Getting Started working freelance

W

writetobillok

Member
Here is my situation. I studied film in school. I worked briefly in post and then left LA. I am now in Nashville as of a few days ago and I recently bought an HVX200. I have no practical cameraman experience apart from a basic understanding of composition and what will cut together.

I need to find work but don't really know what the best way to get started working either as a freelance cameraman or in some other fashion.

Has anyone else been in this situation. I just want to work in production and plan on shooting films in any free time I get.

I just want to have a reel or something to show for myself. Networking tips anyone?
 
I'm in a very similar situation. I graduated in May '05, and didn't even have a camera. I watched (and still do watch) craigslist like a hawk and found a job freelancing for a videographer company in San Francisco, using their equipment. Couple of months later I landed a job doing video production at a non-profit, was originally an internship and then after some infighting and backstabbing (which I was unaware of), I worked hard and eventually got bumped up to being a contract employee.

Working in the non-profit industry has been great, I've made a LOT of connections, and now I shoot for the Red Cross, as well as freelance around SF.

Craigslist has been absolutely essential, working for free on promising projects (the camera is very good for getting your foot in the door - rent the camera, come with it, then work hard and be friendly and you'll get a step up), and just networking.

I go to lots of classes, anything industry related in the area, and try to keep ahold of everybody dedicated (finding genuine, dedicated people int his industry is almost impossible, most people will just as soon compete against you to try to take any job you might be able to get for themselves) and work on a real back-and-forth relationship.

I'm still really new to this, but that's what I've been doing. I don't know what craigslist is like in your area, but that's what's been working great for me. It doesn't pay all the bills, that's what my dayjob at the non-profit is for, but there's lots of other gigs. I also follow other boards like non-profit film groups in my area, mandy.com, and job sections on other professional video websites. There's lots of websites, lots of competition, but it's about how closely you watch, how tightly you tailor your resume, and a bit of luck.

My buddy talked about putting up flyers around local colleges as a cameraman with the equipment... I will probably go this route, too. But it's not going to be easy to get started, especially without a reel, and that only comes with time. A LOT of people give up - the only people I know doing video locally have been doing it for 20+ years, I don't know anyone successful that's been doing it for only a little while. It takes a lot of time, dedication, and youw ill be frustrated as you try to put everything together.
 
I sent out a mass email to every production company in my area (50+). It was not a "corperate" letter, but more a personal plea explaining my situation and how I didn't have any experience in the field, but I just knew that that's what I wanted to do, and nothing was going to stop me. I was 21 at the time...

The next day, I had about 15 responses from various company's ranging from wedding videographers to proffesional production company's. Most said something along the line's of " your letter was very touching... we'd love to meet with you... give us a call...etc". I meet with 10 of the company's the next week, and I've had steady work for over five years now.

At that time I had zero experience, no camera, no gear, no nothin. I'm now 27 and just started my own production company.

4amproductions.com

Good luck.

-brown

p.s. Craiglist and Mandy.com are a godsend for freelance. Just don't let people try to rip you off on craigslist. With an HVX, you shouldn't even walk out the door for anything under $300 a day, and that's with relatively no experience. Just to rent an HVX, the daily rate's are around $350 right now.
 
Yeah, people will rip you off. Do contracts for sure! I worked with a lady for 6 months, filming for her, she paid me at the end of every month.

At the end of November, I gave her the tapes (we had a pretty good relationship), she said to email her the invoice because she didn't have her checkbook. I did, didn't hear back from her for a 2 weeks, then she emailed and said that due to circumstances with the equipment, she wasn't going to be paying me.

I've had that happen, and I've had people put out ads looking for a similar camera, we'd work one gig together, and then from there out, I'd apply for jobs and find that same person bad talking me to other people to try to get gigs. Meanwhile, before that, I had been calling this person to offer work in return for getting work, only to find out he's been trying to discourage people from responding to my applications.

There are a lot of complete and utter jerks running around there who think the only way to pick themselves up is by putting other people down. So make sure you protect yourself.

Also, man, I really hate it, but 90% of the work out there is copy/credit/meal. If you want demo reel stuff when you're starting out, but when you're trying to pay bills and EVERYTHING is copy/credit/meal, you start to get frustrated. The big problem is that so many people respond to c/c/m ads that most people never have to bother paying, because they can almost always find someone to do it for free.
 
mrWr0ng said:
Also, man, I really hate it, but 90% of the work out there is copy/credit/meal.
Click to expand...

Fukk that. I have NEVER taken a job just for credit. The only cirumstance that I would even consider it, is if it were a guarantee of future work, or a major production with established actors/writers/directors, etc.

There's plenty of paying work out there, you just have to take the initiative to find it. DON'T WORK FOR FREE... it sends the message that people can actually coerce other people into getting something for nothing, and that's bad for everyone in the business.

We don't want that message out there.

-brown
 
I hate it when people start a thread on the forums, then forget all about it and never come back again. Shady stuff, Writetobillok.
 
