12 hand-picked 30-second spots from different industries, out of 615 in our free library. Every one has direction and what casting listens for.
Written by the VO Journey Academy coaching team. Updated 3 October 2026.
Thirty seconds is long enough to tell a small story and short enough to do ten takes. Our 30-second scripts run 56 to 89 words, most around 70. Read one at your normal pace and time it. If you're way over, you're adding pauses the copy doesn't need. If you're way under, slow down on the brand name.
Right. You're dressed as a pirate. It's one in the morning, and you've had a lovely night.
A pirate should not be driving.
Neither should a zombie, a disco ball or whatever your mate Kev is meant to be.
Open the Lanternway app and a driver will be with you in minutes. Halloween night, every ride home is half price until three.
Leave the car. Keep the hat.
Lanternway Rides. Everybody gets home.
Direction: The sensible friend at the end of the party, cheerful and not budging What it is for: A responsible-message read that never sounds like a warning. Coach's note: Watch out for lecturing. She had a great night too. The turn is 'A pirate should not be driving', which is plain and friendly, and the real message is 'Everybody gets home'. What casting listens for: Casting listens for an easy accent, good humor and a tag that lands with some weight.
My morning routine used to have eleven steps. I'd get to step six and give up.
Now it's three. Cleanse, with the Sorrel and Salt gel wash. Moisturize, with the light day cream. And a little of the facial oil, if my skin's feeling dry.
That's it. Two minutes. Skin that feels soft, smells like a garden and is ready for whatever the day has planned.
Sorrel and Salt. Skincare that keeps it simple.
Direction: Warm, easy, a friend at the bathroom mirror; natural and unhurried What it is for: The everyday skincare routine read. Trains conversational delivery and a simple product list. Coach's note: Watch out for turning the three steps into a lecture. Count them off like you're letting a friend in on your routine. The turn is 'That's it'; land it with a relaxed shrug. What casting listens for: Skincare casting listens for the girl-next-door truth. The voice has to sound like it actually uses the product.
Maybe it's work. Maybe it's family. Maybe you can't name it yet, and that's fine.
Kindcall matches you with a licensed therapist for video sessions that fit around your life. Evenings, weekends, lunch breaks in the car.
Take a short questionnaire about what you're looking for, and you could be talking to someone who gets it as soon as this week.
Kindcall. A good place to start.
Direction: Easy, open, conversational; zero therapy-speak What it is for: A mental-health service read that must sound approachable without making promises. Coach's note: Watch out for sounding clinical or overly soft. It's a friend telling you something useful. Keep 'as soon as this week' matter-of-fact, not a sales push. What casting listens for: Casting listens for sincerity and a light touch on a sensitive subject.
Public safety, storm seasonAdult (30-45)Neutral American1 (female)30 secondsabout 30s
Storm season is here. Let's get ready together.
Keep flashlights and fresh batteries where you can find them in the dark. Charge your phone before the wind picks up. Bring in anything the wind could throw, like patio chairs and trampolines. If you use a generator, run it outside, well away from windows and doors.
And if you see a downed line, stay back and call us.
Riverbend Public Power. We're ready when you are.
Direction: Calm, reassuring, clear; a trusted local voice before a storm What it is for: Storm-season safety read. Trains clear sequencing of advice in a reassuring tone. Coach's note: Watch out for creating panic. This is preparation, not an alarm. Group the checklist in threes and let the final line breathe. What casting listens for: Casting listens for calm authority and clean, trustworthy delivery.
You train hard. Six days a week, early alarms, all of it.
So here's a thought for day seven.
Loosewell Stretch Studio. One-on-one assisted stretching with a trained coach, in a quiet room with the lights down. Forty-five minutes where nobody asks you for one more rep, one more mile, or one more anything.
You're allowed.
Book your first session at loosewell dot com. Loosewell. The other half of training.
Direction: Calm, low, slow, a small smile; permission, not a pitch What it is for: Soft-sell read. Trains slowing down without sounding sleepy. Coach's note: Watch out for selling results. Don't: it's about how the hour feels. The turn is 'You're allowed'. Give it room. What casting listens for: Casting listens for calm with warmth underneath. Flat calm sounds bored.
Dear old phone carrier. It's not me. It's you.
It's the surprise fees. It's the contract that renews itself like a horror-movie villain. It's forty minutes on hold with the same saxophone solo.
I've met someone. Freeline Prepaid. No contract. No hidden fees. One monthly price I can actually read.
Please don't call. Actually, you can't. I kept my number.
Freeline Prepaid. Freedom, one month at a time.
Direction: Mock-serious break-up letter; dry, then liberated What it is for: Comedic letter format. Trains sustaining a conceit and finding the button at the end. Coach's note: Watch out for playing it as angry. He is calm, relieved and a little smug. The best laugh is 'Actually, you can't. I kept my number'; take a breath before 'Actually'. What casting listens for: Casting listens for comic control: a straight face that lets the words be funny.
[Low, rumbling growl]
Villagers call me abominable. That word hurts. I have feelings. I also have very dry elbows.
So once a month, I come down the mountain to Hushpine Day Spa.
