Matt Workman is an accomplished cinematographer and entrepreneur and—with over 305K combined social followers—KitSplit’s official social media guru. He shared his tips on how to use social media to get your work seen; network with peers and employers; and avoid being cringy!

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More about Matt Workman: Matt is the founder of CinematographyDB and has worked for 10 years as a cinematographer shooting music videos for major artists (Justin Bieber, 50 Cent, Diddy) and commercials for major brands (Google, Facebook, BMW). He also developed a process called Cinematography Design (Cine Design) to help visualize, plan, and communicate cinematography using 3D. And he has a popular YouTube (180K) and Instagram channel (115K) which have helped him spread the word about his projects and make new connections.

Check out the video, and read our takeaways below:

Find YOUR Community Online

Matt’s first rule is an easy one–find your community and stick with it. If you discover that people really respond to your content on Twitter, keep posting to Twitter! If you see support coming from Instagram, keep the majority of your content there! However, when it comes to the film industry in general, Matt thinks that Instagram is the place to be in 2018.

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Share Your Work Natively

After you figure out which channel you should focus on, make sure you share your work on that channel consistently. Don’t make your supporters click a link in your instagram bio to a youtube video–share the video on Instagram! Matt also mentions that you shouldn’t be afraid to share your work, even if it’s not up to your standards. Your supporters will appreciate watching you progress and learn–plus they may be able to dish out some helpful advice!

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Interact Genuinely

Nothing is more obvious (and annoying) then an account hunting for followers by commenting things like “Epic shot!” on every post in their feed. Don’t. Be That. Guy. Instead, “like” things that you genuinely like, and If you want to comment, keep it positive or constructive.

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Connect with Your Peers (Through DM)

If you find another filmmaker or profession on social media that you’d like to get to know better, DM them! It can be an easy and productive way to build a professional relationship. You should keep it casual, but remember you may want to work with this person in the future so…not too casual.

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Don’t forget to connect IRL (Meetups, conferences, etc)

For Matt, social media is a tool that he uses to meet the people he’s always wanted to meet and work with. He also suggests going to as many meetups and conferences within your community as possible. Can’t find a meetup or group around you? Start one! Chances are you’re not the only person in your area interested in meeting up!

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Bonus Tip: Learn the Economics

According to Matt, you should use your new connections on social media and beyond to help expand your knowledge of the industry and how much money you should be making. Learn from your new connections; you’ll find that your preconceived notions of how the industry works may be wrong. What you learned in school may already be dated–be aware, and always be open to changes in the industry.

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KitSplit is a community of tens of thousands of vetted filmmakers and companies renting gear to and from each other. Called “the AirBNB for creative equipment,” KitSplit saves you time and money; you can search hundreds of vendors at once, buy shoot insurance on the spot and have gear delivered straight to your shoot. If you own gear, we make it safe and easy for you to earn extra money renting it out.

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