Sydney Showreels

So you want to get a new showreel. Great. A showreel is an actors most valuable tool in booking film, TV and commercial auditions. You want a showreel that showcases your strength as an actor and gets you in the audition room. If you want to learn more about creating a great showreel, check out our article on making a great showreel or our Ultimate Guide to a Great Showreel. If you’re based in Sydney and looking for a great new reel here are our local recommendations…

Best Showreel Companies in Sydney

#1 JJ Splice

There was a period after graduating from drama school where every weekend a friend of mine was getting a reel filmed by JJ Splice. And there was a good reason for that. They produce high quality, professional reels for an affordable price. The company is headed up by feature film director Dean Francis, who places a strong emphasis on great acting. I think this element is often overlooked in showreel production. Companies are so focused on making the reel look and sound good that they forget to focus on the acting.

#2 Department of Pretend

DOP is headed up by Hamish Michael, an incredible actor – which means his insight into editing showreels and shooting self-tapes is truly invaluable. If you don’t have a great looking self-tape set-up at home, you can book in at Department of Pretend and get super slick, professional self-tape footage to edit together into a reel. Hamish also offers a showreel editing service, where he’ll edit together existing footage to make a wonderful showreel for you.

#3 StageMilk Showreels

The StageMilk team are predominantly based in Sydney, and we wanted to offer a more affordable option for actors when it comes to making showreels. We can shoot scenes on location, or shoot professional self-tapes for your reel. We can also help to edit together existing footage. If you want to learn more about our reels shoot me an email: [email protected]. 

Learn more: Sydney Showreel Packages

Choosing a Showreel Company

I recommend checking out all the companies we have listed here. Watch at least 3 of their reels before making up your mind and look into the company. Ask friends who have worked with them. Then meet up with the team and see how you get along. You want to feel comfortable working with the director. That’s when you’ll do your best work.

Showreel Alternatives

We recently put together an article on showreel alternatives and we discuss two much more affordable options:

Film something with a friend

Do you have a film-making friend? Well, you should. Get together with some mates and film your own scene. Learning more about film making will be invaluable in your acting career. You keep creative control and you can probably get a really great end product, depending on how good your friends are.

Make a Self-Tape Showreel

If you haven’t got much, or any, professional work, and can’t afford a filmed reel you need to look at filming a self-tape. More and more agents are actually pushing for this sort of showreel. The benefit is that a self-tape places the focus on the acting. Learn more about filming a self-tape.