The Resume
An acting resume is arguably the most crucial component to an actor’s career, especially for one who is young, new, and starting out in the industry with little to no connections. Having a guide on how to fill it up and get the proper experience needed to be recognized in the industry and eventually move on to getting representation is essential. If you’re someone who started acting in middle school or high school through school theatre, then that’s great and you already have a few key items to put on your portfolio. As for these earlier projects, it’s best to only include the ones in which you were a lead actor, supporting actor, or sometimes ensemble actor if you need some extra credits to list. But, if you’re someone who never took a liking to theatre work or simply just never did it when you were younger, have no fear! There are plenty of other outlets that can be used to gain more experience and have your resume looking nice and full.
Many young actor’s first experiences are on a smaller scale, low budget projects such as student films or other types of short films. These are great for not only the acting experience but also learning the ropes of being on a set and making connections with the film students (remember, one day they might be the ones observing you in the audition room or directing you on set!). If you’re pursuing acting in the Los Angeles area, some of the best places to look for student film work is at the University of Southern California, Loyola Marymount University, or the American Film Institute. Side note- another awesome way to both get set experience and make a little bit of cash on the side is through doing extra work (companies like central casting are a great place to start)- though, any credits from this type of work should NOT be added to a resume. Another way to get credits is through self-made work! This is a chance to create a role for yourself that you know you can do and that you know will show off your skills to the best of their abilities. Additionally, it adds to your creative flow as a performing artist.
Not only does the actor want to have a full resume, but one that is simply nice to look at. Having a resume that contains the right information as well as being properly formatted is hugely beneficial to the actor when a casting director is reviewing it. The different sections on a resume are fairly straightforward and many example templates can be found through a simple google search. At the top of the page, a resume will typically include the actor’s name, height, union status (whether you are part of SAG-AFTRA or not- ‘union’/’nonunion’), contact information, hair color, and eye color. This is followed by various sections of your credits, typically in the order of film, television, theatre, and new media work. At the bottom, the final two sections will be your training or the acting classes you’ve taken (and there should be lots!) and then your skills sections which should also have some substance.
