If you are looking for actor showreel advice, you’ve come to the right place. We are a showreel company with decades of collective experience in the industry and have created hundreds of showreels, including for ourselves. Today, we wanted to share some unusual actor showreel advice which you may not have considered.

Actor Showreel Advice and Tips

If you’re not sure what a showreel is, read this article first. And if you are looking for some inspiration for your own showreel, check out our showreel services page.

Focus on original content

Our first tip is for new actors to focus on original content. Casting agents are bombarded with showreels day in and day out, so you need to stand out. This doesn’t mean you can’t do classic scene frameworks but something new and unique needs to drive your efforts. The role of a showreel is to present you in the best light. You can only do this if you keep the viewer engaged. No one wants to sit through the same type of scene countless times and they are likely to switch off if it’s something they’ve seen all before. A few ideas to make a standard scene into a showstopper include:

• Set it in a unique location or time period. Your take on the classic romance or fight scene.

• Think about unusual characters in an ordinary location or regular characters in a strange setting.

• Produce a scene with just yourself. While two-person dialogue scenes are commonplace, and helpful to bounce your skills off, a one-person scene can really display your talents when done right.

Utilise social media

While there is no replacement for a professional actor showreel, utilising social media platforms can be useful. By putting media out there for the world to see you can benefit both your skills and your experience. TikTok, Instagram reels/stories and YouTube are all platforms which you can utilise as an actor to display your talent.

By consistently putting out videos, you can practice and hone your craft. While you may feel nervous about putting out videos before you feel ready (especially as a new actor) it can help showcase how you are developing as an actor. This is particularly useful if you are looking for an agency to take you one because it displays your work ethic.

Furthermore, a variety of short showreel clips in social media format could be useful to supplement a professional showreel. They could highlight to casting agents the ‘something unique they are looking for in a role. Plus, they show your dedication to your craft when you are consistently producing engaging content.

Don’t be afraid of silence

Acting isn’t always about grand displays of emotions and heated arguments. A great actor can dominate a scene with silence and this is something we rarely see in actors just starting out. Don’t be afraid to do scenes where dialogue isn’t the main focus. Talk to a showreel agency about devising a scene that uses the visual surroundings to tell the story and let your silent acting be the focus. Some amazing scenes that rely on quiet, restrained dialogue or complete silence include; (SPOILERS IF YOU HAVEN’T SEEN THE MOVIES)

• Javier Bardem & Woody Harrelson - No Country for Old Men (2007)

• Cade Woodward, Emily Blunt, John Krasinski, Millicent Simmonds, Noah Jupe - A Quiet Place (2018)

• Jessica Tandy - The Birds (1963)

• Leonardo DiCaprio & Matt Damon - The Departed (2006)

Get a professional actors showreel

Get in touch with Isaac Who to book your professional actor showreel today. We offer a complete service with everything you need.

Our showreel service is a bespoke package for each actor, musician & performer but will include.

• Scriptwriting

• Full Equipment

• Full Crew

• Direction & Coaching

• Extra cast if required

• Sound & Video Editing