PortfolioMNL.com, the Philippines’ first online portfolio catalogue for creatives, has formally launched its Network Portals, revealing the dedicated portals of 17 academic partners and creative organizations throughout the country.
Specifically, the institutions who’ve expressed their support for PorfolioMNL.com are: Ateneo de Manila University (Manila), CIIT College of Arts and Technology (Manila), De La Salle-College of Saint Benilde School of Design and Arts (Manila), Far Eastern University (Manila), Fashion Institute of Design and Arts (Cebu and Davao), Foundation University (Dumaguete), Holy Child Academy (Davao), iAcademy (Manila), Metro Dumaguete College (Dumaguete), School of Fashion and Arts Design Institute (Manila), St. Dominic Savio School of Design (Davao), UV New School of Art and Design (Cebu), University of Mindanao (Davao), United Architects of the Philippines, Animation Council of the Philippines, and Freelance Writers’ Guild of the Philippines.
One of the first startups incubated and accelerated by IdeaSpace Foundation, PortfolioMNL.com seeks to take the nation’s creative industry to the world stage by aggregating the country’s artists and recognizing them as legitimate economic contributors. In fact, just this 2010, the Philippine creative industry contributed PHP 661-billion to the GDP.
Their ultimate goal, according to Rina Malonzo, a former New York-based creative director and now the startup’s co-founder and CEO, is to bring the Philippines from being number 18 in creative outputs (out of the 24 economies surveyed by the Asian Development Bank) to number 1.
“Filipino creative professionals are recognized and sought throughout the world for their talent and innovation, specifically in emerging industries such as animation and game design. We are thrilled to launch our Network with creative schools and organizations that are furiously developing world-class creative talent. With these partnerships, we look forward to doing our part in empowering creative innovation on a national and global scale,” said Malonzo.
From a largely word-of-mouth industry, PortfolioMNL.com’s new Network Portals can give their academic partners’ graduates and alumni crucial leads to creative careers in just a few clicks. The partnership also entails that PortfolioMNL.com will provide the means for the schools’ websites to host their own local portfolios.
“Our Network Portals tear down the logistical barriers to discovering untapped creative talent, providing growth opportunities for both creatives and the companies that hire them,” added Malonzo.
The digital career marketplace is currently host to thousands of multimedia work samples (photos, videos, and music files), and resumes. Those looking to hire a creative can search based on skill, experience level, location, or organization/institution, allowing for a comprehensive evaluation of prospects even before meeting them.
Other ways companies can bank on the Network Portals include: evaluation of talent from schools not usually on the radar; alumni with years of experience can be easily reached; recruitment is made easier and less financially taxing; and professional creative organizations such as the United Architects of the Philippines allow headhunters quick access to licensed creatives.
2,500 members have joined PortfolioMNL.com’s community since its 2013 launch. Most of these aspiring interns, freelancers, and full-timers are app developers, architects, editors, cinematographers, fashion designers, furniture designers, game designers, graphic designers, illustrators, industrial designers, photographers, stylists, video editors, writers, and programmers.