Rising Star Bo-Yu Chen On The Five Things You Need To Shine In The Entertainment Industry
An Interview With Elana Cohen
It is crucial to lift others up — Filmmaking is a competitive field. Your friends and peers can also be competitors. It is easy to compare and compete with your peers, and it may be tempting at times to push others down in order to lift yourself up. What I have learned is, especially in a big market like Los Angeles, there will always be enough opportunities (and enough competition) that partaking in negative competition with your peers is meaningless and even harmful to both your personal relationships and careers. If you opt to help each other and grow together, you will find that you will grow much quicker, be much happier, and end up having a tight community who will support you.
As a part of our series about pop culture’s rising stars, we had the distinct pleasure of interviewing Bo-Yu Chen.
Bo is a Los Angeles-based cinematographer and camera operator who specializes in Steadicam and conventional operating. He is deeply passionate about visual storytelling and enjoys engaging in the tight-knit collaboration between cast and crew. Bo works primarily in narrative but also does commercials and music videos. Bo is originally from Taiwan but has lived in Los Angeles full time since 2018.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us the story of how you grew up?
I was born in Kaohsiung, Taiwan, a port city known for its shipping & heavy industries. I was raised primarily in Kaohsiung except for a few years spent in the Detroit area of Michigan, USA. My formal background is as traditional as it gets, with my parents’ careers in traditional fields and myself attending public schools. My father always went out of his way to support any dreams and aspirations I had, so I ventured from building model airplanes to flying remote controlled ones, and also dipped my foot into industrial design for a few years. In high school I found theater on a trip to LA, and during my college years I got into filmmaking and finally the camera department.
Can you share a story with us about what brought you to this specific career path?
I signed up for a summer acting intensive in high school as a relief from academic pressures and as a personal challenge. I fell in love with acting, and considered pursuing it professionally. There were no acting opportunities or classes that I knew of in my city, but there were filmmaking opportunities. I coerced some high school friends into signing up for a film competition that offered selected groups mentorship throughout the filmmaking process. I went in planning to direct, and also grant myself a leading role in the project. But the production process ended up being too complicated for me to do both jobs, so I cast others as actors while I directed and handled the camera. There were many ups and downs during that challenging process, but we ended up getting the jury award and that fueled my confidence to pursue filmmaking. I attended Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles, which houses one of the top ten film schools in the U.S. The first day on set, I noticed the “camera guy” had such a commanding presence that I aspired to be that good myself by the time I graduated. After years of struggles and fortunate opportunities, I was an established DP. When my research landed on various camera stabilization systems, I reached out to my now mentor Greg Smith (JOHN WICK; SPIDERMAN; WEST WORLD). He inspired me, and taught me how to be a camera operator with a specialization in Steadicam. I have been working and growing as a DP and camera/steadicam operator ever since.
Can you tell us the most interesting story that happened to you since you began your entertainment career?
There was one project I was DP on that was a SEVERANCE-style dark comedy/thriller. We had an excellent team, a favorable location, and a decent schedule. These elements are quite hard to come by, and I was excited for production. The first day went extremely well, and we started the second with high spirits. That’s when a city wide power outage occurred (it was rumored a car crashed into the local distribution box). We tried to do whatever shots or preparation work we could without power, but the impact on our schedule and the uncertainty of when the power would be restored made us call it a day. Then the following day, power was back on and things went very smoothly. As we were unloading our gear back at the gear return location late at night, our truck’s lift gate would not lift back up. Myself and some diligent crew members, including director Xingyu Harry Chen, producer Jessica Qinyue Luo, AD Yintao Gong, and Gaffer Isaac Crane, stayed behind for hours trying to get the gate to come back up since we had additional gear in the truck and it was also blocking the main entrance. In the end it was Isaac’s immense muscle power that helped unclog the machine and we were able to make it back home. There are different stories of this sort on every production, and it is these things that make production such a headache at times, but also makes for memorable experiences. When obstacles are overcome, these become fun memories that a crew forever shares.
It has been said that our mistakes can be our greatest teachers. Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
This is not really funny … but it’s the most significant lesson I learned. It was my first project as a DP, and we planned this ambitious shoot in the desert of Lancaster, CA. After driving through raging forest fires, we arrived in Lancaster late at night to prep for a dawn shoot. The crew member we were renting the camera from told us he forgot to bring memory cards. There was no way we could source a specialized card in Lancaster, so, feeling responsible for the mishap, the crew member and myself drove back to LA, and it was a grueling drive since they had shut down the highways due to intensifying fires. I barely got an hour of sleep before production started. After a long day, we rested the next day, then did an overnight the following evening. We shot until dawn and headed back to LA around 9 AM. I must’ve blacked out during the drive. I recalled seeing a red light, and prepping to stop, then my next memory was me speeding down the opposite lane towards houses. I swerved and struggled for a few seconds before regaining control of my car. Looking at the sandstorm generated by me through the rear view mirror was more cinematic than anything we had captured the past two days. The lesson I learned was the importance of being prepared and double checking everything before production, especially if traveling to remote places — and also to know my limits. Even with so much responsibility resting on my shoulders and the desire to prove myself, I am first and foremost a human being with physical limits. It is irresponsible to myself and others who care for me to be so headstrong and ignore signs from my body. With so many film productions on all levels practicing unsafe working hours, I am not the only person to have fallen asleep at the wheel, and many others were not as fortunate. I feel strongly that practicing safe work hours is such an important discussion that should be stressed whenever possible.
What are some of the most interesting or exciting projects you are working on now? How do you think that might help people?
