WHY RENA?

I am asked at least once a day if people can see something I've done that represents a 'good' actors' demo reel. Mostly this question is from actors in the market for new management, a new agent, or people who just want to juice up an existing reel that is tired and feels slow. For many it is their first demo reel and they just want to know what the hell they should hand over when someone asks to: "see some tape." Rena is a prime example of what I consider a good reel and a great example of what it is that I do. If you are already over all of this tech talk and interested in pricing and cost (yes this reel only cost Rena $50, but I think she did the $100 special and got extra tapes), then skip all this and go here: DEMO REEL SPECIAL

WHAT MAKES A GOOD DEMO REEL?

WHAT MAKES RENA'S REEL STAND OUT ?

In under 30 seconds of viewing her reel you know several things: 1. She is attractive on film (the camera 'likes' her), 2. She plays character roles very well, 3. She can act, 4. She has some big credits on her resume, and 5. Rena, just like everybody else, is the victim of typical Hollywood typecasting. For her, however, this seems to be a bonus - she's obviously getting the work.

OTHER THINGS TO NOTICE:

Notice, how fast the reel moves. You don't really need to watch more than a minute of this reel, 30 seconds for most people, and you already know if you are calling her in for the role, or not. Therefore, the sales pitch is in the first 30 seconds of the reel, where the viewer makes the initial decision about the prospective actor, and the remaining 2 and a half minutes is FLUFF.

ANOTHER IMPORTANT POINT:

The demo reel is all about getting you CALLED BACK, not getting you the gig. You get the job from personal interview and attitude, the demo reel simply gets you the CALL BACK.

REGARDING WEB VIDEO:

The running time is 3 minutes. Web video is about compromising image quality for speed. You want a fast loading web demo that most everyone can watch even if it looks a bit jerky or is cut short. In fact the shorter the better. Whether it pixellates or stutters or not, you can still tell that Rena is a sexy vixen, can act, and has some credits to her name, so as soon as you determine that she is right for your movie, you stop watching it and call her in. Mission accomplished. Besides, anyone on 56k dial up is probably not watching unless they are out of work or bored - the file would take over an hour to load. Personally, I think this reel can be cut down to about a minute or so for the web, drastically reducing the file size, and still give you the same impact. So when thinking about encoding a demo reel for the web, shorter is better.

OF COURSE SHE'S GETTING THE WORK, SHE'S SEXY!

Ah, observant one. You notice the obvious and have great power to extrapolate tidy conclusion. Well done. There is one thing that you must know about the acting game: It is one part fashion show, one part beauty pageant, and one part timing. Talent, of course, helps but doesn't pay the bills as much as the other three. If you thought high school was a big bullshit beauty pageant, then you are well underway for understanding the mentality of casting in Hollywood. After seeing many hundreds of reels and an equal number of actors/actresses, there is one common denomenator among the living, working, surviving actors vs. the struggling dead... Charisma. If you don't have it, you are doomed. That is why I am a filmmaker. The camera, quite frankly, hates me. It laughs at me. I look extraordinarily ordinary even though I go to the gym and can run 5 miles. That is why beautiful people like Cameron Diaz and Julia Roberts and Helena Bonham Carter are 'dumbed down' in films to play the ugly duckling. Yes, fat ugly people do work in Hollywood, just not in front of the camera. If you are an aspiring actor, get used to being judged on your looks. You don't have to be beautiful... you just have to have that certain something on film that puts asses in seats.

WHAT IF I DON'T HAVE HER CREDITS ?

Don't be intimidated. Rena didn't have her credits when she started either. In fact lots of Rena's credits are B-films. The point is that she is pro active about her career, and knows enough to accentuate the positive (her good looks and many character roles) and abandon the negative. For example: profanity was one of the things I chose to cut from most of this reel. We decided that her sexuality should come through without being threatening or overplaying the typecasting card Rena is subject to too hard. I had to recut scenes to do it, but that is my job. Much like a stylist will help mold your image with clothes, a good editor will mold your on screen persona with good judgement and ability.

HOW MUCH INPUT DO YOU GIVE ?

As much as you need. In this case, I think we digitized over a half hour of material and after watching all of her stuff, I said: "alright, I know how I'm going to cut this." Rena said, "...good , because I don't know what to do with all this stuff...", and here we are. So it is important that you get along with your editor and that you trust him with your footage. Sometimes a client has it all figured out on paper, or in their head and my job is simply to make the demo reel that he/she wants, fix the sound issues and smooth out the transitions between shots. That is cool with me. I'll still throw some ideas around as I see fit and try to make the best reel possible with your footage.

WHY DO PEOPLE CHARGE SO MUCH MORE THAN YOU TO CUT A REEL?

Because most people are untalented, greedy dicks. Welcome to Potty Mouth Productions. Enjoy.