Is your resume Oscar-worthy?



http://www.bigscreenanimation.com/



And the Oscar goes to…

It’s that time of year-- movie season is upon us and people all over the world are flocking to the movie theaters to see movies the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences has given their ‘Oscar nods’ to. And while this one time of year certainly encourages movie-goers to attend movies, throughout the rest of the year, how do Producers get people to their movies?

The movie trailer.

Movie trailers serve as an incredibly important means to advertise a movie. A successful movie trailer can either make or break a movie. In fact, according to Cinemaadvanced.com, a website that provides tips to aspiring filmmakers, making a really solid trailer may be more important than the movie itself. It is, in fact, what will get people to come see your film. They outlined three important points to making the trailer a success:

• Study other trailers—Watch the trailers of big movies. You only have 30 seconds to make people want to come see the movie.

• Sell the Sizzle—the site says “Put really cool shots in the in the trailer. Put really cool lines in the trailer. Sell the sizzle, not the steak.” Don’t put the entire plot in the trailer, put what is going to be intriguing for people to come see it.

• Build Curiosity—if you give the movie-goer just enough to pique their curiosity, they are going to have to come see it.

So, if you consider yourself a “Blockbuster-hit” in the job market, is your resume encouraging people to come see your show? Consider the steps above as it relates to how you are presenting yourself to hiring managers?

• Have you studied other “successful” resumes? Have you had someone review or critique your resume? Do you have multiple versions of your resume for different audiences?

• Are you including every mundane part of your previous positions, or are you including the stuff that matters? Make sure the “sizzle you are selling” is intriguing enough for the hiring manager to invite you in.

• Have you included something that might pique their curiosity? Have you included an interesting mission or objective statement or made a compelling case in your cover letter?

When on the job market, it’s important to remember that you are selling yourself. No matter how much work you do to prepare yourself, if you don’t produce a solid trailer (i.e. resume) and “sell the sizzle”, you may be left eating popcorn alone in an empty theater.

Have a question about how to sell out your show? Contact Abby Ludens at abby.ludens@mattressfirm.com.