DemoReelFAQ

A. Probably not. Even though the use of a demo reel can vary slightly depending on who it's sent to, in most cases it's intended to show someone, normally a casting director, your acting skills, and how you perform on camera. Work you've done as an extra or background really doesn't show this. You'd probably be better off with a monologue or two and maybe an actor's slate. If you need any editing done to piece together your monologues, slates and a few headshots, we'd be happy to provide this service for you.

A. This is not recommended. Even though a few still images will be used, a demo reel is typically used to show your acting skills and your presence on film/video. If the people viewing it really want to see still images, you can show them your portfolio. If you only have a limited amount of material for a demo reel, you might consider adding a actors slate or a monologue to help show your presence on film, but then again, you might just wait until you have enough material for a proper demo reel.

A. An actors slate is simply a short video of you were you give information such as your name, stats, agent and other information a casting director may be interested in. It's basically a very short video bio.

A. The best way is to properly document the video you give us. If you supply us with two short films and a commercial, and don't fill out the forms letting us know where in the videos you are on camera, this means we have to go through all the footage looking for you - and we charge by the hour. If you've already documented when you are on camera for each video, we can get right to work reviewing just the scenes with you, saving both time and your money. Adding notes to the forms about each occurrence will also help speed things up, further reducing how much time it takes. This includes proper titles and credits, as they should appear in the demo. Every time we have to stop editing to contact you for more information, is money spent on things other than editing your demo. So follow all the directions and fill out all the forms provided and this will greatly reduce the time it takes, which directly affects the money you spend.

A. DVD, CD, VHS, MiniDV or D8. If your film work is on another type of media, let me know and we can discuss transferring your work to another media. Note that we are not responsible for damage to media. If your work is on some form of digital media (DVD, CD, MiniDV or D8), it's recommended you provide us with a copy rather than the original. If you only have the original, let us know and the first thing we will do is make a copy and use that copy, however, we are still not responsible for any damage to any media you provide us. We reserve the right to refuse to accept any media, especially old tapes, that we think are either about to die, or that might damage our equipment.

A. Not really. A DVD is normally usable, and most likely what you received as copy, however DVD's use MPEG for the video, which is considered a final product for users to view and has been compressed considerably, and is really not the best as source material for editing. If at all possible, try to get a better version, preferably in a DV format. This may be difficult to get from many jobs, but it shouldn't hurt to ask. You may have a better chance of getting DV quality from any student film you've worked on. If all you have is a DVD, then of course we will use it, as long it has a minimal amount of quality to it.

A. Even though DVD is not the best quality for editing video, in most cases, if the DVD was properly edited and authored, the quality will be acceptable. In fact, the majority of the media we get for demo reels is DVD's.

A. It's not recommended. It's best to use only the highest quality copies of your work to create your demo reel. However, even though in the past a web version of a video always meant it was of very poor quality, now a days, with high speed internet, a web version can be pretty decent quality and if that's all you have, then we may be able to use it. Keep in mind that a poor quality web version will look as poor or worse in a web version of your demo reel, and will probably be even worse as part of a DVD demo reel. We reserve the right to refuse any media that is of such poor quality that we feel it will be detrimental to showing your work and producing a quality demo reel. If all you have is a web version, try to obtain a better version. If you worked on a project and your compensation is only copy, they really should give you a good copy.

A. DVD and web. When the product is near completion, you will be sent web versions for review. Once the product is done, a DVD will be provided, along with two web versions, one small for low bandwidth uses, and another larger one of superior quality for the web, but requires a lot of band with.

A. Depending on the media you need, we may be able to provide you a copy. If not, there are a number of resources for transferring media, and we will be happy to help get your demo reel on the media you need.

A. The name is just a hold over from days gone by. In the digital age, clips, cuts, reels, rolls, etc… are names used to describe their virtual counter parts for what used to be a physical item.

A. Possibly, however, good quality video typically can be anywhere from a 1/4 meg to 4 meg per second of video. This means that 1 minute of video can be anywhere from 15 to 240 meg, so as you can see, a short film in high quality video can be huge. If you think your work can be emailed or uploaded, contact me and we'll see what we can do. If you are familiar with ftp for transferring files, and the file is under 500 meg, we can probably give it a try.

A. A form will be provided for you to fill out for each video. Basically it will ask you how many scenes you are in, and the approximate location of each of those scenes, along with any titles and credits associated with each video. Depending on the video, after I have a copy, I may send you a very small, low quality version of each that is overlaid with a time code, which you can use to document the location of scenes you would like used.

A. The basic packaged demo reel only contains a single video that is your demo reel. This video will start playing when the DVD is loaded. For an additional cost, we can custom design you a DVD with multiple menus as needed, leading the viewer not only to your demo reel, but also to any videos and music you may have. For example, the demo reel itself may only contain snippets of you in a commercial, however, using the menus, the viewer can see the entire commercial. The DVD can start at the menus, or can play your demo reel, followed by a menu, allowing a single DVD to be used in various ways.

