Yes, I did something two months ago and at the weekend I updated my CVs. (I say CVs, plural, because I, like most actors, have a plethora of online CVs that all need updating). "Keep your CV up to date" is not the best advice. So, what is? Hello, Mr. Greengrocer (who shall be referred to as "A"), I'd like to buy some pears but some of yours look rotten. Hmm. Think I'll try another greengrocer ("B") further up the road. The pears on his/ her display are all lovely! Bye.
B's pears are better than A's, and so B gets the business! (Sudden thought: does this blog post sound patronising? It's not intended as such. I'm trying to be entertaining!). An actor is like a greengrocer (bear with me!). Our pears are the credits on our CVs. Our customers in search of lovely, juicy pears are casting directors and producers in search of lovely, juicy credits. We want to be actor A! No we don't, hang on. We want to be actor B. Some of A's credits look a bit rotten. B's are all big, colourful and inviting.
So, it's not "keep your CV up to date" that's important. Even if I'm not the sharpest Stanley knife in the toolbox, I still know that I should add any new and far between credit on my CVs (yes, plural) before I even put the kettle on. What's important is this: "make sure how you present your CV shows you in the best possible light" or "think creatively to do whatever is realistically achievable with your credits for optimum impact" or even "adapt your credits to show you as the leading actor that projects the vision of yourself". Actually that last one's probably a bit much. Or is it?
For years, until now, I've always thought that there's only one way to present the credits on my acting CV: a list comprising year, type (stage, film, commercial etc.), role, name of production, director, venue. Perhaps arranged in reverse chronological order or with sub headings for type (eg. all theatre roles listed, then film, then television, etc.). But there isn't! Whilst I unequivocally do not advocate lying on a CV (it simply isn't helpful or necessary) I do advocate presenting the information in the most favourable way possible. This does require thinking outside the box. Even I can do a bit of that on a good hair day.
The key is to think about what to include, what to omit (yes, omit!) and how to present what to include. First example, (now we're getting onto the nitty gritty) dates: what do they say about you? I like to come across as someone who is as actively engaged as possible in the so-called profession (I use the qualifier "so-called" but I will save the reasons for doing so for another blog post!). If you want to work say, mainly in films, and you did a couple four or five years ago but since then it's all been theatre, then the dates on your CV will give an impression of one or more of the following: (a) you no longer want to do film, (b) you are no longer castable for film, (c) you just love theatre.
Or what if you only have one or two recent credits separated by a two or three year gap on your CV where there's a whole load of other credits all bunched up? The Acting CVs Act 2010 made it illegal not to include dates on your acting CV. Bollocks: there's no such law! Most agencies and casting directors (a) don't insist on seeing dates, (b) don't necessarily care and, (c) don't necessarily notice. So the tip is this: if including the year of your credits adds some oomph (I'm getting tired and running out of vocabulary!) to your CV then include it. If it detracts oomph, leave it out.
Let's look at individual data fields. That's headings to you and me! First, production company. This will apply to all types of work, ie. theatre, film, television, commercials, voiceovers etc. What's important here is the quality of the name. If I have film credits for short films where the production company is actually the name of a lesser esteemed educational establishment, ie. it's a student film, including the names of these will seriously dent my prospects. Equally so with theatre companies that no-one has ever heard of. So the tip is: don't include production company names if they smell of rotting lemons. (But do include the name if it's Warner Brothers, BBC2, etc.!).
Similar to production company is venue. You've just put on an amazing show, to your friends, at the Fox and Gate pub, in outer Streatham, the renowned theatre venue, not! In fact you turned it into a UK tour with further performances at Sam's Café and Debbie's Kitchen (the latter literally being the kitchen of your friend Debbie's house as opposed to a restaurant of a similar name!). Omit, omit, omit! Arcola in London, Royal Exchange in Manchester? Stick 'em on!
"Hey, because of you (Kyri) my CV is now empty!" No, it's not. We still have the name of the role, the name of the piece and the name of the director! And funnily enough, even if these names are unknown (hell, the directors for some of your short films might even be students) they won't ring the alarm bells that would otherwise be rung through the inclusion of "University of Hounslow" or "The Hound and Goose", Croydon. "I see you worked with Jimmy Smith on Lies and Deception. Don't think I've heard of him". "Well, yes that's right. He's a very talented, up and coming director!" (aka acne faced teenager, no offence intended).
Imagine this scenario: you've somehow managed to find yourself in front of a casting director. "So you played the part of the Dustman/ Waiter/ Au Pair Girl in xxx". Now this one: "So you played the part of Harry/ Paulo/ Tatiana in xxx". We all get small parts sometimes. The word count of our entire dialogue easily outnumbered by the number of Revels in a small bag of Revels (can also apply to Minstrels or Skittles so please don't sue!). And often these parts don't have an actual name in the script. The tip here: make one up. Choose one that fits the part. This is the closest we are going to get to dishonesty on the CV. It's a grey area but only ever so slightly. I would argue it's not unjustified and to all intents and purposes it's not verifiable! My argument is this: it's equivalent to being in a car showroom and the salesman/ woman describing a car to you as a Renault Mégane as opposed to "a medium-sized car". Well it's enough to convince me, anyway!
If and when there's a nice selection of credits of different types then it is useful to use headings when presenting them on a CV. Casting directors like this. It allows them to cut to the chase more quickly and makes their life easier. For anyone at an earlier stage of their acting career (so-called!), or at a later stage but simply without a healthy quantity of credits, then lumping everything together in reverse chronological order is a better bet.
Since I implemented all my own advice to my CV there's been a very noticeable and definite increase in interest. I've even sent it off for roles I'd previously applied for for which I'd been rejected only for them to come back to me with offers of auditions. Incredible. It ain't what ya got baby, it's how ya flaunt it! Get your freak on! Anyway, this blog post has turned out far lengthier than was intended! Sorry about that but thanks if you've got this far!
Choose your very best pears, make them shiny, display them nicely in your basket and the people that matter will be tempted to take a bite!
