27 Feb 2010, Posted by Susana Baker in Acting,Articles, 0 Comments

Casting Tips for Actors: Resumes

If your future director chooses, after viewing your cover letter and and headshot, to still consider you he will then look over your resume. It is, in less than a page, all of the most important things you have ever done. Keep in mind, they get stacks of these every single day, so you want to make the process of reading it extremely simple.

Resume

1. Don’t exaggerate your abilities. It will come back to bite you.
   

   Generic template for an easy-to-read resume. Add training and skills at the bottom.

2. Keep your resume short. It must be attached to the back of your 8”x10” headshot, so you will have to trim the paper down.
3. Don’t clutter your resume. Remove credits that are very old or irrelevant.
4. Don’t include an objective field. Clearly your objective is to get cast.
5. This is not a work resume. You must format it in columns. One for show/film, one for role, and one for producing organization.
6. Don’t put your address. Especially ladies. There are too many creepers out there.
7. Include your specifications: gender, age, height, weight, hair color, eye color, vocal range (ONLY IF YOU SING.)
8. Include contact information.
9. Add a section for training and special skills (horseback riding, languages, accents, driver’s license, etc.) You never know what they’ll be looking for.

Last installment, cover letters!