LOS ANGELES — Lana Clarkson's presence at Phil Spector's murder trial has been limited largely to photos of her bloodied corpse, a few snapshots and a professional head shot.

But Thursday, the actress came to life in the courtroom as jurors viewed a video Clarkson made to drum up acting work.

Entitled "Lana Unleashed," the 30-minute video showed Clarkson speaking about her career and acting in commercials, movies and several skits she had written. (VIDEO)

"I'm a supermodel with a couple of pounds on her," the curvy Clarkson joked in one scene that appeared to be taken from a stand-up comedy routine.

Clarkson, 40, borrowed money — $40,000, according to one friend — two years before her death to make what another friend called a "video resume" in hopes of convincing casting directors of her comedic talent.

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The video shown to jurors interspersed appearances in television ads for Nike, Kmart and Busch beer with clips from movies, such as the cult classic "Barbarian Queen," comedy vignettes and a glowing testimonial from the "Barbarian Queen" director Roger Corman.

"She's a good actress, and there's an effervescent quality to her personality combined with the fact that she can bring humor to a dramatic role," said Corman, who also twice referred to Clarkson as "one of the most beautiful women in the world."

The request to give jurors an extended look at Clarkson's life was unusual in that it came not from prosecutors, but from Spector's defense. A lawyer for the music legend asked that the tape be played as part of the cross-examination of Clarkson's agent, Nick Terzian.

The state of her career and her prospects as an aging actress in Hollywood have emerged as central issues in Spector's trial. His defense contends that Clarkson took her own life with a revolver in his mansion on Feb. 3, 2003, likely because she was depressed over her failure to achieve fame as an actress.

Under questioning from a prosecutor, Terzian disputed that portrayal, saying Clarkson was an "all-out talent" and a "moneymaker" who had secured a job in a mobile phone commercial just four days before the shooting.

Terzian said he used to cite her hard work and ambition as an example to new actors.

"I used to tell my assistant, 'Tell the client to do the Lana Clarkson ... go all-out for a job,'" he said.

He said she was "ecstatic" about the phone commercial. She died five days before it was to film.

Defense attorney Roger Rosen raised the issue of "Lana Unleashed" as he accused Terzian of being disingenuous about his client's promise. Several other friends of Clarkson have said they found the video amateurish and that the actress ultimately concluded she had wasted her money, but Terzian said he thought the video aptly demonstrated her range as an actress.

In response, Rosen asked that jurors be allowed to see the video. The panelists leaned forward in their seats as a montage of characters, all played by Clarkson, filled the screen. The campy sketches included one in which she wore blackface make-up to impersonate Little Richard. In another, she played both Siegfried of the Las Vegas act Siegfried & Roy and a perky news anchor interviewing him.

Lana Clarkson played several different characters in the video.

That skit drew loud laughs from three male jurors. Others smiled at Clarkson's onscreen antics, but some sat stone-faced as she portrayed characters ranging from a Barbie doll to Sister Wendy, the art enthusiast nun from public television.

Spector swiveled in his seat to face the large projection screen displaying the video. Clarkson's sister, Fawn, watched a portion of the video, then stared down at her lap, weeping.

When it was finished, Rosen asked Terzian if, even after seeing the tape, he still considered her a "moneymaker."

"Yes," Terzian said.