An Actor's CV

Hi,

Name, Contact details at the top, ideally a small pic of you in the top right hand corner. Special skills/accents/playing ages etc.
Yes seperate the genres in order of date, make sure you list company and directors names.
Feel free to take a look at mine on the word file on my page here for ideas. Everyone's different though and chooses different styles, but you'll get the jist.
Lx

• 17 years ago
• 1

Hey,

I've find that putting your stats, training etc at the top with all your contact details or your agents contact details plus a small photo.

I personally change my c/v to appeal to whatever casting I am approaching. If for film I will put all my film credits at the top stateing, the director and production company, then theatre credits with the same, then any voice over experience etc...and swap these around or add and delete anything unessasary. I have a Film c/v, a theatre c/v and a children's theatre c/v...
It's also important to put your extra skills on, such as any dance training, singing, physical theatre, accents/dialects, songwriting....these things really help casting directors understand a liitle more about you. Be modest and think of all those qualities you have.

Hope that helps

V

x

• 17 years ago
• 2

mine is more or less the same as Lucy's

wth details at the top and credits in categories.

i did originally list all credits in date order. but its better to pigeon hole them into "film" "tv" "advert" Short" "Corporate" "Theatre" "other" etc
like that

with either your best work or most work at the top. or have a different one with each category at the top. so if applying for TV have tv at the top for those roles, or if applying for theater, have stage at the top

my ideas anyway

• 17 years ago
• 3

The best piece of advice I ever got about laying out my CV is "don't put dates on your CV"

The reasoning behind this is you are an actor looking to sell yourself in the best possible light. You will have an uneven working pattern to your acting life and some jobs only take a day or two of your time. The most important thing about your work is who directed it and what companies have employed you. Remember you only have the space of one page of A4 paper to fit your credits on, so you may not wish to list every job you have ever done, but rather just your best or favourite ones.

Simon Dunmore book "An Actors Guide to getting Work" gives very good advice on how to lay out your CV.

Cheers
TRACEY

• 17 years ago
• 4

Thanks, mostly the same ideas i would have given. It's always good to talk about things like this.

Thanks, Gemma

• 17 years ago
• 5

Adjust your Cv to the job. Put various things on for different jobs- ie a musical- out your musical credits first etc, or Tv etc for the job.

List special skills, and dont be afraid to only put your best credits. You can put something you did a while back at the top without the dates, in order to basically show them you have experience
Just never EVER lie or put a false credit- you WILL get found out eventually

• 17 years ago
• 6

Yes - also dont put walk-ons or stand-ins under TV credits. That section is for roles that you have been credited for as a named character. To the industry trained eye it looks like padding. If you lie and are found out, it casts doubts about the credibility of the rest of your CV.
Directors in TV OFTEN KNOW EACH OTHER. I frequently get asked in auditions as one of them spots a name they know how person X is these days and sometimes more detailed stuff.
Save the flannel for when you can talk up a small part into having greater significance - that kind of chutzpah is fine!

• 17 years ago
• 7

I agree about dates - especially your age - No need to put your actual age. Just quote your TRUTHFUL playing range- (i.e. late teens -early 20s; mid-late 30s etc) Some roles have a little flexibility in their age. When I did The Royal, my character was supposed to be 8 years younger than me and in CORRIE I played a Bank Manager where I'd auditioned opposite balding dudes at least ten years older than me.

Just dont waste people's time (including your own) with deception!

• 17 years ago
• 8

I've noticed that although parts call for people say 40-50, I'm still deemed unsuitable (on here) as the compainies put their preferences as actual age - not playing age so up comes the line - sorry you don't fulfil the necessary requirements for this role. It's so damned annoying.
Would it be possible CCP to take this option out and just put playing age. There have been loads of jobs I know I'd be suitable for but my actual age doesn't match their required actual age - even though I could play them and look younger than I am.

• 17 years ago
• 9

Good call, Antoinette. Yes, these companies are sometimes ruling themselves out of possibly the perfect actor...

• 17 years ago
• 10

I definitely agree, it's very frustrating when you can't apply for something that you're perfectly suitable for. I think playing age should be the only option, that's why we have a range of playing ages!
Lx

• 17 years ago
• 11

Seconded Antionette, or is that 'thirded' after Ian's comment?? ..

H xx

• 17 years ago
• 12

Thanks for your support on this - over to CCP admin.
I've just finished a TIE thing where I played an 81 year old but that's really going too far I think :-))

• 17 years ago
• 13

Well said. I think that's the only flaw that CCP has to iron out along with the 10 year span playing age.

But back to the CV topic, there's an old axiom in the advertising business which is "white space sells" - basically don't pad your CV out with too much bluster (it can look like bluff). Ian is so right about walk-on/ uncredited appearances, unless it's something very special or prominent.

Be quite selective and then add a statement if you feel the need. One example is the sort of CV that lists five or six TV's and then goes on to say "other major TV shows include...". When I first saw that one I thought it was very classy.

• 17 years ago
• 14

My favourite CV blagging story is about Carrie Fisher (Relax Forum supervisors - she tells this in one of her books, its not libel)
On her first CVs sent out, she used to list very esteemed film roles (not done by her) with an asterisk next to some of them. When the employer would look down at the footnotes, next to the asterisk it said 'lie' haha!
You have to admire that - humour in it too!

• 17 years ago
• 15

And another quoted in my forthcoming book, is about Tarantino (Calm yourselves oh protectors of the digital airways - he has told this in interviews many times) He used to put down that he played one of the Hell's Angel bikers in DAWN OF THE DEAD. This is somehow more acceptable as he does look like one of them and wasnt trying to claim a big credit. I wouldnt advise it though...(Trying to claim you were in THE DARK CRYSTAL might get you rumbled...)

• 17 years ago
• 16

Carrie Fisher's story is amusing but I wouldn't recommend this to any aspiring actor hoping to be taken seriously!

If I received a CV with this sort of "gimmick" on it in a pile of submissions, I'm afraid it would go straight in the bin. Maybe I just don't have the right sense of humour...

I would also suggest guarding against including credits for jobs which have not yet come to pass ( it's surprising how often these crop up on CV's). For one thing, it looks a bit daft and for another thing it's tempting fate! If you have been offered an interesting or prestigious job for some future date, you can highlight it in a covering letter rather than putting it on a CV.

It can sometimes be surprising to find who knows what, so I'd suggest blaggers beware!

• 17 years ago
• 17