Wireframes

I'm not going to post all the pages. Here's one...though I have frames on the right, the resume section is all text, no clips. I also have empty space on the bottom that I'm not sure what to do with - maybe put the left menu on the bottom also... Having gone through all this, I realize I really need to spend a lot of time in actually putting the portfolio pieces together!

You get the idea...

Home Page

Final Format

This is the final format. This is the 2nd web page. Home page will have the Video & Voice Over reels with a summary statement/objective on the right. Everything else stays same.

My Colors/Design/Wire Frame

I drew the frame myself, chose my favorite combination of colors, and stuck to the menu on the right which I really like. However, I just realized that I'll need to make some changes so that subsequent pages can be formatted the same.

Simplified but still too much, I think

Too Much?

Site Map

Getting There

Here are some changes to the design; still lots to do:

A Site with My Concepts

Here's a website I found that has similar concepts to mine. Hasn't been updated and some links don't work.

My Portfolio Design

Here's a rough photoshop sketch of how I'd like to set up my portfolio website. Viewer can click on any of "mini" frames on left (my work) or right (about me) and it will appear on the large frame. Feedback welcome.

Must Have's

Here's what my digital portfolio must have:

1. Contact Info
2. Pieces of my work
3. Explanation/Description of the pieces
4. Offer to show full pieces if requested
5. References (I'll be getting these anyway so I'll just post them instead of telling my references each time to expect a call)
6. Past relevant experience
7. Skills
8. Education
9. Easy navigation
10. Unique/Interesting visuals
11. Branding concept

Decision Made (Sort of)

After struggling with which career path to follow, I have decided to make my main focus Producing. A conversation with my advisor resulted in a new avenue I hadn't considered before - producing commercials or music videos. Considering my family situation, this is much more feasible than film producing which would require lots more travel.

Now that's decided, I will go back and do some of the research assignments with this in mind. However, I will still be open to voiceover work and put my demo reel on various voiceover websites.

Portfolio

I'm postponing any decisions on my portfolio until I figure out which area I want to focus on. They are too different to put into one portfolio and I'm not able to work on two portfolios at once right now. I'll be speaking to several people in the next few days to help me figure it out.

Other Portfolios

Todd M. Howard - This guy has done a lot of different things. His website is organized and easy to navigate except he doesn't have a link to his home page from other pages. His home page text is long but he bolds key words, making it easy to skim.

Found This on Vimeo

All done using still photographs. One rotation equals 360 photos. There are 8 rotations!


360 from Flo Sturm on Vimeo.

Another Font

Academy Engraved
Nuptial Script
Arno Pro

Resume - 1 version

This is one version of my resume where I only put in the creative stuff. There's a ton of other stuff not included. Didn't know how to upload it in a picture format so it's all text here.

RELEVANT QUALIFICATIONS:
• Internship at WPST, New Jersey - production & voice over work
* Radio and TV courses at Mercer County Community College
• Voice over for TV3 documentary – Fall 2008
• Split Decision – MCCC’s weekly sports show – Director – Fall 2008
• MCN Live – MCCC’s weekly news show

• Anchor – Fall 2007
• Producer – Spring 2008
• Technical Director – Fall 2008

• Editor for MCTV’s cooking show “Dish It Out” – Fall 2008
• Directed pilot episode of entertainment show for internet – Fall 2007
• Floor manager for political forum show in NJ – 2008
• Assistant Director on low budget, independent movie – Summer 1993
• Produced, filmed and edited 5 minute 8 mm film – Spring 1993

SUMMARY OF WORK HISTORY:
Worked for 15 years in the corporate environment for senior executives in an administrative capacity and on special projects in the technical field. Self-taught or took courses to learn whatever the job required. Listed below are industry relevant positions only:

8/93 - 11/93 APPLE PRODUCTIONS ~ New York, NY
Assistant Director: Created shooting and location schedules with the Director; supervised wardrobe and prop departments; acted as liaison between management and crew to resolve last-minute problems; and assisted in editing first cut of film.

4/93-8/93 WELLS RICH GREENE BDDP, INC. ~ New York, NY
Assistant Business Manager: Assisted business managers in producing radio and TV commercials by keeping track of talent payments and critical dates, writing up estimates, processing talent contracts, and resolving payment problems.

