Geekery meets fandom with locally based web series on voice over actors

Palm Coast Observer
Neighbors

Tucked inconspicuously into an industrial park off U.S. 1, 10th Voyage Studios is a professional media production facility that even locals might be surprised to learn exists in Palm Coast. But walk inside the warehouse and you begin to realize these guys are not messing around. Full-scale sets with professional lighting and audio equipment, a props department and a high-tech editing bay allow 10th Voyage, which opened in 2013, to put out some serious work here.

Even given the investment and sponsorships they received to get the venture off the ground, it's still pretty impressive that none of the core team behind the studio is much older than 30. CEO Lenny Mosco, 25, a New Jersey native who moved to Palm Coast 10 years ago, grew up helping his father on set with his small film company. A fan of comics, anime and other "geeky" pursuits, he wanted to start his own production company.

Today, he is doing just that, with several projects in the works. The one, however, that he has the most personally invested in is "The Voice Over Show," an internet series featuring interviews with some of the nation's top voice talents in the fields of animation, gaming, advertising and motion pictures.

The idea is that audiences get to put a face to the thousands of voices heard across different genres and hear what goes into the job.

Behind-the-scenes at 10th Voyage Studios

Taken from the name of one of CEO Lenny Mosco's favorite anime series, 10th Voyage Studios is a 3,000-square-foot facility that includes full green screen capability, a professional recording booth, dressing and wardrobe room, props department and a professional, on-premises editing suite offering full post-production services. The studio is available for all forms of media development and production, from feature films to documentaries, music videos to reality shows.

Other original projects the studio has in the works include:

Zombie Clean-Up: A television and internet series that takes place in the fictional town of Lake Lucille, Mosco describes it as a "combination between "The Walking Dead" and "The Office."
Gotham Garage: An automotive, reality-based television and internet series starring custom movie and show car designer Mark Towle, who has built some of the most recognized vehicles in the world, including The Real Mach 5 from the beloved Classic Speed Racer cartoon series.
Technopolis: Created and directed by Andre Dixon of Orlando, Technopolis is a futuristic science fiction action series that takes place in the year 2049 and looks at a dystopian future.

"Unless you're like Mike Meyers of 'Shrek,' no one really knows who you are," said Mosco. "You never see these people on 'The Tonight Show.'"

Added Patrick Appolonia, 32, the show's writer/producer, "It's really a matter of finding this kind of niche, untapped market and making sure people want to learn more about it."

10th Voyage recently completed its first episode of the show (featuring Dennis Johnson of "League of Legends") and is in post-production on a second it wrapped filming on last week.

The set for "The Voice Over Show" is designed by Nicklas Farrentello, who has done work on such Hollywood movies as "The Waterboy" and "There's Something About Mary." It looks like something out of Pee Wee Herman's Playhouse: all primary colors, cock-eyed lines, and fantasmical patterns.

The host's table, where Mosco interviews his subjects from, is filled with comic book mini figures, dragons and other kooky collectibles. And while Mosco -- along with his puppet "Fez" -- get his subjects to talk for real about what goes into the voice over industry, there is a zany, lighthearted element to the show as well, thanks to the talents of co-host Xavier Gonzalez, 29, a former music producer who grew up in Palm Coast and as is also well known as a bartender at Europa Lounge.

The series is a variety format, with skits and reality show-like asides interspersed between the actual interviews, along with self-produced parody commercials. Mosco, Appolonia and Gonzalez hope to continue to get more traction online with the web series in order to monetize the venture. Eventually, they hope to gain even more of a following at comic con and cosplay events with their cult-like followings.

Until then, the studio's commercial work and side projects help fund the project and others 10th Voyage has in various stages of development.

The editing suite, where the team spend a lot of their time -- fueled by energy drinks -- looks like the inside of a submarine with a periscope-inspired video screen, round windows and nautical memorabilia.

"We're just a bunch of kids," said Gonzalez.

"Yeah," said Mosco, "we pretty much are."