You want a video made and you have three names in mind. All of them post good looking frames on Instagram. So how do you choose?
I have been on the other side of that question since 2017, across more than 550 projects. What I keep seeing are artists who worked with someone else first and come back with a video that never really got finished. Usually it was not a skill problem. Nobody asked the right questions before the money moved.
A showreel shows you the best three seconds
A reel is a cut of the strongest moments from twenty projects. It proves someone can build a good frame. It does not prove they can carry a whole video from idea to delivery.
Ask for two complete videos instead of the reel. Ideally one that is not featured on the homepage. Watch whether the middle section falls apart, whether the cuts sit on the music, and whether the colour stays consistent from scene to scene. That is where the difference shows up.
Genre experience beats general skill
Someone who films weddings can be technically excellent and still miss a rap video completely. Different pace, different visual language, a different way of working with artists on set.
Check whether the portfolio has anything from your world. If it does not, that is not automatically a dealbreaker, but the conversation should make clear that the person knows your references and can place them.
The way someone writes before the job is how the job will run
This is the most underrated signal. Do they reply within a day or two? Do they ask about the song, the release plan, the goal? Or does a quote arrive before anyone has heard your track?
Someone who does not ask questions beforehand will not ask them during production either. You end up with a video that is technically fine and still does not feel like yours.
Sort out usage rights before money moves
Not exciting, but it matters. Under section 31 of the German Copyright Act, if the specific types of use are not spelled out, the purpose of the contract decides what you are allowed to do with the material.
In practice that means disputes later about whether you can run the video as a paid ad or hand clips to a label. One sentence in the quote or invoice usually settles it. Also ask whether you get the raw footage. That is not a given.
What being local actually gets you
Erfurt, Weimar, Jena and Gera sit close together. Short distances mean lower travel costs, location scouting the day before is realistic, and you can meet in person once before committing. That part is real.
What proximity does not change: editing, colour and VFX happen at a workstation anyway. Location is irrelevant there. Search locally for the shoot, not for the post.
Five questions to ask before you commit
- Can I see two full videos that are not in the reel?
- Who does the edit and the colour, you or someone else?
- How many revision rounds are included?
- When do I see the first cut?
- What usage rights do I hold in the finished video?
If someone dodges these, you have your answer. Anyone working properly answers all five in five minutes.
Two more things worth reading while you compare: what actually determines the price of a music video and why a video can look cheap even when the budget was fine.
What a music video production with me covers is on the service page.
I am based in Erfurt and shoot from here worldwide, across Thuringia and internationally. How that works in practice is on my page as a videographer in Thuringia. If you go through this list and get stuck on your own project, message me. I will also tell you when I am not the right fit. Start a project