About Me – Killian Bayer

I’m an Irish-German filmmaker and video journalist focused on human-centered stories told across borders — and across formats, from documentary film to broadcast journalism. Based in Berlin, I work at the intersection of directing, cinematography, and editorial reporting — a hybrid approach that’s taken me across Europe, Central Asia, and the Middle East.

After graduating from Berlin’s German-American John F. Kennedy School, I studied interdisciplinary Russia Studies at the University of Potsdam — a program combining Russian language, political science, and cultural history. During this time, I lived in Moscow and in Irkutsk, Siberia, and traveled across Russia from St. Petersburg to Vladivostok.

I’ve been drawn to visual storytelling since I first picked up an analog camera as a kid. But it was my travels through Russia that set my path in motion. While in Moscow, I interned at the ARD and Deutsche Welle bureaus. Later, I was selected for Deutsche Welle’s competitive journalism traineeship — an intensive program in TV reporting, production, and digital journalism.

In 2022, I spent a year as a correspondent and primary shoot/edit for Deutsche Welle’s Riga bureau, covering developments across the Baltics and Eastern Europe. I reported from the field, shot and edited news reportages as a team player, and worked as a one-person crew on breaking news stories. Back in Berlin, I’ve worked in DW’s newsroom as a news editor — producing broadcast packages, preparing live interviews, and coordinating coverage alongside my ongoing work as a cinematographer and reporter.

I’ve filmed and produced news features, documentaries, and explainers for TV, digital, and social — often working solo from concept to final cut. My work blends the pace and clarity of journalism with the eye of a cinematographer.

Since then, I’ve worked on documentaries, reportages, and branded content across a range of formats — as a director, DoP, or solo journalist. My assignments have taken me from the Iraqi-Syrian border to NATO military bases in the Baltics, and along cocaine smuggling routes in Ireland. I bring a strong editorial sensibility to every production — helping shape stories not just visually, but structurally. Whether I’m shooting, directing, or working with a small team in the field, I draw on my newsroom experience to anticipate narrative arcs, guide interviews, and build stories that hold up in the edit.

I work as an owner-operator with a full, mobile production kit — equipped for documentary, field reporting, and digital formats. I also have experience with live broadcast workflows, including LiveU systems and remote coordination under tight deadlines. I’m a licensed drone pilot (EU A1/A3), fluent in English and German, conversational in Russian, and used to working independently or as part of small, agile teams.

I’m currently available for international documentary and editorial projects — from field shoots to full productions.
Let’s connect.