Hi everyone. I need some honest advice, a reality check, or maybe just a bit of a discussion on my situation.
Originally I’m from Ukraine, currently living and working in Germany, Lower Saxony. At the moment I have a full-time job as a videographer for a local company. I’m basically a "one-man band" there - I do everything from the script to shooting and final editing promos for their products, etc.
Beside that I have quite a lot of my own professional gear: 5 Sony cams (FX30, ZV-E1, etc.), sliders, gimbals, several Amaran lights, ATEM Extreme, wireless mics, HDMI receivers, and lot of other stuff. So basically, my setup is good enough for pretty much any level of production.
The main problem is my language. My German is quite weak (only perfect with AI so far :), and my English is better though, but mostly to discuss only technical moments and tasks. Also, I’m not great at marketing or soft skills, and my local portfolio is small and doesn't look very "impressive" yet.
Back in Ukraine, I had my own small business partially related to video production, but I didn't really need to search for clients or have a big portfolio back then. Now in Germany, I’m basically adapting to a new role and starting from scratch in that sense, which is a big change for me.
I’d be happy to find some extra work in my free time to earn maybe 2k € net per month or so. I can do almost any kind of video work (I know being a jack of all trades is sometimes a minus), but I’m mostly interested in events, music stuff, podcasts, reportage, small live or sports events etc. (except weddings :)
I’ve already tried posting on Kleinanzeigen and sending cold emails, but there is zero result. I’m not sure where else to look for such clients in Germany.
Is it even possible with my situation? Or is it hopeless and the only right decision is to sell all my gear and just give up on this?
Any tips or thoughts would be really helpful. I’d appreciate it if you could point me in the right direction. 🍻
TL;DR: Videographer in Germany, good gear, full-time job, want 2k€/month on the side. Weak German, small portfolio, cold outreach didn’t work. Where do I even look for clients here?