Hi all,

Brand new to the forum but looking for some straight up advice from those in the know. I studied Computer Games Design at university and specialised in in-game audio.

I'm starting to build my portfolio of foley aimed at getting me into the sound design arena, but i'm not sure what my portfolio should look or sound like. Is there a standard template? Do you have any good examples I might be able to go away and have a look at?

Thanks,

Martin

I don't think there's an established standard but there are key points that help make your portfolio stand out:

1) Make it quick and easy for a potential client or hiring manager/audio director to browse. Clutter isn't a good thing and don't tell your life story on your page - or if you do put it on another page. To put it frankly, most clients or audio directors don't care about your back story - they care about how good your audio work is so make that the focal point.

2) Do not set anything on your website to autoplay. Nothing annoying folks more than going to a website only to have their ears blasted off by something set to autoplay.

3) Lead with your best stuff first. You usually only have 10-30 seconds to grab someone and they may not be 10-30 seconds in one piece. If I'm evaluating someone I usually hop and skip around in various tracks or cues to get an overall impression. If nothing grabs me within that time frame, I move on. If something hooks me in - I listen to the whole cue. That initial look is very on the surface and meant to see if the person meets a very basic bar. If they don't, let's say the sound quality is just not there, I move on very quickly. Sounds harsh but most folks hiring or reviewing possible contractors don't have much time.

4) If you do any mock ups, clearly mark them as so.

That should about get you started. Best of luck,

Nate

Thanks Nate,

I am building my sound banks by genre, ie. Medieval, Sci-Fi, Ambience, etc.

I would obviously put my favourite mix of samples on the front page, but i'm considering not making all of my samples public due to theft etc. Is this wise?

A good solution to theft is to watermark your audio either with your studio/company name heard softly (but not too soft) in the background or place a bed of music that you have the license to use (either your own or something you've purchased from a library) to play in the background. This way even if someone tried to rip one of your sounds out by themselves - they're not getting a clean version.