A. We will add the new material. All of the material you provide will be archived by us, along with the projects associated with your demo reel. When you have new material and would like to update your demo reel, we will pull everything from the archives and re-edit to add the new material, so you will only have to provide any additional media. The pricing for updates will be based on the amount of work and material to be added, but will be a reasonable fee. There is no charge for storage of your archived material for this purpose, and your material will only be used by us to maintain your demo reel. We only archive digital copies of your material, and all originals will be returned to you.

A. The best thing to do is to start removing older material, preferably material that no longer represents your skills, and not just the oldest. For example, if you initially had three video's used to create your demo, and the second was ok, but not your best work, it should be removed first, even if it's not the oldest.

A. It's probably best to have a couple of demo reels and send the one that's most appropriate for the part. For example, you could separate your material by drama, comedy, instructional/training, etc… These can be provided on separate DVD's, or a menu can be added, allowing the viewer to select the proper demo reel on the DVD.

A. The draft copy should NOT be sent to anyone, such as casting directors, however, you should watch it yourself, plus show it to your agent, manager, acting coaches/teachers, etc… who's opinion you value. A link will be provided that you may share, but please do not repost the draft copy on sites such as YouTube, which tends to not retain the quality needed for a proper review. Keep in mind that the draft copies are not for your use as a demo reel and should not be submitted to anyone, it should only be used to decide if the work we have done so far is to your liking before we finalize the project and create your DVD and final web versions.