Hot stone massage. They use boulders. Cucumber on the eyes. They use two whole cucumbers.
Nobody screams. Well. One person screamed. She was new.
Now I am calm. I am soft. I am, frankly, glowing.
Hushpine Day Spa. Gift cards available for the holidays.
The robe does not fit me. I wear it anyway.
Direction: Vast, growly yeti who is sensitive and deeply into self-care; rumbling but serene, like a giant after a massage What it is for: Sustaining a low, rough character voice for thirty seconds while staying relaxed and varied. Coach's note: Watch out for pressing the growl for the whole half minute. Save the real rumble for the first line, then sit in an easy, breathy low voice and sip water between takes. Give each spa treatment its own color. The turn is the correction, 'Well. One person screamed. She was new.' What casting listens for: Casting listens for a consistent character across thirty seconds, comic timing on the aside and a spa tag that still sounds inviting.
Fourth of July, veterans nonprofitAdult (40-55)Neutral American1 (male)30 secondsabout 30s
For most of us, the Fourth of July is a day off.
For some of our neighbors, it's the loudest night of the year, in a year that's already been hard.
Second Watch helps local veterans with rides to appointments, home repairs, and somebody to call who has been there too.
This Fourth, a flag is nice. A phone call is better.
Second Watch Veterans Fund. Give an hour. Give a dollar. Show up.
Direction: Honest and level, one neighbor to another, no announcer polish What it is for: A heartfelt nonprofit read that asks for something without pleading. Coach's note: Watch out for performing the emotion. Say it plainly and trust the words. The turn is 'A flag is nice. A phone call is better', which should feel like a thought, not a slogan. What casting listens for: Casting listens for sincerity that respects the people it is talking about.
Christmas, charity toy driveAnyNeutral American1 (any)30 secondsabout 28s
When you're out shopping this week, you'll buy something for your kids. Something for your nieces. Something for the neighbor's little boy.
Buy one more.
The Elm County Toy Drive gave new toys to two thousand local children last year. This year the list is longer.
Drop a new, unwrapped toy at any fire station before December eighteenth.
One more toy. That's the whole ask.
The Elm County Toy Drive.
Direction: Plain, sincere, neighbor to neighbor; no sad voice What it is for: A charity ask that stays simple and never begs. Coach's note: Watch out for pleading. This spot works because it asks for very little. The turn is 'Buy one more', three plain words with a breath before and after. What casting listens for: Casting listens for honesty, an easy pace, and a deadline said like it matters.
Home & DIY, furnitureAdult (25-40)Neutral British1 (any)30 secondsabout 30s
Step one. Open the box. Step two. Count the screws. Step three. Discover you have one screw too many, and spend the evening wondering where it was meant to go.
Or, go to Nook and Beam.
Clever, modern furniture for small spaces, with free assembly on every order. Our team builds it, in your home, with the correct number of screws.
You put the kettle on.
Nook and Beam. Good design. No leftover bits.
Direction: Dry, wry, understated British humor; brighter once the solution arrives What it is for: Problem-solution comedy. Trains building a joke through a numbered list. Coach's note: Watch out for rushing step three. It is the longest sentence and the joke lives at the end of it. 'You put the kettle on' is the relief; let it breathe. What casting listens for: Casting listens for timing and a clean shift from problem to product.
Hello. It is I.
I have the weekend off. My first one. Ever.
So I went to the Fall Festival at Harlow Family Farm.
There is a corn maze. I was lost for two hours. It was wonderful. Nobody could reach me.
There is a hayride. I rode it four times.
There are warm apple cider donuts, six for five dollars. I ate twelve.
Harlow Family Farm. Open every weekend in October, ten until six.
I picked my own pumpkin. I have named him Kevin.
Direction: Deep, doom-laden, echoing voice describing the best weekend of his very long career, with the wonder of a kid What it is for: Holding a dark voice for a full thirty while each new detail gets a little more joyful underneath. Coach's note: Watch out for running out of low breath. Breathe at every paragraph and keep the pitch where it is comfortable. Don't rush the short confessions; each one is its own small joke. The turn is 'It was wonderful. Nobody could reach me.' What casting listens for: Casting listens for consistency: the same voice in the last line as the first, and a date and hours we can catch.
What if your dinner came with instructions written just for you?
Forkprint starts with a simple at-home kit and a detailed questionnaire about how you eat, sleep and move. Our nutrition team turns your answers into a weekly eating plan, with recipes and shopping lists that fit your life.
It's not a diet. It's a map.
Forkprint. Find out what works for you. Check with your doctor before changing your diet.
Direction: Intriguing, a touch of mystery up top, then clear and friendly What it is for: Opening-hook read: pull the listener in with a question, then explain simply. Coach's note: Watch out for keeping the mystery voice all the way through. Drop it by 'Forkprint starts'. The disclaimer is part of the read, not an afterthought; keep it warm and clear. What casting listens for: Casting listens for a hook that intrigues without sounding like a movie trailer.
Use these freely. Every script in this library was written by VO Journey
Academy. Practice with them, record them, post them as demos, reels or social clips, and use them in auditions.
Please do not resell them or publish them as your own scripts. A credit is always welcome, never required.
