PROFESSIONAL SHOWREEL CUTTING SERVICE
1. The Importance of a Showreel
2. Common Problems
3. The Ideal Showreel
4. Showreel Cutting Service
5. Requirements
6. Workshop/Showreel Package
7. Cost
8. Contact Details
1. THE IMPORTANCE OF A SHOWREEL
For an actor who does not yet have a profile with casting directors, the importance of a good showreel cannot be overestimated. And yet, so many seem to fall well short of the standard required to convince a working director, who doesn’t yet know the actor, to want to commit the time to see him/her at an audition. No wonder too many talented actors waste too much time getting seen - you don’t market yourselves effectively enough, and getting together a professional looking showreel which does you full justice is part of your essential marketing strategy!
The litmus test of any showreel is whether the person watching it wants to fast forward because they’re bored and that, alas, happens ALOT! And it’s fatal, because this is an entertainment business and your showreel cannot be slow or boring! Even the so-called showreel production companies (who should know better) include an overlong ‘interview’ with the actor in the mistaken belief that directors want to see the real actor. That unnecessarily lengthens the showreel, is often embarrassing to watch and the director, in any case, only wants to see what work the actor’s done on screen. The personality stuff they can find out about when they meet you at the audition. If the showreel’s not up to it, you won’t even get to the audition.
The ideal showreel needs to be short, fast paced and contain just three or four extracts from your best performances. It needs to look slick and professional and should be designed merely to raise awareness of, and interest in, the actor by whoever’s watching it - they should be left wanting more so that they HAVE to meet you!
My concern has always been to give participants on the 5-day ‘Alchemy of Screen Acting’ workshop the best possible chance to forge a screen career, and in terms of the evident confidence generated, just to go out and do it. I am happy to learn from the mass of positive feedback that this has, in many cases, actually happened. However, the standard of too many of the post-workshop-generated showreels I see isn’t good enough and I’ve been concerned that further help is required in getting showreels edited to best effect. I therefore piloted a new showreel editing service (initially for participants of the 5-day workshop only) whereby I cut their material together in the way I, as a director, would be most impressed and intrigued by the talent on display. As these showreels have proved very successful, attracting offers from agents for representation, I have decided to offer this service more widely and not just to participants of the 5-day workshop.
You will need to be at the stage where you already have three or four (even short) pieces of screen work (which could be idents or commercials) you are happy with, or at least one, longish (ie. half hour) short of professional quality (ie. a top notch student film). At least some of these screen performances should contain dialogue. Also, use can be made of other material which shows you in different roles, poses, accents, haircuts(!) which can form part of an awareness raising opening fast paced montage sequence. Your material would need to be either on mini-DV, DVCAM, CD (Quick Time file), DVD (without Copy Inhibit) or VHS (as my editing system will only read those formats). I can accept material on other formats but you would need to bear the additional cost of getting your material transferred to mini-DV. Music and visual effects and titles are part of the service.
If you have insufficient material, there is an opportunity to sign up for a future Alchemy workshop to shoot a soap and a feature film (widescreen/letterbox ratio) scene specifically for your showreel. Because all material is shot on DV and cut in house on Final Cut Pro HD, this has the advantage of producing a technically professional cut which favours you. Forthcoming workshops are held in East London (Limehouse, E14 - 2 minutes walk from Westferry DLR) on the following dates:
Alchemy 99: 16-20 January 2012 (full - waiting list only)
I can offer just the editing service for £400 (plus VAT) = £480, which will include up to three cuts of a 3-5 minute master showreel (according to how much quality original material you have available) on mini-DV, plus a copy on a labelled DVD. If you wish to attend a 5-day ‘Alchemy of Screen Acting’ workshop AND have a showreel cut, then the package would cost £700 (plus VAT) = £840.00.
Should anyone wish to avail themselves of the service, then please contact me direct on 07785 394214 and we can go from there. My CV can be seen on the ‘Alchemy’ outline page.
Click here for Andrew Higgs' CV
Andrew Higgs
