exploded. The demand for her time and her talents even surprises her. “Because practically everything they want to hear, I can do.” But she cautions young newbies, “If you really want to do this, go do it, then come back in ten years and we will be able to determine how well it went,” she says. “This business eats its’ young, so you have to realize it will take a long time to become exceptional.”
Chloe is now in year eleven of her VO journey. Committing to it full time three years ago. “I will do this until the day I die, and no one will stop me, because this work is my life.”
Chloe’s Website: www.chloevoices.com
Although Chloe’s early years were befitting a Greek tragedy, She burned bright and despite the world being against her, she has become a worldwide talent, with a reputation for being fun and easy to work with.
A well-deserved happy ending.
