A comedy headshot is one of several different styles of headshots, if you are a comedian or a comedic actor the temptation is to go for a crazy characterful headshot as your main marketing tool.
If you’re know for one particular type of character this is ok. I’ve said in many other posts, character headshots work really well if you understand your type of character well. Sometimes though, a comedy headshot or a fun headshot and can give the wrong impression.
Trying Too Hard
There’s a temptation to try too hard in your headshot to appear fun and whacky, this kind of thinking can seriously damage your chances of success. A good comedy headshot doesn’t have to have a crazy smile or over exaggerated facial expressions. I tell all of my client’s emotional content and personality will convey everything you need in your headshot. Over performing in your headshot is the same as over acting in your audition – it looks what it is, false. Expressing comedy, fun and playfulness can all be done with the eyes and smaller facial gestures, as long as they are real!
In this post I want to talk about when and why you should use a comedy headshot. As a comedy actor you may well also play straight dramatic roles. If this is you, then using a fun, comedy actor’s headshot may restrict your appeal to casting directors for that kind of role. Conversely using a straight actors headshot especially if it is quite a serious look will probably work against you for the comedy roles – that’s the conundrum – the answer is, to have two headshots and be very specific about which headshots you send for your castings.
Pantomime Dame
I’m writing this blog post today on the back of an email I received this morning from a recent headshot client called William who is a comedy actor. He asked specifically for an exaggerated type of headshot much like the British pantomime dame, a role that he had played several times before. In his email he thanked me for delivering this headshot as he’d already had two auditions in the first couple of weeks from it. Would he have scored those two auditions if he’d been using one of his straight or nice smiling headshots? Well, we’ll never know but probability is he wouldn’t!
Comedy Headshot Team Work
We talked about what he wanted and we both worked hard to achieve a natural, fun headshot. Remember a good headshot only comes out of team work.
Understanding the type of headshot that suits you, knowing the kind of character your casting suits and shooting the right type of headshot for your castability will help you catch more auditions simply because your headshot fits the role the casting director is working on. More auditions mean more chances to show what you can do!
I like this article