Portfolio Tips

Very good tip to create portfolio.

Link
http://www.moonapples.com/art_portfolio_tips/

Portfolio Presentation (physical media)

Discs:
I get into disagreements with other art directors about which are better- DVD movies or CDs (data discs). I prefer data discs, but I have heard others prefer DVDs. My advice is to include both if possible.

CDs (Data Discs) : I prefer CD data format because it is the easier to use in how my company operates. When we receive portfolios, we share them with many people to provide feedback. The easiest way to share portfolios is to just copy them to our network and ask people to send feedback via email. Imagery can also be much higher-res than what can be put on a DVD movie. Also, we will often forward images around via email to people to quickly show them an applicant’s work.

DVD Movies : I don’t like DVDs because:

1. They are low-res (640 x480). Non-animating work should be viewed higher than this.
2. They are hard to share (one copy) with a group of people, and easy to get lost once shared.
3. Viewer has less control to understand content of images (moves fast; is blurry).
4. DVDs often don’t work on many systems- some work well on PCs, some work well on home entertainment systems, different formats like DVD-R , DVD + R, etc …

That said, I have heard many HR reps say they prefer DVDs. So my only recommendation is if you really want to send a DVD, include a data disc CD as well and make everyone happy. Including an CD with a DVD is a relatively cheap investment.

VHS Movies : VHS is dead. Most people don’t have a VCR in their office, so they can’t view your portfolio.

Case:
There should be a case to cover the discs (DVD cases are good). This case should also be able to hold a printed resume inside it – separately attached resumes can get lost. If you have some small printed images that fit inside the case (a mini-printed portfolio) that can often tell a lot about an artist as well, before they can even get to a computer.

Cover:
The cover of the disc should have all of your contact information. The front and back cover should also have some simple clean images of your best work- a few really impressive images will get your work fast-tracked through the hiring system while a cover with just your name (or nothing) get sorted a low priority. I can’t stress enough how important this cover can be- it is really your first and sometimes only impression.

While many of us are fans of super simple minimal design (like just small text) on a cover, good looking relevant imagery really does sell your work, and gets it a priority.

CD/ DVD Label
Again this should have all of your contact information. It sounds silly, but many people put a disc with no label in their case, and often cases and discs get separated. You don’t need a proper stickler label, but at least hand writing saying your name + info. Again a good image behind the label is also helpful incase the disc and case get separated- people will see the disc and associate it to the work.


Art Disciplines:

Animator:

For some reason I have not figured out, almost everyone wants to be an animator. Not sure if this is odd nudging from schools (often Computer Graphics are still called Animation Departments) or just some deep rooted desire to express human-like locomotion.

It is important for animators to be able to demonstrate they understand weight, physics, gravity, timing, impact, and nailing the performance, as well interesting but realistic move sets. Basic walk, run, and idle cycles are a must for showing off skills. A scene of two characters interacting is also extremely helpful.

My company, as with most large videogame companies, is more interested in realistic human motion as opposed to a highly exaggerated cartoony ‘squash and stretch’ style. Consumers mostly purchase those kinds of games, so that is what we make and need our artists skilled in. Just as a note, there aren’t nearly enough jobs for all the cartoony reels in the world- it is probably the most common portfolio we get.

Many profession game companies use motion capture as a main step for creating their animations, and then animators clean up the files (usually in MotionBuilder, the best software for editing motion capture). Animation skill is still extremely important in working with motion capture data. Any experience you can get working with motion capture data and MotionBuilder would be a huge plus to your resume.

Any “technical” knowledge is also preferred- understating character tessellation for deformation, character rigging, etc. The ability to grasp how animations would be used in the game (how they blend into each other) are all great skills to demonstrate if you feel comfortable in those areas.

A great reference for animators is the 10 Second Club. They have forums where people critique animation, and they even have rigged models to animate to. This is invaluable because great animation can look bad on poorly rigged and constructed characters. For most game jobs, it is recommend to animate on the more realistically proportioned reference models they have.

Animator Recommended Content format:
Animations have to be presented in video files. Ideally this information would be on a CD-ROM or website.

Content Recommendations:
· Animation cycles: walk, run, idle (waiting) etc.
· Single playing animations- Falling down and picking self up, jumping, opening a door.
· Two person interactions (a tackler, a hug, a robust dialog, etc)
· Facial animation information coming soon- highly recommend Jason Osipa’s “Stop Staring” book.