Making the right steps into a career in Film, TV and Stage is not always a solid step forward. There are lots of thing to consider and we hope these guidelines are useful.

Your Show reel is the most important part of your CV - this is your Trump Card!

Like your CV this should be updated once every six months to a year. The important thing to remember is to ‘ASK’ the production company you work with for a copy of your tape, all the little parts help as much as the major ones.

There are many places you can gain a professional show-reel from - theses companies are usually listed in our Directory.

HandE CAA host Show-reel courses in Conjunction with our sister company HandE Productions.


Questions you should ask when booking a show-reel course:

1. How many days does the course consist of
2. What is the content of the course - how much will I learn about presenting on film
3. Do I receive the show-reel at the end in with the cost
4. Is this a recognized company? Can I add this onto my CV as part of my training?
5. What is the cost?
6. Do I receive help after the course that will help me move forward in the industry?

What you should receive:

1. A good course should be at least 2-3 days long. Shorter courses are usually held over longer days but if you want the best for your show-reel remember each day will bring confidences out and sell you better on tape.

2. The content of any course should offer

· Voice techniques and confidence building for the camera

· Presenting and interviewing skills

· Script writing and reading [this is a vital point all presenters should know]

· Research skills [again vital]

· Broadcast law [this is a good point to know about as it can get you and your crew out of sticky situations if you are thrown out into the field on your own]

· CV scripting

· Make-up artist

· Photo shoot [some will offer this - but you should have promotional shots]

· Show-reel onto DVD and or Video [duplicates should be available at a very reasonable cost]