8/92 - 12/92 KWHY-TV 22, THE BUSINESS CHANNEL ~ Los Angeles, CA
Sales and Accounting Assistant: Assisted sales manager and account executives; processed traffic orders and contracts; updated scheduling information; and worked with clients and other departments to resolve problems.

11/86 - 7/91 A.B. PRINTING ~ Braintree, MA
(school breaks) Graphics/Office Assistant: Typeset, proofread, layout and pasted-up newsletters, pamphlets, flyers and other materials using desktop publishing tools.

EDUCATION:
Fall 2007 MERCER COUNTY COMMUNITY COLLEGE ~ West Windsor, NJ
to present Courses Completed: TV1, TV2, TV3, Graphics & Effects , Intro to Radio, Announcing, Audio Production, Intro to Entertainment Technology, Health & Safety in Entertainment
Current Courses: TV4, Designing a Digital Portfolio

Spring 2000 EMERSON COLLEGE ~ Boston, MA
Certificate in Publishing: Produced book of short stories as final project, including story & cover art acquisition, story editing, book design, and book production.

Spring 1993 SCHOOL FOR FILM & TELEVISION ~ New York, NY
8 mm Film Course: Produced short silent film as final project, including casting talent, scouting locations, filming, and editing.

8/87 - 5/91 SETON HALL UNIVERSITY ~ South Orange, NJ
Bachelor of Arts, May 1991, cum laude ~ Major: Political Science

SKILLS: MAC & PC; Adobe Photoshop, Premiere Pro, After Effects, Audition; Quark; Microsoft Office; Typing - 65 wpm

REFERENCES: Available upon request.

Brand Concepts

I'm not much of an artist but here' s my vision in words:

-several flowing lines
-each a shade of fuschia/purplish
-lines have softened edges
-maybe the colors bleed into each other
-2 of the lines stand out more & form a "V"

This would fit more with the vocals. Not sure for a producer if it makes me/my work appear vague, unfocused, and unorganized.

My Fonts

What do you think these fonts say about me/my work? I have 2 titles since I'm still deciding between the two careers/portfolios.

Vimeo Uploads

Not the best stuff but I don't have a lot available. I need to get the news shows I produced, the basketball games, and my TV3 project.

"Welcome" - AfterEffects Project


Welcome - AfterEffects School Project from Vibha Patel on Vimeo.


"Six Little Ducks" - PremierePro Project


Six Little Ducks - 1st PremierePro Project from Vibha Patel on Vimeo.


Voice Audio Reel



VoiceDemoReel from Vibha Patel on Vimeo.

Joined more networks

I don't know how I'm going to keep up with all these sites I'm joining and feeds I'm receiving. Here's what I'm on so far:

vimeo

twitter

facebook

flickr

Still need to get my LinkedIn account fixed. I think I'm missing another one. I now need to figure out how to add all my links to each of these sites so they're interconnected and get feeds from them so I'm not logging in and out all day!

Industry Blogs

I chose 4 film related blogs and 1 voiceover blog. It's tough to follow them all - it takes a lot of time. Plus, since I haven't narrowed down my career choice, the blogs are very general. I'm hoping I'll find more specific blogs once I figure out what I want.

5 Things ... Lists

5 Things I Love to Do:
1. read
2. dance
3. sing
4. try new things
5. plan

5 Things I Hate to Do:
1. repetitive tasks
2. cooking/cleaning/housework
3. doing things a particular way just b/c it’s always been done that way
4. waking up early for just another boring day
5. being surrounded by clutter

5 Things I’m Proud of:
1. my kids
2. completing a 26.2 mile marathon
3. completing a sprint triathlon
4. being able to do just about anything I set my mind to
5. being independent

5 Things I’m Good at:
1. planning
2. researching
3. improving current ways of doing things
4. organizing
5. taking charge

5 Things That Me Unique:
1. traveled abroad & cross country alone
2. pick up accents quickly
3. adapt to different environments quickly
4. moved around a lot in childhood
5. started working at 13 in family business

5 Adjectives That Describe Me:
1. smart
2. quick learner
3. takes initiative
4. confused
5. impatient

5 Adjectives That Describe My Work:
1. thorough
2. good quality
3. neat
4. organized
5. near perfect if time permits

Can’t do rest of the lists since I’m still not sure which career path to follow – voice acting or film producing.

