9 Showreel Mistakes To Avoid! | How To Make a Great Demo Reel

[@rhyswilliams7613]

the first sentence is so true . my show reel is terrible

[@takeshiisisisisisisi]

Thank you Andy! Looking forward to re-doing mine!!

[@StageMilk]

Great to hear! Send it through when it's done.

[@eileenwalder3822]

Great advice and will pass on to my students. Maybe time to do a new show reel myself.

[@StageMilk]

Eileen Walder amazing! Thanks Eileen

[@JT1Hundred]

In the process of creating a self tape showreel, needed this!

[@StageMilk]

Great to hear Josh! All the best with it!

[@larivierafilms]

thank you good points. definitely put your better scenes first because most likely they wont have time to watch the whole thing and definitely keep it under 4mins thanks again

[@StageMilk]

Totally! Thanks for sharing

[@DakotarWolf]

Found his really helpful, except that everything on my reel is from actual productions, so much of what was said didn't even apply to me. But I highly recommend this video for those it may apply to!

[@StageMilk]

Wollmer Productions hey thanks so much. I still think the principles of keeping it short and succinct, putting your best work first and not keeping things for the sake of it will definitely apply. Would love to see what you e put together if you want to shoot us an email [e-mail]

[@kathryn6402]

Another great vid Andrew! 😁

[@StageMilk]

Kay thanks so much! Hopefully many more to come

[@patrickgibson7451]

Really great stuff!! The obvious stuff that i exactly needed!!

[@StageMilk]

Patrick Gibson yeah mate fairly common sense video but amazing how common these mistakes are. Even I need to take my own advice!

[@MrMickao]

Good thing I watched your video. I've edited my showreel this morning and indeed, it sucks….. Now I've got to remove half of it and reorganise the rest…Thank you

[@piotrnowak6407]

Thx I’m a filmmaker from Poland, you got my thumbs and sub. Cheers

[@studiokomplex]

Thanks! Some helpful tipps. Used it in my showreel out on my channel here. ⬅

[@JamieBensonTV]

Hi, thanks for this. I'm wondering more how to title and structure these demo reels and don't see much info. Is there a title card with a headshot? Do you name and organize based on the style of production (i.e. commercial, tv, film etc)? Should I have different reels for these different genres? Do you name the show title and role ever in the clip? This is one of the better videos for naming mistakes but I wish someone would speak how best to specifically break down the demo structure with an example.

[@StageMilk]

Hey! It's a bit of a wild west when it comes to that stuff. I generally would avoid or minimise titles, the goal is to show off your acting. If it's a professional demo and so you have worked on major film and TV then having titles could be a positive, but if it's mainly short films and random scenes I think titles are meaningless.

[@thebigshowcase4997]

Stage Milk really know their stuff. You will learn from these guys - they know the buisness and the people in it.

[@andrewhearle442]

Love this!

[@redcurtainclub]

Thank you, this is really great, full of clear actionable information.

[@StageMilk]

Thanks so much!

[@nettiegurl]

As I understand it - today it's about clips, as showreels have become time and tedious with casting people. Most of the working actors I know still have their "old" reels available on their sites including IMDb, but use their clips for casting auditions.

[@StageMilk]

eaglegrad 16 I think this is a fair point. That’s why I encourage it to be short. I still think having a showreel is valuable but I agree having them all as great individual clips is where it’s heading.

[@ActingPassionRon]

Thanks, I may have to redo mine.

[@StageMilk]

Feel free to send it through, can give you some feedback: www.stagemilk.com/contact

[@Abdullah_rahil86]

Great ..

[@StageMilk]

THANKS MATE!

[@TheDramaCoach]

This is great advice, thank you ☺️

[@StageMilk]

Thanks so much!

[@LTK]

Thanks alot sir

[@StageMilk]

Thank you for the support

[@sallycacic3733]

Great advice - as always! Thanks StageMilk

[@StageMilk]

Sally Cacic thanks Sally!

