Timeline: The Reel Deal (page 2)

You have all of your clips in your editing program, and you have your common thread or music bed down on the timeline: time to start assembling the montage. The first thing to consider is the total length. Attention spans are getting shorter and shorter, so forget about the epic ten-minute demo reel. You should be able to represent your skills in two to three minutes. It is rare, but I have seen some reels approach five minutes, and I've seen many more successful demo reels of less than one minute.

The truth is, if you haven't grabbed your viewer's attention in the first thirty seconds, your DVD will most likely get ejected and your chances for the position rejected. Time is money for these folks, and if you haven't wowed them in half a minute, they most probably aren't going to hold on any longer. Remember that stack of fifty reels?

We recommend against a long, elaborate intro title, unless this is a title/graphics reel. You should, however, have your name graphically up front. Now, considering the need to wow 'em in the first thirty seconds, put a good amount of your best work in the first half-minute. Save two or three great clips for the end, as you always want to exit on a good foot, but make sure you give the first thirty seconds your best.

How many clips should you use? If you make a two-minute demo reel, you'll probably have somewhere between fifteen and forty clips. If you are a total adrenalin junkie and your music is 390 beats-per-second, you could have more. If your cinematography consists mostly of time-lapse pieces that need more than three or four seconds to show their true beauty, you could have fewer. If your average shot is four seconds, you'll have about thirty clips in a two-minute demo reel.

As you lay your clips on the timeline, aligning them to the rhythm of the sound bed, also keep in mind the relationship of the clips to each other. Do the video segments work well together? Do the motions and colors of a clip complement the one that precedes it, as well as the one that follows? Are there any apparent jump cuts (possible even if the subjects in the two images are different)? How is the overall rhythm? Step back and look at the entire piece as a whole.

From time to time, you may need or want to bring the audio from the source clip into the demo reel. You may need/want to lower the levels of the sound bed as you bring in the source audio, or you may not. Experiment and see what works..

Once you're happy with your montage, and you've laid your last pieces (the couple of really good ones you saved to leave your viewers with a great impression of your work), make sure your very last clip is a contact slate. It should include your full name, email, phone number and Web site, if you have one. If you have more than one reel on your DVD, this information should be on your menu page, as the DVD should always return there when the individual reels finish playing.

Assuming the most objective amongst us are not 100% objective with their own work, have trusted others watch and comment. Stress that their critical honesty is vital, as this demo reel needs to be perfect. If one edit is off by a beat or two, it could cost you the job.

One last vital element is a reel breakdown/credit list to accompany your demo reel. Chances are, you are not responsible for all that is on that short group of clips, so make sure the people viewing know exactly what you have done for the demo reel as a whole, as well as for each individual shot. Never try to take responsibility for anyone else's work. It will burn you when your employer asks you to reproduce that shot or edit, and, in even the biggest cities, the production communities are small. If you are taking credit for someone else's work, the community will find out.

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