How to make the perfect showreel

A showreel works as a way to market yourself as an artist it is a portfolio of the best bits of what you have completed. It allows you to show off your ability to perform if you are an actor or you ability to create a beautiful set if you are a production designer. Nothing is more eye-catching that a perfect showreel as it visually presents to the employer what you can do. A showreel can be used to separate you from the hundreds that the casting agent is trying to narrow down to invite to that big audition. So how do you get the best showreel?

If you are editing from existing material you need to make sure that the clips you choose from the films you have done are effective showing your ability to perform to a high standard across many different genres and work with different production companies. Don’t fill you showreel with every single bit of work you have done only choose those clips that show off your talent. Make sure that you cut ruthlessly as you want your showreel to focus on your best strengths and too much footage will only bore the potential employee. Make sure that you start and end you showreel well as this will stay in the employers head the longest they will remember the best bits at the beginning and end. Try and think of the reel as a ad that is selling yourself to the employee Commercials are only short to focus our attention span longer that this and we will become uninterested. Make sure you reel matches what job you are applying for so this can apply depending on a acting role or a art direction role only include what they want to see.

Don’t repeat the same sort of material twice within one show reel as the show reel should be eye-catching and interesting there is no time to repeat a similar type of visual style for instance. Music is a very important part of your showreel even though your work will be displayed visually through the footage the music sews the piece together and allows one to enjoy the images that are placed before ones eyes. The editing cuts should flow with music that is being used for the reel just like a advertisement does. Showcase your strengths show the employer what you do best and show them lots of it allow them to think you’re the right person for the job.

If the job that you are applying for is looking for a specific thing that you don’t have on your previous work you can opt for a showreel company so you can fulfil this. For instance if you are applying for a acting job and they are looking for Shakespearean monologues you can employ someone to film you doing this monologue which you can edit in to the showreel to showcase that you have this skill which is specific to the job you are applying for.

Once you have completed your showreel send copies to Agents and casting director and you might be in luck if someone gets back you. Sending you showreel out wont always secure you a job but it will allow you to get your talent, face and name out to the potential employees. Showreels will allow you to increase you chances however if you don’t hear anything back don’t let a no or no responses let you down, there are thousands in this industry who are all fighting for the change to succeed. You have to keep pushing and keep sending you showreel out.