Today we’d like to introduce you to Ricardo Cohen.
Hi Ricardo, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I’m born and raised in Rio de Janeiro / Brazil, a beautiful and well-known city for tourism but nearly zero for Cinema or visual content creation outside of the Tv / Broadcasting world. Since a little boy, when my parents and family asked me what my dreams were, I always told them anything related to photography or flying, like becoming a photographer or a helicopter pilot. My parents never supported these dreams and pushed me to study engineering, laws and anything other than what I wanted to. So I graduated in International Relations and quit the Law studying almost at the end of the graduation when I started working at a multinational company in Brazil at the international department. One day at the office I heard that they had bought a huge area for building a factory and that they wanted aerial photos and videos of the area, but they were having trouble because the area was really far from the city and any helipad or airport, so I offered to try getting some photos with some of my remote controlled airplanes that I had at the time and was my main hobby. So they accepted the offer and no one but me believed that would work. That was back in 2010, and I flew with a glider and 2 compact cameras attached with some tape on its wings to keep it balanced. I flew a couple of times, taking random photos and videos and for everyone’s and also mine surprise I had some incredible content which attracted not only people from the company that I worked for but also the industrial park administration, the surrounding companies and the public institutions which received the photos to approve the construction.
That incredible demand surprised me, so in a few weeks I decided to quit my job and started researching about aerial photography and cinematography using my knowledge in remote controlled helicopters and planes that lead me to the world of drones and never heard in Brazil at the time. Immediately I opened my company, called RCview and started offering services and aerial images, photos and videos with “in house” built and adapted remote controlled helicopters, airplanes and cars. After the first year, I had so many clients and I was fully booked for months that I had to open my own office and repair center. And after the first two years, I opened a Rental House, offering cameras, lights and many filming gears to the public. Parallel to the field experience that I was gaining so fast, I was studying online, researching and going to classes to learn about cinematography, photography and all the theory surrounding that and traveling constantly to the US to attend on gear and tech shows, like NAB in Vegas and Cine Gear in LA. After the first seven years, I became a well known cinematographer and Aerial Cinematographer in Brazil and I was working hard and had filmed some incredible content that would never imagine when I was younger, like BBC and other foreign Documentaries, Feature Films, Presidential Elections, Olympic Torch Relay, Soap Operas, Tv Commercials, Music Videos, Corporate Videos and traveled to film in.
Some of the unforgettable experiences include the Amazon Rainforest where I had the pleasure to shoot with native Indian tribes and to travelled through rivers for many days and in Rio I’ve filmed at some Favelas (Poor neighborhoods) surrounding the city for documentaries. I can’t forget to mention, filming at the Christ Redeemer Statue for the US Marine Corps and some foreign Documentaries. In 2017, I decided to study Cinematography at UCLA in Los Angeles and I got fascinated not only with the production level there, accessibility to gear and the latest cameras but also with the culture and the city. In 2018, I got a working permit which fascinated me even more, being part of real productions with people that I met at UCLA but also with referred people who invited me to shoot commercials, music videos, documentaries and also to create content to Brazilian Tv channels. In 2019, I started another certificate in Producing to learn and understand better the world of pre-production and the business involved out of the set.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
It was never easy, as it might seem to some people. I had many struggles not only professionally but personally, including lack of sleep and eating junk food on the go daily in order to always be available for filming, editing, meetings, travels and everything. Professionally I had some struggles at the beginning because many people that were already in the business for many years they hide information and knowledge, to avoid competing business, specially in Brazil where courses and certifications teaches only 50% because people are afraid of losing market and clients, opposed to the US where instructors not only transfers all their knowledge but also help students in many ways which help the market to develop and grow faster than anywhere.
Another struggle about filming in Rio is the violence and the recurrent crimes there which what makes the production way more expensive with security and costly insurances. When I was filming from a helicopter over a Favela / Slum (poor community), we thought that we had all agreed with the traffickers when they suddenly started to shoot (real bullets) on us and the pilot did a sharp turn and went away from there the fast as he could. Luckily they didn’t hit us, but the British director stepped out from the helicopter and took a Uber back to the airport to meet the crew and canceled the manned flights, so we finished the scheduled aerial shots with the Drone.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I’m a Cinematographer and Photographer, and I love to be on set or in a studio no matter if it’s a big production or a small crew. In Brazil, I’m known for shooting as an Aerial Cinematographer two BBC documentaries (Welcome to Rio and Seven Wonders of Brazil) and two Brazilian feature films (Candidato Honesto and Suburbano Sortudo). As Camera Operator, I’ve shot a feature film that is in post-production process (Dorival Caymmi) and had the pleasure to shoot with the most famous Brazilian singers. Also, I’m known for being one of the founders of the Brazilian Drone Association and as Vice President for a few years. I’m most proud of being able to achieve my dreams about becoming a professional Cinematographer and to live in Los Angeles studying with the best and well-known cinematographers around the world. Taking the ASC (American Society of Cinematographers) Master Class in 2018 was one of the unforgettable experiences in the US. My adaptive capability of operating and setting up different cameras accordingly to the desired applications and also adapting myself to shoot on any environment.
Are there any books, apps, podcasts or blogs that help you do your best?
There are a few apps that I use in some cases to help me to control light (natural) and also to help me saving time on camera adjustments and lens applications. – Sun Seeker (shows the sun and shades accordingly to the place and daytime) – SKyview (check the sun/moon path and where they’ll rise and set) – Digital Dof (calculate depth of field accordingly to the camera / lens setup). Resources that help me I can include some Facebook Groups where some professionals around the world share experiences and knowledge, as: – Vehicle Rigging -Profissionais do set – Cinema Drone Professionals
The last but not less important is the new CLubHouse app, where professionals share thoughts and experiences on set or with specific gears.
Contact Info:
- Email: [email protected]
- Website: www.ricardocohen.com
- Instagram: www.instagram.com/ricardo_rcview
- Facebook: www.facebook.com/rcview
- Other: www.vimeo.com/rcview/reel
