Quick question about director reels?

[Liv]

It would obviously take a lot of time to shoot, say, 15 short films or commercials and pull out three or four good shots from each for a total of about 5-10 minutes of footage for a directors reel. Because this is such a time consuming process, could a director (in theory) go out and shoot a series of random shots and sequences that stand alone, without being connected to an existing short/commercial, and then use that as a reel?

For example, you direct a short film, and one of the scenes you pull from it is a cat sitting on a windowsill. Technically, you could have only shot the cat on the windowsill in the first place, and nothing else

So basically, if you have a good reel of random shots, but those shots weren't actually part of any short, would a prospective hirer be able to tell the difference? Would they ask to see the original shorts the clips came from? And if they did find out your reel was comprised of random footage rather than footage selected from shorts and commercials (though still high quality) would they care?

Thanks so much

 

[photon]

5-10 minutes of footage for a directors reel.

That's too long for a reel. Try to make a reel that's only 1.5-3.5 minutes long. You don't want to make people lose their interest. Only use your best material. Better to have footage from fewer super high quality productions than from multiple inferior ones. You can include the rest in your CV.

 

[8salacious9]

music videos are a great way to get a showreel, try looking up other directors and seeing their showreels, i may start a thread with a host of directors showreels as iv been following up on how they have progressed

 

[Liv]

That's too long for a reel. Try to make a reel that's only 1.5-3.5 minutes long. You don't want to make people lose their interest. Only use your best material. Better to have footage from fewer super high quality productions than from multiple inferior ones. You can include the rest in your CV.

What I'm trying to say is that instead of shooting a few super high quality videos and then selecting your best footage, why not eliminate the middleman and shoot 1.5-3 min worth of footage specifically for a reel

So basically, what you'd do is go out, shoot a series of impressive scenes specifically meant to go into a reel, and that's it. If a producer saw the reel and liked it, would he ask to see the original shorts the clips came from? Because in that scenario, there would be no original shorts

Sorry for the confusion

 

[sfoster]

What I'm trying to say is that instead of shooting a few super high quality videos and then selecting your best footage, why not eliminate the middleman and shoot 1.5-3 min worth of footage specifically for a reel

So basically, what you'd do is go out, shoot a series of impressive scenes specifically meant to go into a reel, and that's it. If a producer saw the reel and liked it, would he ask to see the original shorts the clips came from? Because in that scenario, there would be no original shorts

Sorry for the confusion

Seems like it would be less rewarding for your actors that way. It might be harder to attract talent. Also it may scare people that you don't understand the pacing of a complete story. Might help your case to finish at least one of them. FWIW my next project is only about a page long.. and it's my most compelling script yet. so it's possible to do a complete story in a short amount of time

 

[photon]

How about film a bunch of really short shorts written around the cool scenes?

 

[Dreadylocks]

It would obviously take a lot of time to shoot, say, 15 short films or commercials and pull out three or four good shots from each for a total of about 5-10 minutes of footage for a directors reel. Because this is such a time consuming process, could a director (in theory) go out and shoot a series of random shots and sequences that stand alone, without being connected to an existing short/commercial, and then use that as a reel?

For example, you direct a short film, and one of the scenes you pull from it is a cat sitting on a windowsill. Technically, you could have only shot the cat on the windowsill in the first place, and nothing else

So basically, if you have a good reel of random shots, but those shots weren't actually part of any short, would a prospective hirer be able to tell the difference? Would they ask to see the original shorts the clips came from? And if they did find out your reel was comprised of random footage rather than footage selected from shorts and commercials (though still high quality) would they care?

Thanks so much

That sounds more like a cinemotography/DP reel. A director's reel should showcase your ability to direct. IMHO, that means scenes with actors, not just pretty shots.

 

[jax_rox]

That sounds more like a cinemotography/DP reel. A director's reel should showcase your ability to direct. IMHO, that means scenes with actors, not just pretty shots.

