Filming on railways in Germany

[Futurix]

Me + a friend of mine are trying to find a contact point in Germany about filming a DEV (drivers eye view) video on one of the minor regional lines there. It is for his YouTube channel, all strictly non-commercial and hobbyist.

The service on the line is run by DB Regio, but I was only able to find Internet contact forms (which evidently are not responded to) - so I'm at a loss at how to get in contact.

Any domain knowledge about this?

 

[Futurix]

Thank you for approving the thread!

 

[JonathanP]

Given the vast array of cab view videos already available on YouTube, I'm a little surprised there are any lines left not already filmed!

This looks to be the request form for filming permission, they also provide an e-mail address. Unless you manage to get the private contact information of someone inside DB I am not sure there is much else you can do.
Please bear in mind that even if they were to agree, most likely:
a) A extra member of traincrew would be required to supervise your work and you would have to pay(probably quite a lot) for this
b) You would need to speak enough German to communicate with the traincrew and understand their instructions

 

[Futurix]

Oh, the line is already filmed - but the process of filming is rather interesting in itself!
Thank you so much for the link - my German is decent (but clearly not good enough for names of official formulars).

 

[Spoorslag '70]

You can have luck just turning up on the day and asking the driver. Dropping a camera in the cab would probably be quite fine, but you might also go lucky and be invited to stay in the cab.

The worst that could happen is that the driver refuses your request - but I guess you would have a higher chance of succsess then contacting them officaly beforehand (but it's worth a try - best option would be to contact the relevant DB Region entitiy correctly, e.g. DB Regio NRW for a line in NRW etc. - you might get directed to someone "in the know"). It costs no more then your time to ask, I guess.

 

[30907]

Given the vast array of cab view videos already available on YouTube, I'm a little surprised there are any lines left not already filmed!

This looks to be the request form for filming permission, they also provide an e-mail address. Unless you manage to get the private contact information of someone inside DB I am not sure there is much else you can do.
Please bear in mind that even if they were to agree, most likely:
a) A extra member of traincrew would be required to supervise your work and you would have to pay(probably quite a lot) for this
b) You would need to speak enough German to communicate with the traincrew and understand their instructions

The request form looks to be for media enquiries; the linked pdf for "Hobbyfotografen" has detailed info plus dedicated contact emails. It specifically mentions your point (a).

 

[Segedunum]

I've found that some drivers in Germany are more lax than others. On some regional routes the cab door often stays wedged open, although on others the blinds stay closed and door shut.

I fondly remember a trip in the neighbouring Czech Republic last year where the driver checked tickets on a wee regional line before departure and ushered me into the cab when he saw my camera!

 

[Fireless]

The official regulations of the DB for photography on their property (https://www.deutschebahn.com/pr-duesseldorf-de/ansprechpartner/drehgenehmigungen-1342114) state filmvorhaben@deutschebahn.com as a contact address for anything not covered by their regulations for hobby photography (https://www.deutschebahn.com/resour.../Hinweise-Hobbyfilmer-und-fotografen-data.pdf) like it would be the case here.
Riding inside the cab officially will also require permission from some higher-up of the TOC.

In real life, most cab rides seem to have been made inofficially by either drivers themselves or by just asking politely.