Many people all over the world dream of immigrating to America and eking out a successful living for themselves. Only a lucky and determined few turn that desire into action and actually have a chance to live the American dream. One recent individual who’s done just that is a small-town Englishman who, still in his 30s, works as a freelance cameraman and editor. Talk about truly making something of yourself!
How did he do it? By never giving up, working smart and hard, and always taking the correct opportunities when they appeared. Meet 36-year-old Dan Martland, originally from Kirkby, England. Where Martland used to try to round up enough change for a night on the town while in college, back home, he now has the luxury of living in one of the most famous cities on Earth while being his own boss. Not bad for a kid who started his career path by taking a media studies course at Mansfield’s West Notts College.
In his mind’s eye, Martland always knew that he wanted to be a cameraman, but the road to his career ambition proved to be long and winding. First, the freelancer used connections he made at college to score some work on the weekends that involved setting up cameras and cabling at local soccer games. Life was quite disciplined for him back then: He admits that a lot of his free time was devoted to riding trains, going from one filming opportunity to the next.
That tenacity, though, as it so often does, paid off. Martland was eventually able to leave small-town Kirkby for the greener and more exciting pastures of London. There, in 1998, he scored an interesting position working in the movie industry. He mainly found employment as an assistant on projects like movies, music videos and TV ads.
After a few years of living and working in London, Martland got a big break: He moved to Manchester, where he found full-time work as one of Manchester United TV’s cameramen. This engagement turned out to be where he really learned his craft. After this stint, the career opportunities got even bigger and better. In the next few years, the freelance cameraman worked at Sky News, ITN London and then-active GMTV (today ITV Breakfast Broadcasting Limited).
While at GMTV, his love affair with the U.S. began to blossom when he got an assignment at the channel’s L.A. bureau, covering all sorts of awards shows. From there, he moved to New York in 2010 as a cameraman for “Daybreak” and “Good Morning, Britain.” This cushy job saw him covering everything from the Boston Marathon terrorist bombings to Oklahoma tornadoes.
Fast-forward to 2015, and Martland has at last found his true joy: Becoming a freelance cameraman and editor while still living in New York City with his American spouse, Stacey.
Being a freelancer allows the Englishman to focus on a hobby he’s ultra-passionate about: photography. He showcases his love of photography on his Instagram stream. Not only is this a great way for him to find another creative outlet, but he’s also attracted a couple of celebrity followers. He has more than 7000 followers in total.
All in all, this Englishman has really come a long way from humble, small-town beginnings in the English countryside. He is living the American freelance dream, showing people from all walks of life that it’s still possible, even in the 21st century.
All it takes is having a sense of where you want to go and what you want to do in life. From there, the possibilities are almost endless, as Martland has certainly found out.
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