G19.1- Self- promotion materials for networking
Firstly, one promotional material that I plan to create to advocate my skills within this industry is making business cards for myself. To do this, I will use the website Canva and use their business card templates offered to help create my own, which will be beneficial for me since I will have this on my website which will be easy to send off to agencies or any employers.
I do believe that having my own business cards will be effective as it will help leave an impression and make it easy for cast directors, agents, or other industry professionals to contact me in the future. Moreover, it is also a reminder of my talent and an easy way to share my contact information with any other employers.
Furthermore, I am also planning to write a professional bio to add to my CV to give industry professionals a little more information about myself and the experience I have indulged in. In my professional bio, I want to highlight my relevant experience, skills, training, and achievements in an engaging manner. So, to create this, I will create a list of the experiences I have had on stage and screen and a diagram of the skills I have learnt from each job which I can talk about in my bio to advance my opportunities.
Creating this professional bio for myself majorly allows me to promote my unique brand identity, highlighting my strengths such as my communication skills that I have learnt being on set for a show in London with Sky Atlantic as I have had to work with many different people, especially with the assistant director when choreographing some scenes and telling me where to go. Having this bio for myself has also allowed me to display my talent as I have been able to show my achievements in being able to go from performing in my local theatre at the Albany in Coventry to making my way to the stage in London’s West End, showing industry professionals the talent, I am capable of.
Overall, I will create these self-promotion materials from the website Canva and put them on my own website that I will use to show to any agents or casting directors so that I can be noticed in the future by them for any jobs they may potentially have.
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
G19.2- creating self-promotion materials
Firstly, one way that I will use my promotional materials for my next steps into the industry will be researching many different acting agencies in the UK, especially London, and sending them an email introducing myself with a link to my professional website which highlights my talent and achievements.
For example, one agency that I am very keen to email first is Daisy and Dukes as I have researched their agency thoroughly and found that not only is it based in London, which is very ideal for me, but it is a very successful agency for young people such as myself as it was founded by Michelle, who is a parent of a young actor who understand the needs and priorities young talent needs to get jobs, which would be beneficial for myself.
In the future, I am going to keep the email concise and professional highlighting my unique qualities such as my dedication and eager to work in a team with directors which I have learnt from previous jobs and give a brief introduction about myself, telling them my main reason why I want to reach out to Daisy and Dukes specifically so that I can stand out a lot more. Furthermore, I will also express my gratitude for their time and consideration when looking at my website.
Secondly, another way I will use my promotional materials for my next steps into the industry is by printing out my business cards that I have created on Canva and handing them out at networking events, casting directors and auditions.
For example, a networking event that I am planning to go to is the Actors & Filmmakers Networking Event in Manchester on the 30th of June, where I will be given the opportunity to meet many industry professionals. Attending this networking event will give me the opportunity to get my name out there by handing out my business cards to directors, producers, and fellow actors so that I can get as many opportunities as possible by building relationships.
In the future, I am going to sign up to as many networking events as possible until I have as many contacts and relationships with industry professionals as possible to make it a little easier for me to gain any opportunities or jobs within my career. I will continue to research networking events every couple of weeks so that I can stay updated on industry trends, upcoming projects, and casting calls, which will help me stay competitive and informed on any career opportunities.
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
G19.3- presentation of self-promotion materials and evaluation
Reflecting on my CV crafted for my own self-promotion for my progression into this industry, it is important that I do investigate its effectiveness, especially with making it stand out to casting directors or industry professionals. I want to make sure that my CV appears and serves as a clear presentation of my skills, experiences, achievements, and aspirations.
For instance, after looking over my CV, I have made sure that it clearly shows my career goals, which I have shown in my statement at the beginning of my CV where I say that I am a ‘Dedicated and passionate actor, wanting a challenge in roles on either stage or screen.’ Moreover, I have also shown my objectives related to my acting, such as, genres and the type of roles I would want to play in my statement. Additionally, my CV has also been created by myself to highlight my relevant acting training, education and any experiences that show my potential, such as performing in London’s West End.
Moreover, after my teacher reviewed the first draft of my CV, she mentioned that it did not look like a strong CV as it did not look organized enough when highlighting the different areas that I have done work in, for example, performing on stage, screen and doing voice acting. This constructive feedback given to me was amazingly effective in helping me define the different job roles and types that I have done and how they all have given me various skills that I have adapted to which I can use in future jobs too.
Therefore, when creating the second draft of my CV, I was able to make improvements to it, such as organization, making my CV look more presentable to casting directors or industry professionals, showing a more professional side to myself.
Moreover, after reflecting over my headshots, I believe they have captured my personality through the different shades of tops I am wearing, making me look appealing to the casting directors. I also do believe that my headshots accurately represent my age as I am only wearing minimal make up, making me look natural, and the different colored tops that I am wearing are quite playful and exciting.
However, I did receive some feedback from my teachers after they reviewed them. For example, they did mention that some of the backgrounds in my headshots did not have a color match and did not make me stand out in some pictures. In one of my headshots, I had a grey backdrop, however it did not make me stand out and it made my skin look washed out and slightly dull. It was also mentioned that my hair did not change the way it was styled throughout the pictures as my hair was mostly down and straight, making it a little boring to look at.
In the future, I am going to save up my money and book into a more professional photographer for actor's headshots, for instance, Lumosia Actor Headshots, based in London. I want to improve not only my assorted styles, but also with different poses and expressions to enhance the impact of my pictures to casting directors. Improving my headshots in the future will also open many more opportunities for myself as I will look more appealing to industry professionals.
Furthermore, after reflecting on my professional website, I was also given the feedback that my statement could end a lot stronger if I sounded keener for agents and industry professionals that I wanted them to contact me as soon as possible.
For example, my teacher suggested that I should end it with, ‘Get in touch if you would like to connect with any roles that you could potentially have for me as I would be very grateful for any.’ I thought this could be greatly beneficial to add onto my professional bio as it makes me seem more eager for any jobs that they could offer. Moreover, it further shows my politeness towards anyone that comes across my website that I am open to any enquiries and emails.
Overall, this has helped make my website look more professional towards industry professionals as I have linked my email at the bottom so they can get in touch if they wish.
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
​
My 5 year plan
