Film/Demo Reels

[Adrian Douglas]

After reading some recent threads concerning submission standards I realize that there is a lot more I have to learn than just good shooting and editing skills. There is a job going at a production house in Tokyo where I could learn the finer points of the industry and get some professional experience, before returning to Australia to go it on my own.

I have the skills required for the job, learn't from 100's of hours behind cameras, still and video, and in front of my computer, but I have no commercial production experience, no piece of paper, so to speak.

What I would like to know, and I'm sure I'm not the only one, is what do production houses look for in a Film/Demo Reel. I'm going to cut one togeather to submit as my resume, and want to know what type of content I should include.

Ozzie, Ken, in a hypothetical situation, what would you be looking for?

[Chris Hurd]

Wow, great question. Content -- the best you have to offer. But brief, like maybe five minutes tops, with a "more examples available on request" tag at the end with your contact info. Those people don't have 20 minutes to look at a reel. But five minutes, and they'll probably check it out.

[Adrian Douglas]

Most of my stuff is surfing and snowboarding, not what you'd call technically challenging footage, should I go and shoot some other subjects, eg: difficult lighting, people, landscapes, etc, or just stick to the sports stuff

[Ozzie Alfonso]

Chris is right - make it short. If after a minute or two of watching I haven't seen what I'm looking for, you've lost me (and I'm one of the patient ones.)

Which brings me to the next point - make more than one reel. Chances are your potential employers will be looking for specific things. Some might be looking at the way you light, others at the cutting, others at your camera work. It's a sad fact but true - people want to be shown exactly what they are looking for.

Yesterday I saw a reel a young Israeli camera/DP brought with him. He had lots of doc material shot for European TV, a brief music video, and a full length documentary for Discovery shot with the XL-1. Nowhere did I see exactly what I was looking for - can he deal with drama? Is he sensitive to the nuances of dramatic lighting? Fortunately I called the producer who had recommended him and I was told this young DP is an actor and quite well-known in his home country. If it hadn't been for this bit of knowledge I probably would still be looking for someone else.

On the opposite end of the scale is the woman who's been our graphic artist for two years. The reel that got her the job was full of the simple computer animation I was looking for at the time. In fact her reel pretty much defined the style I was looking for. The other day she was putting together her reel on our Avid (work is slow, she's become a friend, and the Avid is free.) This was a whole new reel. It had nothing in common with what I had seen two years ago. This thing was hot, sexy, elegant. Not a simple animation in sight. When I asked her why she hadn't shown us this stuff before she came back with the simple answer - "you weren't looking for this." She's right.

Get a good sense of what the client is looking for and dazzle them with it, and, as Chris points out, let them know you have more if they want to see something completely different. Hey, if sports is your forte, stick with it but vary it as much as possible. Can you follow the action with a 500mm lens? Can you shoot while on skies? Hope this helps.

BTW - I went snowboarding last week for the first time. If that's not technically challenging, I don't know what is.

[John Locke]

So, for example, something like the two-minute montages they always show at the Oscar ceremonies? Ones that include lots of short, assorted scenes from different movies, but still linked in certain ways to give it a sense of flow? (Does that make sense?)

Or in Adrian's case, something like the Olympics' "Best of" montages?

(sorry if these are idiot questions...just trying to get a visual on what Ozzie and Chris said)

One last question...is DVD a popular format for a reel? With DVD you could have the main "quickie" reel, but also include secondary links for a complete resume, lists of equipments and software you're familiar with, complete featurettes or at least longer samples, testimonials...or would that be considered TOO much?

[Ozzie Alfonso]

<<<-- Originally posted by zchildress : So, for example, something like the two-minute montages they always show at the Oscar ceremonies? Ones that include lots of short, assorted scenes from different movies, but still linked in certain ways to give it a sense of flow? (Does that make sense?)

I've seen those. That style is best for showing lighting technique, composition. Not a good format for demonstrating, say, editing. It all depends on what you're trying to demonstrate. The intent dictates the style of presentation. Just keep it short.

>>>One last question...is DVD a popular format for a reel? -->>>

More and more so but not as many prospective clients have DVDs as opposed to VHS. DVD is definitely the way to go. If you can have you demos in both formats, great!

[John Locke]

I see what you mean now. I just searched the net for examples of demo reels. Found three worth looking at. Not sure how you'd categorize these:

http://www.phoenixeditorial.com/reel.html

http://www.citicam.net/demoreel/index.html (collection of tiny views)

http://www.jakefry.com/reel.html (Director's reel)

Does anyone else know of other online examples?

[Adrian Douglas]

Thanks for the low-down. Looks like I've got heaps(lots) of work ahead of me. I'll go out and shoot some more varied material, I've only worked with artificial light once so I'm in the dark there (sorry, couldn't help it.)

John's idea of different versions on a DVD is a good one(as usual from the ideas man) and it also demonstrates my other talent, Macromedia Director/Shockwave content creation, I thought of this but thought it might be a bit too much, you know, giving them decisions to make.

I'm sure as it progresses I'll be back with heaps more Q's, thanks again.