[@charlesaphrem9276]

Amazing pointers!! Thanks for this video :)

[@StageMilk]

Glad it helped

[@EmileVinesh]

If I may ask a few questions: 1. Does a showreel need to start with an intro with your name (and possibly website) or is that a no-go? 2. If some of your work is from a couple of years ago (but still better than your recent work), do you want to have it included still? Your most recent work is obviously wanted.

[@StageMilk]

This is just my personal view but 1. No. I find this is not irrelevant and best to just get straight into the work. 2. A couple of years old is totally fine, when it's starting to get to 7-10+ years and if you have changed significantly then I would ideally avoid.

[@EmileVinesh]

@@StageMilk Thanks for your reply! :) I will definitely use these tips for my new showreel!

[@StageMilk]

Hey! 1. I would avoid this. Your information will be on your casting profile or in the email you send so it’s superfluous and we just want to get strait into the acting. That said, not the end of the world if you have a really clean/professional title card. 2. I would always prioritise the best work, but obviously if it gets too old I would lose it. Basic rule of thumb - does it still look like me?

[@MrMickao]

@@StageMilk Well if you got bald in the meantime then it might be a good idea to refresh your showreel...

[@maya_jaafar]

Thank you

[@edwardspip]

AGREE WITH EVERYTHING

[@StageMilk]

Pip Edwards good to hear Pip! Will have to get you in one of these soon x

[@razabadass]

Thank you bro! I appreciated the ideas, points and explanations! (E.g. it’s better to have a good quality cheap showreel then an expensive one that’s considered bad), thank you! Raza :)

[@StageMilk]

Glad it was helpful. Yes the key is to always make the ACTING the focus - production value is important but always secondary

[@razabadass]

@@StageMilk :)

[@leenaviie]

Im a dancer but stil some of your inputs are great for me!

[@StageMilk]

Great to hear!

[@markp8686]

Like the point of expensive or cinematic reels feel like reels, no need to pay for that and the point that they prefer self tape like vidio in which your acting is what they want to see. Good quality video n sound n good scenes is what you need.

[@gabikas6963]

selftape it is! :D Thank you

[@StageMilk]

Dooo it!

[@frankotheactor]

Found it really helpful

[@LaurenLaass]

Should we have multiple reels for different things? Should I have an acting reel for TV/film, then a musical theatre reel for theatre? Should I then also have a vocal reel? I have only done theatre but want to audition for film and TV things as well and want to make sure my reels match what I am auditioning for.

[@StageMilk]

It can be a good idea. Depends on what your goals are. If you are trying to get rep or just get started I would just focus on one that prioritises your acting and then branch out from there.

[@velocidragon1604]

Dang I feel like you really called me out there I wanted to do a dialogue (no action) scene from a Star Wars film really badly. Could you elaborate on why a little? Is it like infamous among agents or something?

[@StageMilk]

You can definitely still do whatever kinds of scenes you like, this is just one perspective. Generally if you do more extreme/genre focused work like a Star Wars scene it can come across a bit amateur. Generally agents and casting directors want to see more grounded naturalistic work, and Sci Fi scenes and monologues can just push actors into being a bit "pushed" or "fake". It's also just too famous and everyone watching your work will compare it with the original which is not ideal.

[@velocidragon1604]

@@StageMilk ok thanks! Maybe I'll just do it for fun and choose a different more grounded and less famous scene for my showreel. Thanks for replying! Your input really helps!

[@StageMilk]

@@velocidragon1604 sounds like a great plan. Definitely awesome to do for fun and just to explore, but for a reel I think something a little less familiar would be a great choice.

[@sharonfaye]

What if most of the scenes on my showreel are in a foreign langue? Shall I add subtitles in English?

[@StageMilk]

Sharon שרון Faye פיי Sharon שרון Faye פיי great question. I would prioritise the country you are working in. If you are in a non English speaking country I would have subtitles. If you are keen to work in an English speaking country I would either make another showreel or record a self tape and have that to send to agents.

[@sharonfaye]

StageMilk Great!! Thanks a lot mate🥃

[@shaneredondo7009]

what about commercials? Have those in a separate demo reel or put them in together?

