The Rate Philosophy Framework
If you work in Audio Description as a performer in film and TV, you already know how frustrating it can be. One project pays one way, the next is completely different. Studios work on their own timelines, with their own systems, and often without clear expectations about what your role actually involves.
And too often, AD performers only discover the real scope of their work once they’re mid-session, like accepting what seems like a standard AD booking and finding themselves narrating hundreds of paragraph long cues. Emotional labor, extra back and forth communication mid-project, and technical editing, all piled onto a “flat rate” that never accounted for that load.
This is why scope clarity is essential. Estimated cue counts, average cue lengths, genre complexity, editing/placement demands: these must be disclosed upfront. Without them, no rate (hourly, per-minute, or project-based) can be ethical or sustainable.
And when it does come to setting rates? Most of us are left guessing.
I’ve called this the ‘Wild West’ of AD. This isn’t blaming anyone, that’s what it is. A marketplace without structure, where real professionals are too often undervalued, because the industry hasn’t caught up to what AD performance really requires.
It’s time we change that.
What’s Broken
Right now, most AD rates are stuck in outdated models that just don’t reflect the reality of the work:
- Hourly rates?
They sound straightforward, but they actually reward inefficiency. The longer someone takes, the more they’re paid. Meanwhile, experienced performers who work efficiently, with real skill, often earn less for doing better work. That’s backwards. - Per production minute rates?
This model doesn’t correspond to other voice talent work in similar areas. - The complexity of AD performance gets ignored.
From cold reads to perfectly timed cueing, this is a high-wire act. But you’d never know it from the way most pricing structures work. Those layers of precision, artistry, and adaptability, sometimes performing multiple roles like editing placement and more, aren’t even acknowledged, let alone compensated. - And because AD often happens at the very end of production, performers get squeezed into rushed sessions without extra pay for the flexibility, speed, availability of time set aside, and professionalism those situations demand. You’re expected to deliver under pressure without any recognition of what that actually costs you.
- On top of that, most people don’t even know how their voice is being used. Is it for a small release? A national broadcast? Global streaming? Could your work be repurposed later without you knowing? Without usage clarity, you can’t protect your voice or price your work properly.
Put simply: the current way AD rates work doesn’t respect what this job actually involves, or what it’s really worth.
The Rate Philosophy Framework
What’s missing isn’t “a standard rate.” We need a shared understanding of what this work is actually worth, and what’s involved in that worth.
That’s why I built the Rate Philosophy Framework. It’s not chasing higher numbers for the sake of it. It’s valuing what AD professionals really do.
- We’re not reading words. We’re storytellers. Co-architects of the AD audience’s experience. That deserves the same respect, and pay structure, as other professional performance roles.
- Complex work deserves real compensation. Different projects ask different things of us. A rushed, pickup-heavy session isn’t the same as a streamlined, prepped booking. Our rates need to reflect that complexity.
- Speed is a skill. The fact that you can nail a cold read in one take shouldn’t mean you get paid less. Professional efficiency should raise your rates, not cut them.
- We’re being hired for the project, not just our time. We prep our studio, sometimes self-directed recordings, pickups, or fixes, rerecord script rewrites … what we contribute spans beyond clock hours. Our rates should reflect the full scope of our contribution.
- We need to anchor rates in industry reality. Be it union standards, accessibility mandates, and the simple fact that AD is becoming essential (not optional) should inform how we price and position our work, particularly as more blind and disabled voice over talent work in this field.
In short, this framework is about helping AD professionals get paid for their expertise, not just reading words.
Why Frameworks Matter
Once a number is out there, it can lock everyone into that baseline, even when the work deserves more.
Rate cards might feel like they bring clarity, but they end up turning complex, nuanced work into a simple number. And Audio Description isn’t simple.
Sharing specific rates publicly might seem helpful, but it often does more harm than good.
That’s why I created this framework to help professionals rethink how they value their work in the first place. It’s seeing AD performance as a craft, and pricing it that way.
“Negotiations” is so dated. This is a relationship to get clarity.
This discussion is a professional relationship, rooted in clarity.
When we ask for project details upfront (scope, deliverables, usage) you might think of it as adversarial, you vs. me. NOPE! Instead of seeing it as “pushing back” think of it like establishing shared understanding. To protect the work itself from all perspectives.
Clearer agreements help facilities too!
And when Production owns the responsibility for AD (instead of it being handled downstream by individual streaming services), those streaming services are no longer stuck as middlemen scraping budgets together. Production pays directly. Facilities get to focus on execution, not negotiation. Everyone wins (including the end audience). I go into detail of more reasons for this in my book roysamuelson.com/book
So when I talk about rethinking rates, this isn’t getting paid more. This is creating a system that works for everyone: performers, facilities, producers, distributors, and the audiences we serve.
Silence Isn’t Golden
If I ask questions about the job, they’ll just hire someone else.
If I ask about rates, won’t I get blacklisted?
Should I even mention usage? I’m afraid if I bring it up, I’ll lose the booking.
These thoughts can keep professionals silent.
It’s tempting to overestimate the negative outcomes from standing up for our value.
These pressures, like the fear of losing work, fear of confrontation, fear of being seen as “difficult,” are exactly why rates remain stuck where they are, and terms remain ambiguous. And as long as we avoid these conversations and accept whatever’s offered (especially not knowing what those terms are), the system remains reactive, and resentment, overcommitment, or unknown expectations likely build up, simply from assumptions.
The current system depends, in part, on us staying quiet. Not out of malice! It’s simply easier for facilities to operate when questions don’t get asked. But as understandable as our silence is, it does keeps things from being clear. And as performers, it’s a different kind of easy to fall into thinking that asking those questions puts our opportunities at risk.
So without conversations about scope, expectations, and value, there’s no reason for the system to evolve.
I know these aren’t easy problems to solve. And I’m not going to pretend there’s a simple fix! What I’ll say is that these fears need to be named. They need to be acknowledged as structural barriers. Because if we can’t even talk about why we’re afraid to advocate for ourselves, there’s no way to change the system that benefits from that fear.
Leading the Change
I’ve lived this work from both sides. As an AD performer myself, and as someone who’s worked with thousands of projects across major studios, I know exactly how easy it is to get stuck in the cycle of ‘just get it done’ and ‘take whatever rate’s offered.’
That’s why my work now focuses on changing that story. Whether it’s through workshops, coaching, or one-on-one consulting, I help AD professionals move out of survival mode. Instead of seeing this as compliance work, it’s performance, and that directly affects the audience’s experience. It’s storytelling. And it deserves to be treated, and paid, as such.
Get the Updates. Shape the Future.
I’m always refining the Rate Philosophy Framework as the industry shifts and grows. In my newsletter, I share what I’m learning: updates on strategy, insights from the field, and ways we can all advocate for better, more sustainable rates in Audio Description.
If you’re working in AD, or if you care about shaping what professional VO rates look like, this is where I share my latest thinking.
Want to be part of the conversation? Sign up for the email newsletter updates by going to roysamuelson.kit.com or just drop me a note at roy@roysamuelson.com. I’m always open to hearing your thoughts.