If you’re a film/TV actor, your demo reel is one of the most powerful tools that you have besides your headshots and resume to market yourself to agents and casting directors. By choosing the right scenes for your demo reel and ordering them correctly, they can help you to find representation, auditions and even bookings.

What is a Demo Reel?

An actor demo reel or sizzle reel is a 1-3 minute edited video collection of your best performances. Talent agents, managers, casting directors and producers, view demo reels when searching for new acting talent for representation or their projects.

Once you’ve landed representation, your talent agent and/or manager will submit your demo reel to casting when submitting via Breakdown Services, Casting Networks or when pitching a casting director.

Casting directors will view demo reels to get a sense of an actor’s range and abilities and if they are right for the projects they are casting. Your demo can help or hurt you based on how you’ve created it.

Creating your Demo Reel

When you start compiling your demo reel, there are some things you want to think about.

First, it’s a compilation of your best on-screen work. This is your time to be selfish and your demo needs to showcase your acting abilities, not other actors.

You will start with your graphic title card with your name and headshot. (5 seconds)

Then your BEST SCENE FIRST. It might be all that is watched so make sure we get 5 seconds of your graphic title card and then right into you speaking/acting.

No montages, no MOS (motion omitting sound), no video of you dancing, no soundtracks unless it was edited in with the piece you were doing and lends itself to the credibility of your scene.

All notable work should be titled as we go into each scene.

From there, your scenes should show acting range. If you are repeating the same type of character in the same situations, stick with one scene.

Your demo should be no longer than 3 minutes and preferably around 2 minutes. It can even be as short as 1 minute with just two scenes.

End your demo with your Graphic Title card with your name, headshot and contact/agent info etc.

In creating your demo, I’d recommend that you hire a demo reel editor to help you look your very best. If you are technically skilled, iMovie is one of the simplest editing programs to work in.

If you’re missing certain types of roles, you can always create a short film and then edit out the best part for your demo.

• Don’t use scenes from classes, taped monologues or auditions that you’ve self-taped.
• No outdated or low quality footage. If the sound quality is an issue in a scene, don’t use it.
• Also, don’t use any stage work in your film/TV demo. Create that as a separate demo or as a clip.

Speaking of clips, you should also have all scenes from your demo clipped out and titled i.e.

• Lead in Indie Rom Com
• Villain in Horror feature
• Lawyer in Indie Drama etc.

Sometimes you will find that you or your representation will only want to submit a specific scene/clip for a project. When casting directors don’t have a lot of time, it helps to narrow what they want to watch from what you are offering online via Actors Access, Casting Networks, your website etc.

All clips should be 1 minute or less.

As you build your credits and role work over time, you’ll want to keep improving and updating your demo reel so that it currently represents you.

Don’t forget that your demo reel is one of the most powerful tools you and your representation have to get you in the door. Make sure that it’s your best!

Here are some good examples of quality demo reels:

James L. Ward | Lori Hammel | Roger Hervas | Regina Schneider

This article was written by Tony Nation, a partner at the Actors Connection.  Tony is a professional Actor, Acting Coach, expert in Demo Reels, and helping aspiring actors succeed at their craft.