Your demo reel is extremely important. It shows what you’re capable of and highlights your body of work, if you have one. Here are a few guidelines:

1) Your demo reel should be no more than 3-5 minutes in length. Casting directors often make a decision within 30 seconds, so anything beyond 5 minutes is completely unnecessary.

2) The most universally accepted format is DVD.

3) Be sure that you include your name and contact information on the label for the DVD.

4) If you decide to open with a photo montage, be sure to keep the montage short and sweet. Again, decisions are often made within 30 seconds and you want to make sure your personality is seen before that.

5) It’s only necessary to verbally introduce yourself once in your demo reel if it is a hosting/broadcast reel.

6) If the reel is for acting in TV or Film, it’s important to have professional footage that you can cut together. However, if the reel is for TV hosting and/or journalism, you can actually create the footage on your own and cut it together. This is as simple as coming up with a few fun segments (i.e. cooking your favorite meal, interviewing a man on the street about his favorite movie, showcasing real estate, etc…) and cutting the footage together in an entertaining way.

7) There are many demo reel editing companies in LA that have extensive experience cutting reels together and can do one for you for a few hundred dollars. One who we recommend is www.broseproductions.com.