The hardest part of being an independent contractor is not knowing when your next job might come along or who your next employer might be. Although this presentation is intended for film and media technicians, any independent contractor might find useful tips that apply to their profession. In 2020 as a result of the Coronavirus Pandemic, I recorded a video of this presentation. Here is the link:https://youtu.be/9fhYTYqaHd4 Please feel free to use it in your classrooms.

1. Marketing Your Skills
Prepared by John M. Grace,
Film and TV Instructor
DATA Charter HS, Albuquerque, NM

2. Marketing Your Skills
• If you want to work,
You need to do Marketing

3. Marketing Your Skills
• If you want to work,
You need to do Marketing
- No one else is going to do it for you…

4. Marketing Your Skills
• If you want to work,
You need to do Marketing
- No one else is going to do it for you…
Here are some basic suggestions for
marketing yourself

5. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
Many independent contractors get into trouble
because they fail to keep accurate records
and to make regular tax payments. Don’t save
all contributions for the end of the year or you
may be subject to penalties and interest.

6. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license

7. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license
With a business license, your employer will pay
you your wages without deductions but you will
have to file your own taxes on a timely basis

8. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license - or -

9. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license - or -
• You can work as a freelancer

10. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license - or -
• You can work as a freelancer
As a freelancer, your employer will make standard
deductions form your wages based on the
number of exemptions you claim. Please consult
a tax professional to decide which is best for you

11. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license - or -
• You can work as a freelancer
– You need 4 basic tools for success

12. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license - or -
• You can work as a freelancer
– You need 4 basic tools for success
• Reliable Transportation

13. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license - or -
• You can work as a freelancer
– You need 4 basic tools for success
• Reliable Transportation
• A Cellular Telephone

14. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license - or -
• You can work as a freelancer
– You need 4 basic tools for success
• Reliable Transportation
• A Cellular Telephone
• An Email Address
+

15. Marketing Your Skills
• You are an Independent Contractor
– You need to keep good financial records
• You can get a business license - or -
• You can work as a freelancer
– You need 4 basic tools for success
• Reliable Transportation
• A Cellular Telephone
• An Email Address
+
• A Business Card

16. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself

17. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#1 Create a Résumé
(Known in Britain as a Curriculum Vitae)

18. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#1 Create a Résumé
• Include:

19. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#1 Create a Résumé
• Include:
Name and Contact Information

20. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#1 Create a Résumé
• Include:
Name and Contact Information
Objective (i.e. seeking employment in the
entertainment industry)

21. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#1 Create a Résumé
• Include:
Name and Contact Information
Objective (i.e. seeking employment in the
entertainment industry)
Education (also list training and certifications)

22. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#1 Create a Résumé
• Include:
Name and Contact Information
Objective (i.e. seeking employment in the
entertainment industry)
Education (also list training and certifications)
Work Experience (relevant to the objective)

23. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#1 Create a Résumé
• Include:
Name and Contact Information
Objective (i.e. seeking employment in the
entertainment industry)
Education (also list training and certifications)
Work Experience (relevant to the objective)
References (or say: Available on Request)

24. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#1 Create a Résumé
• Include:
Name and Contact Information
Objective (i.e. seeking employment in the
entertainment industry)
Education (also list training and certifications)
Work Experience (relevant to the objective)
References (or say: Available on Request)
Skills or Interests (list anything that will give
you an edge over someone with similar skills)

25. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#2 Assemble a Show Reel

26. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#2 Assemble a Show Reel
• Your reel should only include highlights of
your best work – not complete projects.

27. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#2 Assemble a Show Reel
• Your reel should only include highlights of
your best work – not complete projects.
• Reels and should be between 3 and 10
minutes in length. see: creativecow.net

28. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#2 Assemble a Show Reel
• Your reel should only include highlights of
your best work – not complete projects.
• Reels and should be between 3 and 10
minutes in length. see: creativecow.net
• Include: Your name and craft specialty at
the beginning and at the end and include
your contact info in case the reel becomes
separated from your résumé.

29. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#3 Create an Internet Presence

30. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#3 Create an Internet Presence
• Create and Maintain a listing on IMDB

31. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#3 Create an Internet Presence
• Create and Maintain a listing on IMDB
– The Internet Movie DataBase is the resource
most producers will use to verify your work.
You receive IMDB Credits from all features,
short films and TV Shows you work on as
long as they are posted by a producer or are
entered in a film festival through “Without a
Box” (also owned by IMDB). It is up to you to
consolidate your listings and to add your
name to projects that are registered.

32. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#3 Create an Internet Presence
• Create and Maintain an IMDB Listing
• Create and Maintain a Facebook Page

33. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#3 Create an Internet Presence
• Create and Maintain an IMDB Listing
• Create and Maintain a Facebook Page
– Remember to “keep it professional.” Many
producers check for Facebook postings to
gauge the professionalism of potential
employees. That photo you posted of last
weekend’s party might have seemed like a
good idea at the time…

34. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#3 Create an Internet Presence
• Create and Maintain an IMDB Listing
• Create and Maintain a Facebook Page
– Remember to “keep it professional”
• Create a YouTube or Vimeo Account

35. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#3 Create an Internet Presence
• Create and Maintain an IMDB Listing
• Create and Maintain a Facebook Page
– Remember to “keep it professional”
• Create a YouTube or Vimeo Account
– Post only videos that show your talents not
that shaky and poorly lighted video of your
girlfriend’s cat climbing the curtains.

36. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#3 Create an Internet Presence
• Create and Maintain an IMDB Listing
• Create and Maintain a Facebook Page
– Remember to “keep it professional”
• Create a YouTube or Vimeo Account
– Post only videos that show your talents
– Vimeo has higher video quality and it is
generally perceived as more professional

37. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#3 Create an Internet Presence
• Create and Maintain an IMDB Listing
• Create and Maintain a Facebook Page
– Remember to “keep it professional”
• Create a YouTube or Vimeo Account
– Post only videos that show your talents
• Purchase a Domain Name and Create
your own Website with videos, etc.
– Try to get YOURNAME.com

38. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#4 Build a Network

39. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#4 Build a Network
• Complete the old adage “It’s not what
you know, _______________________” -

40. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#4 Build a Network
• Complete the old adage “It’s not what
you know, _______________________” -
this is more true today than ever before

41. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#4 Build a Network
• Complete the old adage “It’s not what
you know, _______________________” -
this is more true today than ever before
• Attend industry functions, union and
guild meetings, and film festivals to meet
and network with other film professionals

42. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#4 Build a Network
• Complete the old adage “It’s not what
you know, _______________________” -
this is more true today than ever before
• Attend industry functions, union and
guild meetings, and film festivals to meet
and network with other film professionals
• Collect contacts and then keep in touch -
if you are in their minds you get the work

43. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#5 Advertise

44. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#5 Advertise
• List yourself with online crew resources
like state and city film offices or crewing
companies like crewconnection.com,
crewscontrol.com or maslowmedia.com

45. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#5 Advertise
• List yourself with online crew resources
like state and city film offices or crewing
companies like crewconnection.com,
crewscontrol.com or maslowmedia.com
• Hire an agent. This works best if you are
in one of the major markets like LA or NY

46. Marketing Your Skills
• There are 5 basic ways to market yourself
#5 Advertise
• List yourself with online crew resources
like state and city film offices or crewing
companies like crewconnection.com,
crewscontrol.com or maslowmedia.com
• Hire an agent. This works best if you are
in one of the major markets like LA or NY
• Pay for a listing on an online resource like
mandy.com or productionhub.com

47. Marketing Your Skills
And the most important piece of advice:

48. Marketing Your Skills
And the most important piece of advice:
• Be Persistent!

49. Marketing Your Skills
And the most important piece of advice:
• Be Persistent!
– People get hired when they are persistent.

50. Marketing Your Skills
And the most important piece of advice:
• Be Persistent!
– People get hired when they are persistent.
– If you keep calling, sooner or later you will call
at just the right time – perhaps right when they
are booking the crew for a production.

51. Marketing Your Skills
And the most important piece of advice:
• Be Persistent!
– People get hired when they are persistent.
– If you keep calling, sooner or later you will call
at just the right time – perhaps right when they
are booking the crew for a production.
– Drop in to their offices - if you are in the right
place at the right time, you’ll get the job.

52. Marketing Your Skills
And the most important piece of advice:
• Be Persistent!
– People get hired when they are persistent.
– If you keep calling, sooner or later you will call
at just the right time – perhaps right when they
are booking the crew for a production.
– Drop in to their offices - if you are in the right
place at the right time, you’ll get the job.
– Never pass up work – the opportunity might
not come your way again.

53. Marketing Your Skills
Good luck, and please be safe out there.
The Film Industry provides many exciting
and fulfilling career opportunities but no
film is worth dying over. If you feel your
safety is being compromised, speak up. If
they fire you, another opportunity always
comes along.