Work Experience

My strongest and weakest point of my experience is that I have such a variety. It's a weak point since I can't be considered an expert (except in administrative work which I'm not looking to do long term and never in a corporate environment). It's a strong point because it shows I can handle different work environments, different types of people, and learn new things.

I've worked on TV/movie sets, in radio, in the finance/IT industry, in HR, in a hospital, worked with high level executives, as a proofreader, as a desktop publisher, as a secretary, as a manager, as a information security officer, and as a business analyst. I can pretty much do anything anyone asks of me though it may take a learning curve.

I'm organized (though it may not look it), I have excellent written communication skills, learn very quickly, can take on more and challenging responsibilities and always look for ways to do things more efficiently.

My Experience

I have a long and very varied work experience. I have worked on a movie set, at an advertising agency, in desktop publishing, in the corporate world in various positions, as a manager, a trainer, at a TV business channel, as a temp, as a waitress, in fast food...

I also have a liberal arts and pre-law education as well continuing education in publishing, acting, information technology, writing...

I'm sure I missed a few things. Overall, whatever position I was in (even fast food/waitressing), my organizational & communication skills were the most used but I always tried to use my creative skills - whether it was writing newsletters, finding new & more efficient way of doing things, or in documents I had to create.

I'm following 2 career paths for now - one in voice acting and one in film producing. As a voice over artist, my communication skills and my knowledge on all sorts of subjects will be the most useful. I let my brain go soft in the last few years at a corporate job I did not enjoy and I need to re-sharpen my brain so that I can once again remember names, faces and dates - another very important skill to have, esp. as a producer. It's true that if you don't use it, you lose it!

Entry Level Jobs

There are not a lot of jobs for entry level producers. If I was going to follow a path to become a film producer, I could either become a production assistant, makes contacts and work my way around and up or I could become an assistant to a producer to really learn what a producer does. Since I already have experience as an executive assistant, I think I am going to try to follow that path. It'll pay a lot better, too!

Requirements for such a job would be: organized, detail-oriented, ability to maintain confidentiality, typing, MS Office skills, and ability to deal with people at high levels of the organization.

If I were to follow the other path as a PA, I would need to be organized, detail-oriented, ability to deal with all types of people (but be more of a people person), and be willing to do the most menial task. Or I could start producing no/lo budget films for other new filmmakers for no money and hope to make contacts.

Any of these positions require that I know about the film industry, who's who, and be able to network endlessly.

More job sites for TV/Film/VoiceOver

I did a search on Goodsearch for entry level voice over jobs and it brought me to a few sites I did not know about. Through jobster.com, I found the following:

http://www.ecastactors.com - a new website for voice over and on camera talent to put their work on display but no job postings.

There was a great entry level voice over job working 40 hours a week. Unfortunately, it paid only $10/hr and you had to be in the office in Minneapolis.

Another great site is auditions.com - they list jobs for all types in the entertainment industry - crew, acting, voiceover, music, dance, etc. The search is easy but applying is a pain. They want your height, DOB, and personal info since it seems to be originally an acting audition website. I didn't go any further than that to apply for one job since I haven't checked it out for legitimacy. There was no contact info to apply directly to the company.

AirTalents.com - is another one but it has mainly TV positions for both crew and onair talent. I'll use it for voice talent positions but am not interested in TV crew or producing.

Websites for TV/Film Jobs

3 more jobs sites:

Found a Kathleen Kennedy type job on EntertainmentCareers.net - exec. asst to producer Scott Rudin! Unfortunately, he requires that you have already worked for a producer or studio executive before. Great jobs there though you have to weed through all the unpaid internships. However, even the internships are with recognizable companies.

Also on the same site were intern assistant to a producer and Intern/Script Reader (for Intrinsic Value Films/Red Giant Media) which could be interesting since I like to read, write, and telecommute! I already have an internship but I may have to do another one this summer!

