An unsolicited portfolio review featuring filmmaker, Christopher Mertz

by Tobias van Schneider
Published Feb 15, 2022

This is Unsolicited Portfolio Reviews, where we examine standout portfolios to understand what makes them so good.

This week we’re looking at our latest Semplice Showcase feature, filmmaker Christopher Mertz.

There’s something about this portfolio that feels established and serious. It may be the typography, or the appropriately cinematic black background. It may be how Christopher gets straight to the point, no bullshitting around. It may be all of the above.

Scan Christopher’s homepage and you’ll see he’s thinking of his portfolio from a potential client’s viewpoint. He names each client he’s worked with below the project thumbnail, and on hover. With a brief scan of his homepage, we immediately get a sense of his experience and level of work.

Click into a project and you’ll see each video embedded on the page. Again, simple and straightforward. He knows you’re going to skim through, watch a couple videos and make up your mind. So he makes it easy to do so. Beneath each video, he lists the client and his collaborators. An X in the corner allows you to click out of the project and return to the homepage. This portfolio is made to be browsed.

While we'd like to imagine our audience pouring over our portfolio, delighting in page or clever line, most people are spending less than two minutes on your site. They want to see your work, get a sense of whether you have the skill and experience to fit the job, and contact you. Make it easy for them to do so.

As I’ve mentioned before, I always enjoy seeing a page for personal work and play. Christopher’s photography page gives us a sense of his eye for light and composition – which ultimately supports his skill as a filmmaker. Your play page doesn’t necessarily need to tie in with your main line of work, however. What we want to see is a creative point of view and a sense of your personality.