Process Sketch: Portfolio?

[Zilant]

A few portfolio submission tips for certain companies have mentioned something to this effect:
"The ability to carry an idea from the conceptual phase to the finished illustration..."

And I'm puzzling over how to display that exactly in my Portfolio.

Do they mean to include process sketches alongside a finished product (pictures of the work at each major stage)?
Or is simply submitting items that are fully polished evidence enough of this skill?

[J Wilson]

I'd show the conceptual phase in your portfolio, but make sure you make it look good, probably better than you ever actually need to go for your own needs. Show alternate versions. Alternate character designs, alternate layouts, all of that. I think they want to know that not only can you finish an illustration, but you can throw out a wide enough variety of ideas to give them choices. Or if you are a concept artist they want to know you can also take it all the way to a finished product.

[Musselfarmstudios]

This may help you . . . .

This is for a "Layout Artist Type portfolio" for feature animation houses but it may give you an idea to adapt.

The Portfolio that I ended up was made up of the following:

4 pages of thumbnails (4 pages of 1x2.35 in. thumbnails 30 to a page) or what ever size you like to work in, this was just my preference in thumbnail size (you may not even end up with 30.)

6 pages of midsized mockets (6 to a page) different ideas of the same project, some representing early stages of the completed projects and others variations as well as other ideas

10 pages of full sized drawings Finished Concepts (drawings ranging from 10 x 23.5 inches to 22x30 inches (again your numbers may very from mine on this)

I was given this format by an AD who has worked at two major animation houses. Dude basically said that they also want to see how you go about presenting these items as part of the portfolio process. Presentation can make a great artist look like he sucks and a mediocre artist look like a genius!

Just make sure that you can make everything uniformed in format

Hope this helps . . . good luck!

[Mirana]

I'm thinking they mean something like this thread. The variety thumbnails, b/w roughs, color final. It's easy enough to mesh this all into one portfolio page image too.