The #1 Reason Why Most U.S. Accents Reels Fail

Today we are talking about why most U.S. acting reels fail. Hint: It has to do with your American accent.

Thinking about this before you shoot your reel will make the outcome so much better for you.

By the time you finish listening, you'll know:

• The 2 main reasons why most U.S. accent reels fail
• What to do instead

If this episode inspires you then I'd love to hear from you! Take a screenshot of you listening on your device, post it to your Instagram stories and tag me@katherine_beck_ !

Then follow me on Instagram to go 'behind the scenes' with me and my own journey as an American accent coach and Voiceover Actor.

LINKS MENTIONED IN THIS EPISODE:

Ready to master the ALL AMERICAN ACCENT? Grab my free guide to learn how to master the All American accent. Grab my free guide here. 

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SHOW TRANSCRIPT

You're listening to the All American actors podcast, Episode 11. In today's episode, I'm going to share with you the number one reason why most us accent reels fail. That's coming up next, ready to go behind the scenes and learn what it really takes to build a sustainable career as a working actor in the US film and TV industry. Join me Katherine Beck, your all American accent coach, as I give you the insight and inspiration to take action on your career, learn my best tips and tricks to performing with an American accent and hear from working actors and other industry professionals. To give you a comprehensive overview of this biz we call showbiz. This is the all American actors podcast. Before we start today's episode, I just want to take a moment just to send out the biggest Thank you ever to everyone out there all my listeners who have supported the launch of this brand new podcast that only just started last week. And we did so well. Because of you. We ranked number three in Australia and even made the top charts section in Apple podcasts, which is pretty cool. And we not only ranked in Australia, but we ranked in the US Great Britain, Canada, New Zealand, Ireland, India and Mexico. How good is that way beyond my wildest dream. So thank you so much. And the reviews that I have received, Oh, wow. Where do I even begin so many kind words and words of encouragement to make me realize that I did, in fact, make the right choice by starting a podcast. And gosh, it kind of sounds like I know what I'm talking about, which is pretty cool. So thank you so much. And so each week I'm going to feature one of my listeners reviews and today I'm starting with my very first review that I received for the podcast, which is from fellow actor Gary bolter, who says, Katherine is an amazing accent coach, she gives you a no nonsense approach to getting the best out of your American accent. This podcast is a must listen for those wanting to learn, as well as those wanting to keep up or fine tune existing skills. So nice to hear Gary, and you are right. When you work with me, I am no nonsense. I am the no nonsense American accent coach. And if you want to be featured as our star listener OF THE WEEK spotlight just like Gary here, then go ahead and leave us a five star review. And I'll even give you a shout out right here on the show. So if you liked the episode, this one right here, then go ahead and leave us a review. Okay, raise your hand if you are an actor, and you've ever made a reel of your acting work. Okay, maybe I can't see you raise your hand right now. But I am sure that most of you out there have had to put together an acting reel at some point in your career. I know I have in my time. And let me tell you this, it is so much easier to do now than it was back in my day back in the 90s or even the early 2000s. But let me ask you this. Have you ever made an accent real? Like a US real to showcase your American accent so you can book more work with your accent? See, that's what I did when I moved from Los Angeles to Sydney. And I wanted to work more in the industry over here. I have to prove that I could sound Australian. And can I just tell you that my first and even my second attempt was a complete failure. And when I watch it back now, I am so embarrassed at how mediocre it was. And I cringe to think that I actually submitted this to my agent. What was I thinking? Now I am guessing that I am not alone here. I am guessing I am not the only actor out there who has failed miserably at putting together a show reel and actually thinking it was good until an industry professional tells you otherwise. And how crushing is that? I mean, come on. It's really it's it's sad. But we've all been there. So if you've ever put together a US accent reel or you are thinking about putting a US accent reel together, I'm going to share with you the number one reason why most us accent reels fail and I will also share with you what you should be doing instead. So let's break it down. So the number one reason why most us accent reels fail is you've rushed into making it way too soon. Your accent is not ready. You want it to be ready, but it's not. Let's be real. You see, we live in a world where we want everything now we want everything done. Now, we're doing everything in the moment. And we're wanting to work in the US industry, like right now, booking that us role today. But the problem with that is that if your American accent is not yet ready, like, you sound like you were born in the US of A ready, then there really is no point to waste your time. And your money making a US real. Why? Well, because if you think that your accent is good, or pretty good, or good enough, then what do you think will show through when you film that us accent scene? It's just going to be okay. And do you really think that an agent wants to work with an actor when their accent is just okay? Most likely not. They want someone who is ready to go accent ready, because their reputation is on the line every time they submit you for something. And here's where we get it wrong. We put a timeline on ourselves, like, I want to have a US accent real ready to show my agent or my manager by this date. So what do you do you put the date in the calendar, we give ourselves that timeframe to work on the accent. Okay, I've got three months, three months to work on the accent. Now there's likely two things wrong in this equation. Number one is that your timeline is likely to be way too soon. Meaning you haven't given yourself enough time to be really fluent in the accent, so that your accent isn't stealing the show of the show reel. Or when you film, we can hear you dropping out of the accent, a word here and a word there. And number two is that you only worked on your accent just for that particular scene that you were going to shoot. But you didn't actually work on the American accent. So you may know how to pronounce all the words on the page correctly. But in terms of the foundational accent work that needs to be done. We haven't done any of that. And that's a problem. Because any tiny cracks in your foundation will inevitably show through in your work, especially in performance. Because when you're in performance mode, anything can happen. And when you're performing, the last thing you want to do is think about the accent, focus on the accent, listen out for your accent. You want to be present in the moment engaged and connected. And when you're present in the moment, if you haven't put in the time, the hours of training while then it's very possible for your accent to falter. So the question is this, what should you be doing instead? Well, I will tell you that the working actors I work with who sound the most authentic in the accent are the ones that fully understand all the working parts of the American accent, and put in the hours of training to be able to perform with ease. It really isn't rocket science, but you need to be willing to put in that time before you film. And I guarantee if you do that you will see and hear a noticeable difference that will help you get noticed by agents by managers by casting directors. So next time you decide to film a US accent reel, consider whether or not you're actually ready to book a US role with your American accent as it is right now. That is my advice to you. Now, if you are feeling like you need a little help with your American accent, you need some extra support extra guidance, accountability, then why don't you join me for my American accent challenge that is starting today. You will be working with me for five days. And the best part about it is it's free. Just head over to Katherine beck.com slash challenge to sign up today. Now this has been a really great episode. And if you ever have any questions you want to ask me about one of the episodes here on the podcast. You can find me on Instagram at Katherine underscore, underscore send me a DM and let's chat. I would love to hear from you. Especially if you have any questions or any topics about the podcast you want to hear. Please feel free to DM me and let me know. And coming up next week on the show. I will be speaking to Alexandra Park who is starring in the new Hulu series. Everyone is doing great. Now until then, don't forget to share this show with all your actor friends. Let them know what's coming up next week. Invite them to tune in with you and learn how to become an all American Actor so you can be the working actor you dream to be. Until then go practice your American accent and I'll see you back here next time.