"Your resume isn't a list of everything you have ever done, its a recipe of how to cast you next"
Along with your other actor materials, your resume is one of the strongest ways to demonstrate your training, experience, and reputation in the industry. Early in our careers, we may start with putting every class, workshop, and small credit we can on our resumes. But as we grow in our professional credits and training, we have to do some extra work to curate our resumes to reflect industry standards and show you at your best.
While yes, a resume will show casting directors your body of work - it doesn't have to be everything you have ever done ever. It is a tool to show the highlights of your career. The 3 things you would mention if a CD caught you in an elevator and asked - “What are some projects you’ve worked on?” This is a living and evolving document - if you are doing your work to keep training and submitting - this document should be changing every 6 months.
Let's start with the basics. Here is a list of industry standards for actor resumes, including formatting, structure, and guidelines on content:
INDUSTRY STANDARDS FOR ACTOR RESUMES:
FORMAT: 3 COLUMNS
TITLE OF PROJECT
BILLING/ROLE
PRODUCTION COMPANY/ Director
KEEP IT TO ONE PAGE
Try to limit to the best 5 -10 credits per category
Feature your most recent and on-going training
Keep formatting consistent
CONTACT INFORMATION
EMAIL ADDRESS
PHONE NUMBER
WEBSITE / DEMO REEL / IMDB LINK (use vanity links/ tiny url)
AGENCY CONTACT INFORMATION & LOGO
SEPARATE CATEGORIES
FILM
TV
THEATRE
NEW MEDIA
TRAINING
SPECIAL SKILLS
HIGHLIGHT YOUR STRONGEST WORK
UNION PROJECTS
NOTABLE DIRECTORS / NETWORK PROJECTS
PAID PROJECTS
LEAD ROLES
MAJOR SUPPORTING ROLES
PROJECTS THAT HAVE WON AWARDS
WORLD PREMIERS
PROFESSIONAL PRODUCTIONS / THEATRE COMPANIES
PRINCIPAL ROLES
ROLES CREDITED ON IMDB
CORRECT BILLING
TV: Co-Star / Guest Star / Recurring / Series Regular
FILM: Supporting / Lead
THEATRE: Character Name
SPECIFICITY ON SPECIAL SKILLS
SHARING PROFICIENCY LEVEL OR YEARS OF EXPERIENCE
CERTIFICATIONS / RELEVANT AFFILIATIONS
ACCENTS
SPORTS / HOBBIES
LOCAL HIRE REGIONS
RELATED CREDITS LISTED AS "voice over resume available upon request"
CORRECT LABELING & FORMAT FOR SHARING
FIRST NAME LAST NAME RESUME.PDF
When you are just starting out, it is likely that you may need to include some credits that are outdated, or less relevant to your career. But as you continue to build on your training and your body of work, its important to curate your resume with the most recent, top tier, and most badass credits. So when you have that long list of everything you have ever done in your acting career - here's a good place to start when it comes to making cuts to your resume.
THINGS TO AVOID IN YOUR ACTOR RESUME:
TYPES OF WORK:
BACKGROUND / STAND-IN WORK
VOICEOVER
INDUSTRIALS
MUSIC VIDEOS
RUNWAY / PRINT WORK
COMMERCIALS (only list 'conflicts available upon request)
HOSTING WORK
STAGED READINGS
NON-ACTING CREDITS (tech, design, directing ect)
TRAINING:
ONE DAY WORKSHOPS / MASTER CLASSES
NON-INTERACTIVE CLASSES (videos without feedback & Live instruction)
TRAINING YOU ARE NO LONGER ABLE TO PERFORM (ie combat skills 10 years ago)
COURSES WHERE THE INSTRUCTOR DOESN'T REMEMBER YOUR WORK
SKILLS:
SKILLS YOU AREN'T ABLE TO PERFORM ON COMMAND
SKILLS YOU ARE ONLY A BEGINNER AT (you’ve done less than 1 year)
LISTING LOCAL HIRE WHERE YOU CAN'T WORK AS A TRUE LOCAL HIRE
UNECESSARY DETAILS:
AGE (unless you are under 18)
YEARS/ DATES OF EACH CREDIT
LISTING NON-UNION STATUS
LISTING HAIR/EYE COLOR
MODIFIERS ( “ Short Film” or “Community Theatre”)
IRRELEVANT CREDITS:
ROLES THAT YOU ARE NO LONGER ABLE TO PLAY
TYPES OF ROLES YOU ARE NO LONGER INTERESTED IN AUDITIONING FOR
HIGH SCHOOL/COLLEGE CREDITS (once you are many years post graduation)
PROJECTS WHICH YOU HAD A POOR EXPERIENCE
Among the do's and don'ts of resume building - there are some details which are optional to share on your resume. These kinds of items are up to each individual actor to share on their resume.
OPTIONAL DETAILS TO INCLUDE:
PRONOUNS
DISABILITIES
HEADSHOT
HEIGHT / WEIGHT
NEW MEDIA CATEGORY
LISTING THE PRODUCTION COMPANY VS DIRECTOR
VACCINATION STATUS
AWARDS
VOICE TYPE/VOCAL RANGE
BRANDING COLORS & FONTS
FINAL THOUGHTS
As you begin to make adjustments to your resume, be sure to run them by your agent. Each agency may have their own preferences when it comes to format, and may wish to include or exclude credits When in doubt, try to aim for a resume that is shorter. Embrace the white space - it makes your resume feel cleaner and easier to read. Your strong credits will stand out more if they are not buried behind 10+ weaker credits. Try to leave the viewer wanting more. Oftentimes your credits are details Casting Directors might chat about in the audition room. So be sure to make sure to share credits that you are proud of - projects that you could say positive things about. If for any reason you had any negative experiences - leave those off your resume. Aim to list your credits from most badass to least. You want to rank your credits so that you feature your most impressive credits at the top of each category. (This makes making cuts easier to tackle). When you gain stronger credits, try to replace older less impressive credits - replace instead of add.
Your resume is a living document- it will change as you spend more time working in the industry. And beyond sharing every role you have ever done, it helps tell casting the story of who you are. It tells casting what level you are at in the industry, and what kinds of roles you are able and willing to play. As you update your resume, remember we are a work in process. We will always be training and working towards reaching a new level in our careers.
Your final bonus- Here is your very own editable RESUME TEMPLATE:
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