Conversations with Bohdan Borysov

Today we’d like to introduce you to Bohdan Borysov.

Hi Bohdan, it’s an honor to have you on the platform. Thanks for taking the time to share your story with us – to start maybe you can share some of your backstory with our readers?
I started out in a really isolated place. I grew up and spent most of my early life in a very small town in rural Ukraine, where I didn’t have many resources to become a filmmaker. No film school, no film community, no examples of filmmaking being a real career. So pretty much everything I learned came from curiosity. As a teenager, when other kids were trying to be cool and all that, I would be busy getting in trouble for taking apart my parents’ photo camera trying to figure out how it works.

Overtime, this interest toward everything that can capture things I see, grew into something more intentional. I started filming and directing my own short films, starring my friends, and later, I got into making music videos for every musician I knew at the time, and sometimes, even get paid for them.

The hobby became a profession when I realized I don’t have to get a day job at a fast food place like most of my peers. But I didn’t get a chance to enjoy the blessing of being able to pay for my bills with filmmaking for too long because in February 2022 the war in Ukraine began. So, leaving my home and everything I knew, wasn’t a creative decision I made, it was survival and a necessary step if I wanted to keep pursuing my dream.

When I arrived in Los Angeles, I basically had to start my life from scratch. I had no connections, no job, no money, which I was familiar with, except this time I also had no home. What I did have though, was a strong feeling that I am somewhere where I belong, and this little thing I liked to do called filmmaking can actually be something I’d do for living.

So I started building something I’d never had before – a community of likeminded people who had the same kind of curiosity towards film. I would meet people on the street, sneak into film school parties and be everywhere where I could meet the peopler I needed. And worked! People would invite me to help out on their short films, and other small projects, until eventually, instead of getting all kinds of assistant jobs, I would start getting cinematography gigs. And slowly, project by project, the jobs would get more and more serious.

Over the past year, I’ve got to the point where I can confidently call myself a cinematographer. In the past 6 months I have shot 4 feature films as a DP, and dozens of shorts, music videos and commercials, worked with multiple big Hollywood names, and most recently, I have directed my own debut feature film which is now, while being in post production stage, gaining a lot of interest from major distribution companies that show interest in acquiring it as original content.

Looking back, I can’t say my path was linear or easy, but I can definitely say it was meant to happen, and where I am right now is a product of being dedicated to things that impress me, and seeing circumstances as a challenge rather than a dead end.

Looking back, it definitely wasn’t a linear, predictable path. It was a lot of uncertainty, a lot of showing up without knowing what comes next, and figuring things out as I go. But I think that’s what made it work. I never really saw obstacles as a dead end, more like a reroute toward opportunities you’ve never had before. And where I am right now is really just the product of that mindset, and a lot of time spent doing the work.

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?
I wouldn’t call it smooth, but I don’t think there are any smooth roads. If you want to go far, eventually you’ll run though some bumpy ground.

Starting from zero without being prepared to it, was definitely rough one. I didn’t have the basic things most people rely on, and comparing yourself to people who’ve been here their whole lives, who went to film school, and already have networks, doesn’t help mentaly.

But over time, I realized, what one can consider downside, can actually be an advantage. Not having any backup plan, I didn’t really have the option to slow down or doubt myself for too long.

Although, for me the biggest challenge was not even that. It was finding strength to do art while people back home were trying to survive missle attacks. There were a lot of moments when I thought I did a wrong thing by leaving the country. But lately I realized that maybe there is a greater purpose to what I do. Maybe I can keep my culture alive by implementing it into the movies I work on, and showing the world what Ukraine is about.

That I think will be the next road I explore. And I don’t expect it to be smooth either but I know for sure, that’s where I want to go.

Appreciate you sharing that. What else should we know about what you do?
I work primarily as a cinematographer (aka Director of Photography) which, in simple terms, means I’m responsible for how a film looks and feels visually. It’s a role that sits right between art and technique. On one side, you have to see beauty in things like faces, objects, spaces, light in a way that others might not notice. And on the other, you need to understand the technical part – what makes those things look beautiful.

Merging those two worlds together is a skill nobody in the world can teach you. It is something you can only figure it out yourself.

I feel like, as with any artist, my life experience is what sets me apart. It’s what makes my vision mine. Going through difficult experiences, and witnessing the reality of war up close, taught me to see beauty in how strong and resilient human kind is.

People can lose everything and find themselves in the harshest conditions, and yet find strength to keep going. To live their lives, to have dreams, to love.

That I think is what a lot of artists overlook. They look for beauty in the environment, in what’s in front of them. But I believe beauty doesn’t come from outside, it’s something we carry inside us. Because no matter what happens, life keeps going, and the way you see it depends on you.

If you had to, what characteristic of yours would you give the most credit to?
For me, the quality I’m most grateful for is persistence. My dad always used to tell me that you will get anything you want in life as long as keep working hard for it. I think that idea stayed with me and shaped the way I move through everything I do.

I don’t think my path was defined by one big decision or moment. It was a series of small things, taking whatever opportunity I had, and getting the most out of it. There were a lot of moments where nothing was guaranteed, and the only thing I could really control was whether I kept going or not.

Some people think you need to be fearless to jump into opportunities and figure things out as you go, but I don’t think that’s true. All you need is your curiosity to be stronger than your fear. No matter how many times I was afraid to approach a producer, director, or even another cinematographer like me, I would still do what needed to be done to move forward.

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/bohdanborysov/
• Youtube: https://youtu.be/wGB5pScfYEA

Image Credits
Nina Crane, Bohdan Borysov