What and Who is Crocodilian Audio?
As revelatory and nifty as the tale of how the business’ name came to be may be, it leaves wanting answers to questions such as: Who is Cait? What’s her story? What’s does she sound like?
As for who I am don’t expect a full psychological evaluation and break down. A key component has already been illustrated and labeled and that is that I am something of a dork. In conversation I get by on movie quotes, puns, and tangents involving loosely tied-in random facts. Additional bio staples that might better answer the question are that I am a born and raised Chicagoan, a White Sox fan by blood (though not a sports enthusiast overall), I’m a painter, a crafter, a nature lover, and coffee addict. Why I am here, may provide some additional insights, but truthfully if you want more depth I might ask that we grab a coffee first.
In the interest of breviloquence, I am here because I am a multi-passionate individual. I have worked many important, serious, and meaningful jobs over the course of several years. Although work ethic and contributing to the betterment of society are core values I was raised on and hold firm, I simply couldn’t take it anymore. I am studied in the fields of behavioral neuroscience and international political science, and dream of getting a masters in psychology. If I could, I would study all-the-things; trouble with that is that it is expensive, immensely time consuming, and there is no all-the-things profession. I have decided then to pursue fun; hoping to learn some-of-the-things as I go (and still get that masters). Which is exactly what I have found voice acting to be, as well I suspected it would be. Well before getting to this stage in my pursuit of a more enjoyable profession, I have found great humor in reading billboards in unique or unexpected voices and accents. On nights when my partner has struggled to readily find sleep I have genuinely enjoyed reading really dense scientific or legal material aloud to them (knowing it will knock them right out, with myself not far behind). Even building this website has been an unexpectedly gratifying creative outlet. I am here to carve my own path towards meaningful impact through fun and creative expression.
As for the biggest question of them all for the purposes of this site and likely your being on it: What is my sound? To start, it is not as odd as my personality or as varied as my interests. It is maple brown sugar oatmeal, it is vibrant autumnal colors, it is a banana seat bike, it is your favorite soft t-shirt. All of which is to say that my sound is warm, friendly, clear, and a little bit cute. If you’re still not sure what I mean, you are welcome to listen to my demos and let me know if I’m on the money or not with this description.
First and foremost, why Crocodilian Audio? Let’s call it inspiration by happenstance, but still delve into some storytelling to explain:
Once upon a time, in 2022, I was listening to a Vox Media podcast called Unexplainable. The episode was called What did dinosaurs sound like? In sum, it deconstructed how the film makers of Jurassic Park created the sound for a dinosaur when no human has ever heard a dinosaur. The short answer is they overlaid some fearsome sounding mammals. The episode then covered what, based on current archaeological evidence, sounds they should have used instead. The answer, modified growls of modern day crocodilians would be more accurate.
This was my first encounter with the word crocodilian. My immediate thought was, “Woah! that’s a cool word”. What compounded the significance of this word for me was the Jurassic context. My partner occasionally calls me a raptor as I will plainly say, “Roar” when mildly upset or frustrated. When naming this business I thought of all sorts of names I felt spoke to some truth about who myself while having something to do with audio or voice over. Having learned the word crocodilian while listening to a podcast about the true sound of a captivating, albeit long extinct, creature -while occasionally being called a raptor (endearingly) myself- made the word seem to fit my aim perfectly.
Fun extra fact, I wanted to call the business Crocodilian Oddio. In order to make it abundantly clear that you are dealing with a complete dork or oddball. It would have also achieved the fun coincidence that the business’ initials would be the same as my own and it could be CO‘s CO Co. However, a wise advisor suggested I use real words that can be intuitively be spelled for prospective clients to have an easy time seeking me out via search engine. For now then, it just lives on as this behind the scenes bonus fact. I do nod to it, though, by having my logo-dile holding a mug of coco that says Crocodilian Oddio on it.