A portfolio does not exist to prove you can film. It exists to answer the one question that worries a buyer: what exactly am I going to receive.
How many pieces, and which
Few, but different.
Three worlds that do not resemble each other are worth more than six variations of the same product in the same kitchen. You are not hired for what you have done, you are hired because somebody can imagine what you would do.
Add for each piece what exactly you did, and what was asked for: those are two different pieces of information.
Film with products you already own
You do not have to wait for a client.
Take three objects already in your home, write yourself a brief as a brand would, impose three compulsory shots, an objection to remove and a deadline. The result is a genuine piece, even if nobody paid for it.
Never lie about the status: say personal work. Transparency reassures more than a fake client name, and a lie of that kind is discovered on the first job.
A bilingual sample doubles your chances
That is the peculiarity of this market, and it plays out in one extra take.
Shoot the same video in both languages, or say clearly that you work in only one. Both answers are acceptable; the absence of an answer moves your file to the next pile.
If you deliver in both languages, do not mix them in the same video: two separate files, two separate takes.
What the brand is trying to check
Four things, and none of them artistic.
Can you talk to camera without reading. Is your sound clean. Does your environment resemble that of their customers. Do you deliver the expected formats without being asked.
Organise your file to answer those four points before anything else.
Keep it recent and short
A piece more than two years old harms the rest.
Visual conventions change fast, and a dated video casts doubt on everything around it. Remove a piece when you add a better one, and never keep something you do not like out of simple attachment.
What gets a piece removed
Music drowning the voice, burned-in text that cannot be taken out, a blurred shot, a product that no longer exists, a brand logo displayed without permission.
That last point is not cosmetic: using a brand's identity in your portfolio requires its agreement, and the applicable rules are checked before publishing.
What the first three videos must show
| The video | What it proves | The mistake to avoid |
|---|---|---|
| The product demonstration | Sharpness and framing | Too wide a shot |
| The piece to camera | Sound and naturalness | A recited script |
| The detail shot | Light and material | A dark image |
What matters more than the number of videos
Consistency. Three videos of the same standard beat ten uneven ones, because the buyer assumes the weakest represents what they will receive.
What almost every portfolio is missing
The context of each video. One line is enough: the product, the brand, the intended use and the deadline met. Without it, the buyer sees a nice image without knowing what it took to produce.
Where to put it
One link, one page, one place kept up to date.
A shared folder requiring access, a heavy file or three different addresses depending on the platform all produce the same result: nobody looks. A page opening in one second on a phone is worth more than a complete website.