Get a camera, even a used GL1 or 2, and answer any Craig's list or Mandy ad in your area. As you work more, you get better, and start getting a rep. As you get better, you get more money and buy better gear. Then you get better jobs and charge more money. A ugly little cycle, but it works.

I've even gone as far as Miami and Jacksonville, even Marrietta Ga.
 
This is still a good thread. I'm trying to get things going myself, so I'm learning from what's being posted.

I'm trying to get more into film work than video (I hate weddings and swore off doing them, though I get dragged into one every once in a while), which is my main worry with trying to figure out how to go with freelance - being a videographer is not good experience for being a DP, because everyone looking for a DP wants someone who's got experience being a DP. So there's not a lot of room for breaking in to that field with doing video professionally, and all of the crossover into film gigs are all copy/credit/meal only.

Mostly I've been thinking about just getting the experience by DPing my own films, which is what I'm doing, and taking other jobs on other people's gigs that can pay. I was gaffer on a short film not too long ago, gaffer on a sitcom production, and normally in Hollywood that's the best path to being a DP, so I'm aiming for that.

But it's like doing pro video and being a DP are two different career fields, so it's tough to figure out how to do video to get by while working towards being a professional DP.
 
See, Im the opposite with weddings. I love doing them. Some of the easiest money Ive ever earned. My old boss would send me to tape weddings. I would capture the footage, chop it togeether, make it look pretty, and BAM!! 2 days later I have $300 dollars in the bank.

If they got pictures through us as well, we would put all the pics onto a slideshow DVD which made me another $150. I really enjoy doing weddiings, b/c I get good exp with the cams. And I think theyre fun.
 
mrWr0ng said:
This is still a good thread. I'm trying to get things going myself, so I'm learning from what's being posted.

I'm trying to get more into film work than video (I hate weddings and swore off doing them, though I get dragged into one every once in a while), which is my main worry with trying to figure out how to go with freelance - being a videographer is not good experience for being a DP, because everyone looking for a DP wants someone who's got experience being a DP. So there's not a lot of room for breaking in to that field with doing video professionally, and all of the crossover into film gigs are all copy/credit/meal only.

Mostly I've been thinking about just getting the experience by DPing my own films, which is what I'm doing, and taking other jobs on other people's gigs that can pay. I was gaffer on a short film not too long ago, gaffer on a sitcom production, and normally in Hollywood that's the best path to being a DP, so I'm aiming for that.

But it's like doing pro video and being a DP are two different career fields, so it's tough to figure out how to do video to get by while working towards being a professional DP.
Click to expand...

Yeah... best way to get there is to start at the bottom. Being a P.A. is the way to go, then work hard and work up the ladder. At least that's how it goes here in Dallas.

A good friend of mine has been a PA for the last couple years, worked up to Grip Electric, worked on a feature last month and got talking to the First AD about a script that he had (the AD, not my friend), and got the ball rolling to get it shot. My friend is now the 1st AD on this feature, and so far the budget is set at 900 thousand. There waiting for a cool mill, then shooting begins.
 
I did one wedding, my StepSon's, and that was all it took for me to swear off weddings for good. I do corporate, seminars, and music videos. I'm also trying to break into indy stuff, but that don't pay like the other gigs.
 
anyone do legal depositions? I hear its good/easy/boring money...... I'd be down for that

anyone know how to go about getting that kinda work?
 
My partner and I are getting rejected at every door for not having experience. So we've decided to bite the bullet and buy our own equipment and learn for ourselves. If nobody will show us how to do it then we're going to have to learn the hard and risky way - but what else can you do when everybody denies you a chance to study the one thing you want to spend the rest of your life doing?

Because we don't have experience however we're definitely forking out on professional indemnity insurance. That's just one risk we don't want to take.
 
You can reduce your risk exposure and gain experience by filming educational material on a subject you know (or research) and marketing the DVDs.
 
When I was attending film school in Seattle, I took a few non-paying gigs. Mostly, it was a waste of time to do both, go to film school and work for free, at least in my case. After a couple of horrible experiences on some of these non-paid, credit/copy gigs, I swore I wouldn't do one again, unless I absolutely loved the people and their ideas.

Craigslist works, depending on what area you're in. I'm back in GA now and craigslist is almost useless for me. The closest city to me is Atlanta and I rarely see paying gigs and gigs that aren't a scam. In Seattle, though, it's how I found most of my work starting out. Along with mandy.com and a locals-only email list.

If you want to freelance and get into the business, I think it's all a matter of meeting the right people. How to do that is another question. For me, I found a gig editing a feature and made some connections through that. From there, I forgot that I had a resume and demo reel because I didn't need them any more.

If you want to go in a different direction, I would suggest possibly investing in some equipment and shooting weddings and special events just to pay the bills. I know some people hate weddings, but it's decent, easy money. I shot one over New Year's and made $1500, just as an example, and it was one of the easiest things I've ever shot.

So my plan is to continue shooting weddings and events so I can pay the bills and work on my own projects on the side.
 
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