[@StageMilk]

For commercials your headshots become very important. I think having a commercial reel can be helpful - but not essential

[@lynnecunningham6281]

Just put how to do a show reel into google and you are my first hit. My son is 14yrs with experience in local shows/school shows/competitions etc and we want to know how to get him an agent. Does he need a showreel just as you’ve described for sending to agents. No experience here at all!

[@StageMilk]

When looking at signing with an agent it will be very helpful to have some examples of your acting. That could just be a simple self tape to begin.

[@mrbigram831]

Alright I have a doubtful or more weird to conclude on type of thinking. If I can't use neither Bad production value "aka student shortfilms, indie films etc" and/or Too good production value "studio produced showreels" to my show reel. How on earth am I able to use any footage to present on an audition in this case given NO experience at all or experience coming down to only student short films/indie films? I dont get it. I believe if an actor is able to get student short films and indie films on his reel is much much better than nothing at all or spending loads of money on 1 made by a studio! Also, if you have a couple or more than a couple of short films on your belt, tis best like he mentioned to put the best one first and not good ones last. And if you have more than several, just pick out the ones you feel are the best of your showcasing and slap em in the reel and following what the lad has said in the video. But the contradiction to his steps is not putting in neither short films/indie films or studio produced ones your reel. After all you are trying to book a proper job. and what can you put in a reel if not either of those? Self tapes? Monologues made by you? Or even shooting and editing an entire short film yerself which is even worse than a student short film? Unless you yourself have made it with professionals which I doubt. Thats my point

[@actorALEXANDR_SHULHA_ALEANDROV]

Thanks for your video! LIKE!!! I am an actor from Ukraine and I act in films and TV shows. I also do commercials for European countries. What should you say about yourself in an acting business card? How long should an actor's business card last?

[@lisah6184]

Do you have an example of a good reel? Should you really just add 3 scenes max.

[@wallysustube]

My real is not made up. Do you have advice for more seasoned Actors?

[@StageMilk]

Hey Susan, if you are at the stage where you have enough professional footage to cut together that is fantastic. Still similar advice - keep it short and snappy, put your best work first and don’t use anything that isn’t showcasing your talent or is too dated

[@anshrai8194]

I am a new actor and haven’t worked in films How do I make a showreel for myself?

[@StageMilk]

Hey! I would just start with some high quality self-tapes. We interview casting directors every few months and they constantly reinforce that they are happy with self-tapes as an alternative to professional footage. So I would find some great scenes you like and record them in a basic self-taping setup. Hope that helps!

[@Totallynotava14]

Is it okay if I did like just one 2-3 minute monologue? Or does it have to be multiple scenes with other people and stuff?

[@StageMilk]

Generally the industry prefers scenes but monologues can work. If I was just doing one scene or monologue I would keep it to about 90seconds or 2 mins at the most.

[@TibbyRIP2023]

Are monologues frowned upon in actor showreels?

[@StageMilk]

Richard Tauhelu they are not ideal but can definitely work. Just don’t make it feel like a “monologue”

[@TibbyRIP2023]

@@StageMilk great thank you for the tip I love this channel keep up the good work

[@StageMilk]

@@TibbyRIP2023 Thanks mate!

[@samanyt2967]

Can you read your own script for self tapes.

[@StageMilk]

As in a script you have written?

[@samanyt2967]

Yes:)

[@StageMilk]

@@samanyt2967 absolutely! I think for a self tape reel or clip this can be a good idea. Though for an actual audition I would always use the content they give.

[@samanyt2967]

Yes I definitely follow the script I'm given when auditioning for a specific role. Good to know...I love writing. Thank you!

[@melanieincognito6714]

Where do i find scenes for a showreel?

[@StageMilk]

@@melanieincognito6714 StageMilk has a great library. Otherwise just hunting everywhere for scenes - and don’t be afraid to write your own!

[@ToquzOghuzKhaganatekhan]

3000 Euros per month work like photographer and videographer and I go for it now with sober state :)

[@johannesvang5346]

ok

[@ToquzOghuzKhaganatekhan]

Do shots for real life , beautiful life in the nature :PPP

[@ToquzOghuzKhaganatekhan]

Dont do shot for Yandex driver :D

[@johnconnolly2829]

HaHa This advice reel is too long. Edit it! Soul of wit and all that.