This. A director with a 'sizzle' reel and no credits sound kinda sketchy to me

If you're being asked to Direct something, it's generally based on a good recommendation or your past work. Or both. Very rarely is it due to a showreel. If a Director were to have a showreel it would need full scenes.

 

[Sweetie]

The directors calling card is his or her ability to tell a story through an audio visual medium.

As Jax was letting on, a director without credits reeks of inexperience. A director with a reel without credits shows both inexperience and looks incredibly dodgy.

would they care?

No. They'd walk right past you.

Do the hard work, get the results, get the rewards.

 

[Liv]

Hmmm. Let me try to rephrase my question

I guess I'm just curious about this: when you submit a directors reel, does a producer/studio head usually ask to see the original shorts where the clips came from?

I'm a screenwriter first. I would like to at least co-direct my work when selling a script. From the testimonials of many other writers (usually on done deal pro), it seem as if once a script is sold, the writer gets booted from the picture. I'd like to make a demo reel in the next two years or so to help my chances of further involvement, but I don't think I have the time or the resources to work on proffesional commercials and such (since that realm isn't my primary goal)

I know that if I only focus on screenwriting, try to sell one of my scripts, and then ask for further involvement after the project is sold, in 9 cases out of 10 I'll be booted out the door. Hopefully a short reel could help with that

 

[Dreadylocks]

Ok, this may sound harsh, but please don't take it personally.

Why would someone hire to direct you and/or invest money into a project if you have no experience directing?

If you want to direct things that you have written, you will need to produce that stuff yourself. There's no need for a showreel.

 

[Sweetie]

Liv, look at how Rocky was made. It's a slightly different story to directing, but the theme is there.

If you have the right script then you may have some leverage. You need to have the right script. I suspect this isn't the situation you're talking about. You seem to be expecting to get ditched as soon as your script is accepted. Is that due to your writing not being as strong as it should be or from a lack of confidence? (Either way, I doubt you're going to get brought on as a director).

 

[Liv]

Liv, look at how Rocky was made. It's a slightly different story to directing, but the theme is there.

If you have the right script then you may have some leverage. You need to have the right script. I suspect this isn't the situation you're talking about. You seem to be expecting to get ditched as soon as your script is accepted. Is that due to your writing not being as strong as it should be or from a lack of confidence? (Either way, I doubt you're going to get brought on as a director).

I'm very, very far away from that point (I'm still in high school). As general curiosity, I was just asking whether or not a producer would ask to see the short films your demo reel clips originated from

I'm starting to map out my (ideal) career early on. I'm prepping to take a gap year or two after graduating, and I only want to do that if I have a careful two year plan laid out. I'd like to be both a writer and director, mainly because I know that as a writer, it's very difficult to see your material get made. You're scrabbling amidst a pool of 100,000 other scripts, all vying for the attention of either big budget studios that'll massacre the material, or a slew of film school graduates who aren't nearly as passionate about your material as you are

I don't want to rely on technical people, so I'd like to start learning the ropes of directing. I was really just wondering how a reel works, and what should be expected of a reel

 

[ChimpPhobiaFilms]

A reel is a 1-3 minute video showing clips of your best work, usually small portions of scenes from short films/features/music videos. The best thing that you can do is practice and make short films. Once you create films/music videos that are of high quality that your talent and directorial capabilities, then you can put a reel together and attempt to get it seen. Making small clips specifically for a reel isn't a smart choice. Someone may want to watch those films, etc. etc. etc. You never know what's going to happen.

 

[Sweetie]

I was just asking whether or not a producer would ask to see the short films your demo reel clips originated from

You'd be able to answer this yourself with a little bit of common sense.

A movie takes a lot of money (or deferred salaries if nothing is paid up front). 6 figures is rather common for very, very low budget. Do you think any competent producer would pick you without checking the quality of your work. Hint: The answer is HELL YES!

