Tips for assembling a demo reel

[Mark Collins]

Hey Guys!

So, I'm just looking for tips and advice on assembling a demo reel, things that I should do, or things that I should avoid doing.

Right now, the way my demo reel is going to be set up is with as much variety as possible, showing some steadicam, some jib and dolly stuff, handheld, film, digital, etc, which I think is something that would be good for a reel.

My biggest concern is picking a song that's good and gets attention. I have several in mind but all of them have lyrics, so should I avoid them and try to find something instrumental or just go with it?

thanks guys!

 

[Alex Kornreich]

Is it a DP reel?

If yes, then you left the most important element off of your list, which is lighting. This doesn't really surprise me as this is a camera forum, but i digress... You want your best lighting and composition first and foremost, and after that, have a variety of jib, steadi, handheld, film, digital, etc.

For the song, it's best to have a song that fits the majority of your work. Some people shoot a lot of action, so they use fast tempo music, not orchestral music from Schindler's list. And vice versa.

The best reels and songs are less than 3 minutes (don't go more than that!), and have peaks and troughs in the tempo and emotion of the music. Think of your reel as a trailer for your work, and keep it interesting. Find appropriate hit points in the music, and cut to that. Use fades, crossfades, hard cuts, etc. Don't just aimlessly go cut, cut, cut.

Finally, try to put your better work towards the beginning, as most directors and producers won't make it past 1:00.

 

[Mark Collins]

Thanks!

See, because I'm a student, and fairly new I haven't DP'd too many things, so I have a lot of footage of stuff that I lit or did some specialized camera movement on. So, it's not as much a "Cinematography" reel as a "Lighing, Grip, Camera" reel.

 

[Matt W.]

I recently cut together a reel (you can check my signature) and the advice I got while working on it was mostly this:

Show enough variety to prove you're well-rounded, but generally try to retain one signature "look." Unless you're well-established, that look is what you'll be hired for. I've shot a mix of horror and comedy but my reel ended up being 90% horror movies. Having a small amount of material to draw on isn't bad if you have good material. Keep the reel short (two minutes or under is ideal) but hold on good shots long enough to respect their autonomy--it's not an editing reel--and you may find you have a surplus of material.

Music with lyrics is fine since you're going to cut all sound from your footage anyway (because it gets distracting). As for music, I really dig bands that do a loud/soft kind of thing or have a lot of variety in dynamics (some dance and post-Pixies rock/grunge) because you can edit different types of footage to different moods and intensities and the music holds the viewer's attention longer, too.

Not that my advice is the best (I'm not even a film student but I've had the good luck to work on some decent projects; a major reason I edited together my reel is to try and get into film school after I was rejected this year)--but maybe advice from another relative beginner might be helpful to you given your scenario.

 

[Stephen Williams]

Bear in mind that music is copyrighted & and using for a showreel is 'commercial use'.

 

[JosephArthur]

Use Garageband the loop or music , just mix it up to be your own.

 

[Matt W.]

Bear in mind that music is copyrighted & and using for a showreel is 'commercial use'.

I'm sure this is true for legit DPs but I'm not worried about like all five or six people (DPs I want to do grip work for and admissions boards at film schools) who will view my reel reporting me to a minor label in the UK. As much as music shouldn't matter, I'll turn a reel off if I hate the song and it definitely matters in terms of mood. I really doubt very many DPs license the music for their reels and at the near-amateur level it's ridiculous to worry about it.