Portfolio?

Ethan

Member
I'm interviewing for a job at my university in January
this job's important because it will pay for a lot of my tuition
I need to make a portfolio for it,
How do I do that?
The job is in the scene shop/light booth
I have done 3 shows at my high school and I've made a few light related things
also designed the shows, do I add pictures of the shows?
Any advice on this would be great !
 
Generally, you want to have a collection of relevant work. You want to have a collection of good photos that showcase the lighting, not the people. Wide shots of the entire stage are what I've heard people look for in a portfolio. You want to make sure you have permission from the photographer(s), and credit for them too. You want to credit the director(s) and the set designer(s).

Other paperwork can be good to show as well—neat light plots (even if it means redrawing it from scratch), instrument schedules, dimmer hookups, all relevant work.

Mine is currently in a binder but I'm working on getting online presence too. A friend of mine uses Portfoliobox, but there are a lot of great free hosting services (although they usually have a limit on uploads).

You should look up various lighting designers on Wikipedia and search their names with "lighting designer" after it just to get a feel for what photos people are looking for.
 
I second Goatman on this. You want pictures of the full stage from each show you've done, if possible. I'd limit each show to 5 pictures max; any more than that and the people looking at it are likely to flip past them. Paperwork is your best friend. If you can put together plots, instrument and color schedules, dimmer hookups, etc. it will show that you really understand what you're doing. Reiterating what Goatman said, you MUST credit the photographer and the other designers: scenic, costume (if actors are pictured), the director, projection designer (if there is one).

You mentioned that the job also includes scene shop work. It would make sense to put any scenic materials you have into your portfolio as well. If you've been a scenic designer, put in your drawings, likewise for TDing and your draftings. If you've been a carpenter, feel free to include pictures of pieces you've built, but once again, credit the designer. Some people I know put theoretical drawings in their portfolios alongside their completed designs when they were early on in their careers. It's important that if you do this, you clearly label them as conceptual drawings and not fabricated sets.

If I was putting this together I'd like to have a good layout for the portfolio. Either organize by category (lighting, scenery, concepts, sketches, coursework) or by show and educational materials.
 

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