Hi! This is an interesting topic to me because when I was in school I was taught that portfolios have a strict formula and everyone had to follow them. I went to a school where game fx was never given a thought. No one had graduated my program (Game art and Design) and went into FX straight on and I didn’t either. So I never understood how to build an FX portfolio out of the gate. I ended up with a half completed reel of a small environment with a few effects thrown in and you could see it in unity in real time. I got a job with that.
After my first job as a production artist, I realized that I should focus my portfolio towards things I like to do. I know I like to hand animate 2D fx so I threw a lot of that into my portfolio. I also loved writing shaders, so I would show off my best shaders in action along with a breakdown on how it could be fully utilized. I loved the tech and logic that went on behind the scenes, I ended up doing the same effect three different ways to show that I can think of more than just one route to get to a product.
I’ve had the luxury to never really have to cater towards a specific studio or felt pressured to change my style. I think this is what got me my current position.
I got hired for exactly what I love doing and that’s the most I could ask for. I’m still relatively new in the industry (2 years) so I may not have as much experience as my peers, but I’ve failed enough to know what works and what doesn’t.
I think if you’re a student that is unsure of what you want to do, just do a large range of effects and have that breadth be your foundations. Then focus on what you want to do as you go. Employers can definitely see the passion that goes into work.