Showreels are often a depressing place, full of dark and serious scenes. That’s fine of course, but don’t forget you can also have a lot of silly fun. If you want to do comedy it’s important you have material that shows that side of you.
Not every actor is comfortable with comedy, but if it’s a part of your skillset it’s essential you get it on your showreel. Comedy actors are hard to come by and opportunities abound for those who can show the skills for it.
Here’s an example of a comedy showreel scene in script form. I originally wrote this piece for two women but as you’ll see when we filmed it, we used a man and a woman – and I think that dynamic worked really well!
Sometimes I meet actors who are keen to do comedy scenes, but are worried they won’t be able to do it. They say things like “I don’t have much experience with comedy,” or “my comfort zone tends to be drama.” If this sounds like you, don’t let it put you off. When comedy works well; it’s usually because the actors have taken it seriously. For the characters, it’s drama. The laughs come from the unexpected turns in the script – your job is to take things seriously, just like in more serious scenes.
When we meet to discuss a reel, let’s definitely have a chat about whether comedy would be right for you.
You can find out more about my reels from scratch on my showreels page.
Feel free to reach out to me by email: dj@danieljohnsonfilms.co.uk
