Today we’d like to introduce you to Andriy Semenyuk.
Hi Andriy, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I studied visual journalism at my college (Western Washington University) and was initially deeply fascinated with photography. However, I was soon consumed by the exponentially growing media as video production was then. It may sound funny, but while in college, I witnessed the end of videotape cassettes. Then the end of the 4:3 aspect ratio and the arrival of wide 16:9 (which seemed so ridiculous at the time), and to top it all, Apple’s Final Cut Pro, which was an uncontested king of NLA, decided to come up with an update, which was nothing short of a disaster and shifted everyone to Adobe Premiere.
Now back to where I am today question. After college, I returned to Ukraine and started working for a media company in Kyiv (Worldwide News Ukraine) that produced news about Ukraine in English. I was assigned to work as a multimedia journalist and to do it all. I had to film, photograph, write, and edit on my own. Oh, wait, even when I was done with a project, I was still responsible for uploading everything on their website. After two years of this madness (however, very useful experience), I moved to my native city of Lviv (in Western Ukraine) and started a boutique production company with my old friend from the media industry. We did quite well, but after two years of working in Lviv, my wife and I decided to return to the United States. Initially, we were in Albuquerque, where I signed up for a film program and started shifting into cinematography. After 2.5 years in Albuquerque, the decision was made to move to Los Angeles, where I was residing for the last five years. So far, besides numerous short film projects, I have managed to film three feature films as a cinematographer (two documentaries and one narrative). My latest film, Wounded Land, was filmed in Ukraine last year during the first months of the war. And this is how I get where I am today.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
To call it all a smooth road would be an understatement. I wouldn’t say it’s quite smooth now, but it’s very adventurous. Life is short, and it’s a big blessing to pack as much agenda as possible into it.
Thanks – so what else should our readers know about your work and what you’re currently focused on?
I am a cinematographer and filmmaker or visual storyteller. I am known for several films and shows that I have filmed. I guess my IMDb is a bit more telling about it: https://www.imdb.com/name/nm4847214/?ref_=nm_mv_close
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
We used to go on those multiple weeks of kayaking trips. We would make itineraries and sail down the river for 2-2.5 weeks. Each kayak had about 2-3 people, and we would have about 15 kayaks. So we had a pretty good amount of amazing and adventurous people. We would camp underneath the stars, enjoy the incredible nature around us, and have a miraculous time. Many of the rivers we were kayaking on are in Eastern Ukraine, and some of those amazing places are current frontlines in the brutal Russian war against Ukraine.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.andriysemenyuk.com/
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/andriy.fm/?hl=en
- Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/andriy-semenyuk1/
- Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UClpoHub3pH6OWzZbQr9OWeA
Image Credits
Photography credit: Jessica Pacheco and Mithy Evans
