Fine! I’ll get it myself thank you very much.

By the end of this week, I should finally have a copy each of the two student films I’ve acted in recently. Basically, I am seeking footage for that actor reel I’ve been talking about for a while. One film, called Cordless Mike, I’ve seen at a small screening and think that while the subject matter is totally off the wall (let’s just say I play a humanoid robot) that I’m confident I’ll be able to extract some pretty funny moments — because the production values are actually quite good. The other film was an adaptation of a scene from Sam Shepard’s Buried Child, the Act II opener where Vince and Shelly arrive. The writing is obviously wonderful and the scene has a great arc, but as these small productions sometimes go, we lost our site at the last minute and had to use one of USC’s studio sets. There was no makeup, I brought my own wardrobe, and we shall see what the lighting looks like when I get the DVD in my hands tomorrow. I don’t want to rag on the student director because this small project was not his thesis or anything; it was a final project in a directing class, so the purpose of his work was not a beautiful-looking product but an exercise in process. I knew that going in; I hoped for more. My reel needs some love.

There are a few things about this process that I am seeking to circumvent: First, I am impatient — I hate waiting for copies of projects. By some accounts, I am lucky that I am even getting these copies at all. Second, I hate that after all of said waiting that the footage may not, in the end, be usable for my purposes.

I want my golden goose and I want it now!

Okay, simmer down there, Veruca. But there is a practical argument to be made here. Why am I waiting? Why don’t I just produce some of my own clips? They don’t even need to be long scenes. It’s called “shoot to suit.”  This is an opportunity for me to really tailor the content of my reel footage to the character types that casting directors would easily see me play. And, in choosing the content I get to sink my teeth into writing that speaks to me.

So, I’ve contacted a young director of photography whose work I respect and he’s agreed to work with me on shooting coverage for a few more scenes that will help me offer a well-rounded final reel. He’s got the camera and some lighting equipment. I’ll secure a few locations, bribe some actors I trust, and gather together wardrobe.  I’m going to keep it very simple. The emphasis will be on performance and the few elements we use will be quality. That’s the goal. I may enlist the help of an editor afterwards. And I’m on the fence about having a director there. I may instead just coach the scenes in advance with my teacher and direct the scenes myself while on set.

It’s a lot to do, don’t get me wrong. But it’s something that puts me in the driver’s seat. I don’t have to wait on someone else’s process. I get more creative control over the impression that I make with industry folks. And it’s just a start– a reel changes over time considerably and I do intend to add in professional credits as they come. But how powerful to have a marketing tool that also feels personal and well-representative of your talent and instrument.

Okay, time to give another look at those scripts. And we’re off!

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