	\| home Portraits \| Portfolio Development \| Headshots \| Fashion \| Commercial/Stock \| Video Services \| Contact Us Stock Model FAQ \| DemoReelFAQ DemoReelFAQ Q. I only have a couple of things, and none of them are speaking parts, should I go ahead and have a demo reel made? A. Probably not. Even though the use of a demo reel can vary slightly depending on who it's sent to, in most cases it's intended to show someone, normally a casting director, your acting skills, and how you perform on camera. Work you've done as an extra or background really doesn't show this. You'd probably be better off with a monologue or two and maybe an actor's slate. If you need any editing done to piece together your monologues, slates and a few headshots, we'd be happy to provide this service for you. Q. I only have 1 or 2 videos, can I use a bunch of photographs to add more content? A. This is not recommended. Even though a few still images will be used, a demo reel is typically used to show your acting skills and your presence on film/video. If the people viewing it really want to see still images, you can show them your portfolio. If you only have a limited amount of material for a demo reel, you might consider adding a actors slate or a monologue to help show your presence on film, but then again, you might just wait until you have enough material for a proper demo reel. Q. What is an actor's slate? A. An actors slate is simply a short video of you were you give information such as your name, stats, agent and other information a casting director may be interested in. It's basically a very short video bio. Q. I really want a demo reel, but want to keep the cost down, how can I do this? A. The best way is to properly document the video you give us. If you supply us with two short films and a commercial, and don't fill out the forms letting us know where in the videos you are on camera, this means we have to go through all the footage looking for you - and we charge by the hour. If you've already documented when you are on camera for each video, we can get right to work reviewing just the scenes with you, saving both time and your money. Adding notes to the forms about each occurrence will also help speed things up, further reducing how much time it takes. This includes proper titles and credits, as they should appear in the demo. Every time we have to stop editing to contact you for more information, is money spent on things other than editing your demo. So follow all the directions and fill out all the forms provided and this will greatly reduce the time it takes, which directly affects the money you spend. Q. What media does my work need to be on for you to use it? A. DVD, CD, VHS, MiniDV or D8. If your film work is on another type of media, let me know and we can discuss transferring your work to another media. Note that we are not responsible for damage to media. If your work is on some form of digital media (DVD, CD, MiniDV or D8), it's recommended you provide us with a copy rather than the original. If you only have the original, let us know and the first thing we will do is make a copy and use that copy, however, we are still not responsible for any damage to any media you provide us. We reserve the right to refuse to accept any media, especially old tapes, that we think are either about to die, or that might damage our equipment. Q. So a DVD is the best quality to provide? A. Not really. A DVD is normally usable, and most likely what you received as copy, however DVD's use MPEG for the video, which is considered a final product for users to view and has been compressed considerably, and is really not the best as source material for editing. If at all possible, try to get a better version, preferably in a DV format. This may be difficult to get from many jobs, but it shouldn't hurt to ask. You may have a better chance of getting DV quality from any student film you've worked on. If all you have is a DVD, then of course we will use it, as long it has a minimal amount of quality to it. Q. I tried, but all I could get is a DVD version, is this really that bad? A. Even though DVD is not the best quality for editing video, in most cases, if the DVD was properly edited and authored, the quality will be acceptable. In fact, the majority of the media we get for demo reels is DVD's. Q. I only have low quality, web versions of my film work. Can these be used for my demo reel? A. It's not recommended. It's best to use only the highest quality copies of your work to create your demo reel. However, even though in the past a web version of a video always meant it was of very poor quality, now a days, with high speed internet, a web version can be pretty decent quality and if that's all you have, then we may be able to use it. Keep in mind that a poor quality web version will look as poor or worse in a web version of your demo reel, and will probably be even worse as part of a DVD demo reel. We reserve the right to refuse any media that is of such poor quality that we feel it will be detrimental to showing your work and producing a quality demo reel. If all you have is a web version, try to obtain a better version. If you worked on a project and your compensation is only copy, they really should give you a good copy. Q. What media will I get my finished demo reel on? A. DVD and web. When the product is near completion, you will be sent web versions for review. Once the product is done, a DVD will be provided, along with two web versions, one small for low bandwidth uses, and another larger one of superior quality for the web, but requires a lot of band with. Q. What if I need my demo reel on another type of media besides DVD? A. Depending on the media you need, we may be able to provide you a copy. If not, there are a number of resources for transferring media, and we will be happy to help get your demo reel on the media you need. Q. If I'm not getting a real reel, why is it called a demo reel? A. The name is just a hold over from days gone by. In the digital age, clips, cuts, reels, rolls, etc… are names used to describe their virtual counter parts for what used to be a physical item. Q. Can I just email or upload my media? A. Possibly, however, good quality video typically can be anywhere from a 1/4 meg to 4 meg per second of video. This means that 1 minute of video can be anywhere from 15 to 240 meg, so as you can see, a short film in high quality video can be huge. If you think your work can be emailed or uploaded, contact me and we'll see what we can do. If you are familiar with ftp for transferring files, and the file is under 500 meg, we can probably give it a try. Q. If the video is large, can't I just compress it to send it over the internet? A. Not really. Video is normally already compressed as much as it can be. The only real way to make the video file smaller is to reduce its quality, which we don't want to do. Q. What all do I need to provide you for each video I have? A. A form will be provided for you to fill out for each video. Basically it will ask you how many scenes you are in, and the approximate location of each of those scenes, along with any titles and credits associated with each video. Depending on the video, after I have a copy, I may send you a very small, low quality version of each that is overlaid with a time code, which you can use to document the location of scenes you would like used. Q. Will the DVD have a menu allowing the viewer to select different videos? A. The basic packaged demo reel only contains a single video that is your demo reel. This video will start playing when the DVD is loaded. For an additional cost, we can custom design you a DVD with multiple menus as needed, leading the viewer not only to your demo reel, but also to any videos and music you may have. For example, the demo reel itself may only contain snippets of you in a commercial, however, using the menus, the viewer can see the entire commercial. The DVD can start at the menus, or can play your demo reel, followed by a menu, allowing a single DVD to be used in various ways. Q. After the demo reel is finished, when I have additional material available, will you need to start from scratch, or can we just add the new material? A. We will add the new material. All of the material you provide will be archived by us, along with the projects associated with your demo reel. When you have new material and would like to update your demo reel, we will pull everything from the archives and re-edit to add the new material, so you will only have to provide any additional media. The pricing for updates will be based on the amount of work and material to be added, but will be a reasonable fee. There is no charge for storage of your archived material for this purpose, and your material will only be used by us to maintain your demo reel. We only archive digital copies of your material, and all originals will be returned to you. Q. I know a demo reel shouldn't be too long, but what happens if it's already long and I have more material to add? A. The best thing to do is to start removing older material, preferably material that no longer represents your skills, and not just the oldest. For example, if you initially had three video's used to create your demo, and the second was ok, but not your best work, it should be removed first, even if it's not the oldest. Q. I have a lot of material, probably too much for a demo reel, what should I do? A. It's probably best to have a couple of demo reels and send the one that's most appropriate for the part. For example, you could separate your material by drama, comedy, instructional/training, etc… These can be provided on separate DVD's, or a menu can be added, allowing the viewer to select the proper demo reel on the DVD. Q. Once I get my draft copy for review, what can I do with it? A. The draft copy should NOT be sent to anyone, such as casting directors, however, you should watch it yourself, plus show it to your agent, manager, acting coaches/teachers, etc… who's opinion you value. A link will be provided that you may share, but please do not repost the draft copy on sites such as YouTube, which tends to not retain the quality needed for a proper review. Keep in mind that the draft copies are not for your use as a demo reel and should not be submitted to anyone, it should only be used to decide if the work we have done so far is to your liking before we finalize the project and create your DVD and final web versions. This document is © Copyright Richard G. Bingham II and may not be used or copied without express written permission.