Other sites that cater to film/TV/entertainment industry are below. Though they didn't have a lot in what I was looking for, maybe others might:

• filmstaff.com
  
• productionHUB.com
• massmediajobs.com
• media-match.com

to be continued...

Technology In My Field

I'm not sure what my field is yet but the two I'm leaning towards right now are film producing and voice overs.

For voice over work, technology is being used to look for work. There are online casting agencies where you post your demo reel so you need to know how to use the internet and upload audio files. Once you get a job, you need access to audio equipment so you can record, and sometimes even produce, the job. Voices.com asks you to list what equipment you have access to, including microphone types, recording software, etc. So not only is equipment and software required but knowledge in using it.

For producing, I'm not sure what technology would be required. You definitely need to be organized, know what's out there in case it's needed, be able to network and make contacts, etc.

5 Companies I'd Love to Work For

Mira Nair's production company - most successful female Indian producer in the U.S.

Dreamworks - but it doesn't have an About or Jobs section

Kathleen Kennedy - no website for her; she's a producer of many Spielberg films who started as his secretary so maybe I can get a job as a secretary for a producer since I have tons of experience as a secretary/executive assistant

Voice Over Talent Agencies :

• Already registered on Voices.com
• May register on Voices123

Skills, Talents, Interests, Dislikes

My Software Skills:

• Premiere Pro
• Photoshop
• Audition
• AfterEffects
• MS Office
• Quark
  

My Creative Skills & Talents:

• Writing
• Page Layout
• Voice Work
• Editing
• Text Graphics
• Ideas
• Organization
• Planning
• Training
• Improving Efficiency
• Curious
  

My Favorite Things:

• My Family
• Dance Music
• Singing
• Reading

My Interests:

• Learning new creative things
• Keeping up with friends on Facebook
• Playing tennis
• Learning about people's lives
  

My Passions:

• Being Creative
• Doing New Things

My Dislikes:

• My Personal Flaws
• Cooking, Cleaning & Laundry
  
• Repetitive Tasks
• People who complain but don't try to improve themselves or their situation
• People who complain but don't vote
• People who pollute my air with their dirty habit
• Crowds
• Dim Rooms
• Not using turn signals
• Not using common sense
• Malls
• Window shopping
  

Job Postings

Looking for a job in the TV/film industry is pretty depressing. If you want to get paid, you need a lot of experience. Otherwise, you're lucky if you can get work for even peanuts. But if I had the experience, and I knew exactly which field I wanted to get into, I'd look at the following types of jobs I found on Mandy.com:
1. Editor - Assuming a job like this gives me the flexibility in work hours & location, this would be a good job for me as I have young kids. While I think I might like editing, my experience so far has made it seem it might be too tedious for my personality.
2. Production Coordinator - If I decided to go into producing, I think this might be good starting place. I like solving problems, figuring out efficient ways to do things, and doing lots of different things and I think this type of job would allow me to use these skills.
3. Graphics - I'd need a lot more education & experience for this but again, this type of job would allow me flexibility.
4. Assistant - Most of my work experience has been administrative assistant to executives. I was very good at it though it wasn't very challenging. Maybe knowing that I'm part of something creative and big would be enough if other job types didn't work out.
5. Voice over - There were no jobs on mandy for this but there are other sites for this. This type of job would satisfy my desire for acting without having showing myself, creativity, differenty types of work, and offer flexibility.

I found Mandy.com to be easy to navigate. However, it didn't offer the option to choose more than one option (multiple locations, or multiple types of jobs, etc.)

I really hope this class will help me narrow down what I want and can realistically do!

HW - 1/20/09

I had looked up some prices of the textbook (Desiging a Digital Portfolio) before class started and found several places much cheaper than the college bookstore. I don't get it but anyway, I didn't buy it right away. On the one hand, I should have because now there aren't as many good deals. On the other hand, good thing I hadn't bought one b/c there's one on e-bay for super cheap. However, it's not a Buy It Now item so I started the bid on it. Now that I'm blogging about it, I'm sure others will find it and there'll be a bidding war! Oh, well. May the best student win...

1st Day of DMA250

Just signed up for blogging for the first time!

DMA250 Blog