I'd like to be both a writer and director, mainly because I know that as a writer, it's very difficult to see your material get made.

This is a really poor reason to be a director. Don't do it.

You're scrabbling amidst a pool of 100,000 other scripts, all vying for the attention of either big budget studios that'll massacre the material, or a slew of film school graduates who aren't nearly as passionate about your material as you are

I can tell you, directors and producers are extremely passionate and excited if you write great stuff that are targeted correctly within the correct price band. It's more likely that you think you're writing great stuff when you're at the point of writing okay stuff. It's hard to get excited to spend both the money and the 2 months (Production, pre-production, post production) on making a 10 minute short when the script is just ok.

I don't want to rely on technical people, so I'd like to start learning the ropes of directing. I was really just wondering how a reel works, and what should be expected of a reel

The purpose of the reel is to show you know what you're doing. Do showcase the level of work you're capable of doing. If you want professional jobs, you need to sell that... professionally.

 

[PhantomScreenwriter]

I'm starting to map out my (ideal) career early on. I'm prepping to take a gap year or two after graduating, and I only want to do that if I have a careful two year plan laid out. I'd like to be both a writer and director, mainly because I know that as a writer, it's very difficult to see your material get made. You're scrabbling amidst a pool of 100,000 other scripts, all vying for the attention of either big budget studios that'll massacre the material, or a slew of film school graduates who aren't nearly as passionate about your material as you are.

• 
  If you do take a gap year (or even two) use that to write, write, write, write, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite...If you take two use the first year to write as many projects as you can and then spend the second year getting them made with your own initiative by finding actors and other people who can assist you.

• 
  While you are taking time off to do the above, in between times when you get writer's block, do as much research online as you can for every single facet of film. Learn as much as you can. Self education can do a lot of wonders.

 

[photon]

How beneficial is it really to take a gap year for just filmmaking? There's plenty of free time in college. I'd consider doing filmmaking full time only after already having some sort of a track record. For example a couple of commercially viable feature scripts or a couple of professional quality short.

 

[Liv]

A reel is a 1-3 minute video showing clips of your best work, usually small portions of scenes from short films/features/music videos. The best thing that you can do is practice and make short films. Once you create films/music videos that are of high quality that your talent and directorial capabilities, then you can put a reel together and attempt to get it seen. Making small clips specifically for a reel isn't a smart choice. Someone may want to watch those films, etc. etc. etc. You never know what's going to happen.

Thank you. I suppose it's better to be safe than sorry, even if a producer won't always ask to see the original pieces

My only question now is if it matters whether or not the reel contains credited material. As in, would someone only take you seriously if your reel was made of commercials, music videos, and other paid assignments? (as opposed to small, short films you do on your own)

 

[Liv]

• 
  If you do take a gap year (or even two) use that to write, write, write, write, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite, rewrite...If you take two use the first year to write as many projects as you can and then spend the second year getting them made with your own initiative by finding actors and other people who can assist you.

• 
  While you are taking time off to do the above, in between times when you get writer's block, do as much research online as you can for every single facet of film. Learn as much as you can. Self education can do a lot of wonders.

Right ahead of you. I've just finished 'from reel to deal', and now I'm starting on something more indie-geared ('rebel without a crew'). I've also begun reading cinematography

Since I've still got some high school left, I was thinking of getting a nice big junk of writing done now. Of course, assuming I might not be good enough right out of high school, that extra year for writing alone could definitely help. Afterall, it's difficult to really get into that "writing mode" when you have so many tests and homework assignments sucking the life out of you. My progress is pretty slow right now

 

[ChimpPhobiaFilms]

My only question now is if it matters whether or not the reel contains credited material. As in, would someone only take you seriously if your reel was made of commercials, music videos, and other paid assignments? (as opposed to small, short films you do on your own)

It depends on who you intend the reel to be seen by. Although yes, a reel composed of commercials, music videos, and other paid assignments would be generally acceptable.