Showreels: How did you make them?

[SumOne]

My band has local pub gigs every couple of weeks but we're now trying to up our game a bit and think a decent showreel would help - but we haven't really got a clue how to do it.

 

What have you done? Just record it yourself/friends in the audience on phones and edit it together yourself, or pay someone to do it professionally? Was it worthwhile or a waste of time and money? 

Edited 5 hours ago by SumOne

[BigRedX]

Have you missed out on any gigs because you didn't have a show reel? That's probably the most important question to ask.

 

If you do think you need one, then do it properly. A badly produced showreel will probably put more venues off than no showreel at all.

 

Unless you have lots a spare time and are interested in learning all about filming and video editing, pay for a professional. 

 

IMO you need good sound - the ambient live mix picked up by the camera is not going to cut it. The band need to look like a band and not a bunch of middle aged blokes who happen to have picked some instruments and the venue where you film should be as undistracting as possible.

 

Good luck if you decide to go for it.

[JapanAxe]

A band I am rehearsing with recently made a showreel. The BL has his sights set on theatres, for which you need something that an agent can send to a venue.

 

First we made multi-track recordings of a couple of rehearsals, and I edited together acceptable (but not perfect) versions of the 6 songs we’d chosen. It helped a lot that the drummer plays an electronic kit! We then hired a small theatre and a videographer came along and filmed us miming to our live-in-the-studio recordings. We got mates’ rates because the BL knows him and he is trying to break into band showreels.

 

Afterwards the videographer edited together a draft and there then ensued considerable back-and-forth over what did or didn’t work. I think it’s finished now and will be launched in the New Year.

[Burns-bass]

10 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

Have you missed out on any gigs because you didn't have a show reel? That's probably the most important question to ask.

 

If you do think you need one, then do it properly. A badly produced showreel will probably put more venues off than no showreel at all.

 

Unless you have lots a spare time and are interested in learning all about filming and video editing, pay for a professional. 

 

IMO you need good sound - the ambient live mix picked up by the camera is not going to cut it. The band need to look like a band and not a bunch of middle aged blokes who happen to have picked some instruments and the venue where you film should be as undistracting as possible.

 

Good luck if you decide to go for it.

This is excellent advice.

 

Last function-style band I was in we rented a studio and paid for a professional to film and edit it.

 

Paid itself back within 2 gigs.

[SumOne]

11 minutes ago, BigRedX said:

need to look like a band and not a bunch of middle aged blokes who happen to have picked some instruments 

 

 

 

This'll be our biggest challenge! 

[warwickhunt]

As a tribute, we needed a Showreel, so we did a mash of DIY and pro.  

 

Recorded audio ourselves at a rehearsal space (individually not as a live take), guitarist's brother is a bit of a whizz at recording.  Went to a theatre to mime to the track on a stage, where a guy did mate's rates for multiple shots of video.  The guitarist has the know how to then edit the audio and video to this end product.  Probably cost us £300 to rent spaces and pay for video recording but would have cost x3 that if our band didn't have the knowledge and contacts to bring it together.  

 

 

[Piers_Williamson]

What format should the finished product be in to appeal to busy pub managers?

[SumOne]

2 hours ago, BigRedX said:

Have you missed out on any gigs because you didn't have a show reel? That's probably the most important question to ask.

 

 

I think that is tricky to answer as no one has said 'show us your showreel to pay at out venue', but in theory we assume it'd help open new doors. 

 

We have no trouble getting local pub gigs but after a couple of years of that we're starting to feel more ambitious: proper music festivals (not just local free entry ones we do), mid sized music venues, supporting bigger bands etc. 

 

 

[warwickhunt]

It used to be a 'showreel' was for corporate/club type bands but I've found that to move out from your immediate circle it is useful... but be aware some folk will listen (look) at the first 30 seconds and likely as not on a phone or mobile device.

[JapanAxe]

11 minutes ago, warwickhunt said:

It used to be a 'showreel' was for corporate/club type bands but I've found that to move out from your immediate circle it is useful... but be aware some folk will listen (look) at the first 30 seconds and likely as not on a phone or mobile device.

 

Yep. keep it short and to the point - a minute is plenty!

 

I couldn't get to them before when I was on my phone, but here are a couple of shots from the stalls taken by the singer's husband. I'm stage left, playing the red Tele. The videographer also used a drone to get shots from angles that couldn't otherwise be achieved. The whole thing cost us about £400 at mates' rates, but if you are paying full professional price you will be lucky to get much change from a grand.

 

 

[BigRedX]

1 hour ago, Piers_Williamson said:

What format should the finished product be in to appeal to busy pub managers?

 

It should be a private link on YouTube that you can share with anyone who asks for it.

[TimR]

3 hours ago, Burns-bass said:

The band need to look like a band and not a bunch of middle aged blokes who happen to have picked some instruments and the venue where you film should be as undistracting as possible.

 

3 hours ago, SumOne said:

 

This'll be our biggest challenge! 

 

 

This is usually the sticking point for a lot of bands. 

 

The other is getting the middle aged blokes with instruments to believe in the end product. It's frustrating if the end product is slick, but is let down when the drummer has a scowl on and is thinking his time would be better spent drinking pints of Carling down at the Spoons. 

 

Personally I would do a dry run. Get a mate to come to an rehearsal room. Get the band to wear what they're planning to wear. Video a 'live' warts and all performance. Mistakes don't matter.

 

Then watch the resulting car crash back and work out how to improve it. At this point aforementioned drummer will realise how good even a rough video is and get his wife to iron his best shirt. 

 

There is nothing worse than looking like a bunch of misfits having paid a lot of money for the privilege.