How long should an actor's showreel be?
As actors, we’ve all seen a casting call that is our dream role! But making sure our showreel gets in front of the right people can be half the battle. Once you get your tape to the casting directors involved, you want to make sure you are showcasing your best work. One question we are asked time and time again is, ‘how long should an actor’s showreel be?’. Here’s our definitive answer.
Exactly How Long Is An Actors Showreel
An actors showreel should be between 1 - 3 minutes long. This is the range you are looking at. Less than a minute isn’t going to be enough time to show your talents. Too long and the casting agent is going to get bored. Remember they could see hundreds of showreels a week so you want to make your preview short and snappy. Below we dive deep into what should be included in a showreel of various lengths.
What Should Be In a Showreel?
The length of your showreel is based on the content that you want to include, not how long you want it to be. As long as it’s not outside of the time range, you can vary your showreel considerably.
One Minute Showreel
It’s great to showcase one amazing scene. If you have a limited portfolio or you have one great scene, then one scene is sufficient. This can also work if you want to select a particular scene for a specific role. Just like any job and your CV, you should tailor your application to the role you’re going for.
Two Minute Showreel
The middle ground option which we personally think is the best for all types of actors and roles. You can display two scenes that show variety or one longer scene with good character journey. Select your best pieces which focus on character development. Try to include different genres to illustrate your range.
Three-Minute Showreel
The best option to demonstrate variety, but only when each scene adds value. Though many may feel dissuaded from creating a three-minute showreel, it can be beneficial when used at the right time. If you have acted in different genres with good character scope, or you know that those casting are looking for a wider range, three-minute showreels are acceptable. The main thing to remember is that each scene should be very different and that scenes are not too long within the whole tape. Be ruthless when it comes to editing but don’t worry about the length if it is essential to present your acting abilities.
How to make an impact
When creating a showreel it’s important to remember who the audience is. It’s casting directors, not test audiences. Casting directors have seen countless tapes, good and bad, and they know their job inside and out. They want to gain a lot of information about you as an actor in the shortest time possible. This is why showreels are relatively short and why you can’t waste any time when it comes to impressing.
Show Casting Directors what they want to see
When it comes to a showreel, casting directors are looking for three things:
How you look - If there are two or more people in a scene and it’s not immediately clear which one is you, that’s a problem.
How you act - The showreel is about you and no one else. Make sure the scene clearly showcases your talents and not your co-stars. If your scenes are from other productions where the other actor/s are more prominent, consider filming your own showreel.
How you develop your character - A scene should have a strong character arch within it and it should allow Casting to see how you handle the development of the character throughout the scene.
Fit for the role
As we mentioned in the one-minute showreel section, why not tailor your showreel for the role. A showreel is your visual CV which you are using to apply for a position. If you were looking for any kind of professional position, the advice has always been to customise your CV and covering letter to the job. A showreel or self-tape is no different.
What shouldn’t be in a showreel
Now you know what to include and how long a showreel should be, it’s time to touch on a few things you absolutely shouldn’t do.
Don’t use montages
Montages are very outdated and should not be used post-2000s. As they are lots of short snippets put together, they don’t add any real value to those viewing it. A casting agent can’t determine whether the acting has any merit since there is no character development. They are also often accompanied by some very questionable soundtrack choices, with the results normally being jarring rather than inspiring. If you’re going to do a montage, save it for a role in a remake of Rocky.
Don’t use clipart
Often the sign of non-professional video production, clipart and jazzy titles screams ‘amateur’. If you want to showcase yourself as a serious actor who takes their work as seriously as any day job, it’s time to get a professional production company to produce a showreel for you. If you have a collection of scenes, it could also be worth investing in a company that will complete the editing for you. Leave the 90’s word art with the bad 80’s montage music at home.
Don’t use old footage
Don’t include any work that is past it’s prime. It may have been good ten years ago when you did it but the different quality of video work and your age will give the game away. Casting directors want to see what your acting ability is like now. Only include work you’ve done over the last few years. If you don’t have anything recent you’d like to showcase, then you need to invest in an up to date showreel.
The long and short of it
Now that you know how long an actor’s showreel should be, it’s time to put together your showreel. We’ve explained previously in more detail how to make the perfect showreel, but you can also talk directly with us if you need more help. Get in touch using our contact form, and see how Isaac can help make your next big idea come true.