I recently finished a production based on the Korean American experience during the 1991 LA riots called ROOFTOP. We were fortunate to have the famous actor Won Jong Lee (MONEY HEIST: KOREA, and many others) as a principal cast member. Watching him act made me forget I was operating the camera and I experienced the “flow state” of camera operation that I’ve only heard stories about. I enjoy participating in stories that have historical significance, especially for underrepresented communities. Politics aside, it was a gruesome position for the Korean American community to be in in Koreatown, Los Angeles, when the police literally gave up protecting this area of LA while the affluent neighborhoods had enough police resources to ensure their safety. The Koreatown community took up arms themselves to protect their livelihoods. This was an ethically controversial event, but this particular story is, in my opinion, important to the history of Los Angeles, and not many in my generation are even aware of what happened because it has been so overlooked. My position as a steadicam operator on this film gave me an integral role in depicting the visual style, since so many major scenes were covered by myself on steadicam. I am proud I had the opportunity to contribute to something that gives voice, notice, and memory to the underserved/minority communities.
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
As I touched on before, the single person that shaped my current career path is my Steadicam/Camera Operating mentor Greg Smith. Before meeting him, I was aware of but did not associate myself with the job of the camera operator. I tried steadicam because I wanted to experiment with this tool as a DP, but I hadn’t considered this could be a career in itself. Meeting him changed everything for me and I am so fortunate to have had such an accomplished professional guide me so early on in my career.
Before taking a lesson with Greg, I was playing around with a cheap, steadicam style toy (I dare not call it an actual steadicam) that cost $500. I left that at home with the intention of learning from the $60,000 steadicam Greg was providing for the lesson. Greg had a different theory though, and he insisted I learn on the equipment I had on hand. He certainly did not expect me to show up with such a joke of a rig, and he has seen some horrible rigs during his years of teaching. But to his credit he made it work so much better than I could’ve imagined, and that started my interest in becoming a steadicam operator. Fast forward a few years, I have gone through the ranks (both in rig quality & project scale) and am rocking a top-tier steadicam and working on professional projects. I would not be where I am today without Greg, and I am grateful for both my decision to reach out to him, and his generosity in sharing his knowledge and lifting me from ground up.
Ok, thank you for all that. Now let’s jump to the main part of our interview. What are your “5 things I wish someone told me when I first started” and why? (Please share a story or example for each.)
1 . Everyone has their own career trajectories. Being in this industry is a marathon, not a sprint.
I am sometimes teased by my friends for worrying that I am not progressing fast enough, since I am usually one of the youngest members of a film set and also usually hold a key position. But I have always had high expectations for myself, and that pressure sometimes seeps in when it seems my progress has slowed while my peers are doing well. It’s easy to become judgmental of myself during the inevitable low stages of my career, but I have learned that it is all part of a long journey, and others who seem to be thriving may have just endured their own low periods, and the fruits of their enduring struggles have finally ripened. Some good examples include newer steadicam operators who had been longtime camera assistants. They may be newer operators than me, but they have spent years, and sometimes decades, in the industry building connections and knowledge. It is only natural their trajectory as a camera operator would grow much quicker than mine. And this ties in to the next point.
2 . Skills can be acquired quickly, but being a gracious human being is a lifelong lesson.
A film production, especially in the camera department, is a highly technical place where knowledge is abundant yet often hard to come by. It is easy to be wrapped up in acquiring the technical skills needed to succeed. Having a foundation of technical skills is crucial, but the higher up the ladder we go, the “human” skills of communication and managing/working with other people in a fast paced and highly stressful environment plays an increasingly larger part. The learning of technical skills can be sped up. I was fortunate that after meeting some generous mentors and various sources of learning material, I progressed my technical skills with lightning speed. But the social aspect of the job takes time, patience, and practice. The most successful professionals I’ve come across have all developed to be the most kind, generous, and skilled-at-diffusing-tension people that I know.
3 . It’s okay to not know everything.
It’s hard to admit you don’t know something, especially when you are new and trying to get a foothold in your position. As a base level crew, I was nervous to admit I didn’t know how to do things or what things are called in fear of not getting hired back. But this fear was an obstacle in my initial learning process. I started learning so much — and also meeting so many people who lifted me up — after letting go of that fear.
This is hard to admit as a leader too. When I first stepped into the DP position, there were so many things I didn’t know, but I was afraid to admit. That resulted in mistakes. I have learned to hire knowledgeable crew and trust that they will fill in the gaps with their own expertise. By involving my team in discussions and troubleshooting, I not only allow them to have more ownership of the project and enjoyment in their work, they also bring more to the table than I was asking for.
4 . It is crucial to lift others up
Filmmaking is a competitive field. Your friends and peers can also be competitors. It is easy to compare and compete with your peers, and it may be tempting at times to push others down in order to lift yourself up. What I have learned is, especially in a big market like Los Angeles, there will always be enough opportunities (and enough competition) that partaking in negative competition with your peers is meaningless and even harmful to both your personal relationships and careers. If you opt to help each other and grow together, you will find that you will grow much quicker, be much happier, and end up having a tight community who will support you.
5 . Take care of your health.
This is a no brainer, you only have one body and one life, health is the foundation on which all other achievements build upon. It is easy to forget to take care of yourself as you pursue your dreams, especially as a young person when our bodies are more easily able to recover from neglect. In the film industry, sadly, health is often overlooked (or in some cases expected to be sacrificed) in pursuit of success. I would tie this back to my first point: this career is a marathon, and some things simply cannot be rushed. A healthy and steadily working person will always win in the long run.
You are a person of enormous influence. How do you think you can use social media as a platform to be a positive influence to your fans, and for society at large?
I use social media, specifically Instagram, to showcase my work and my process. I include some knowledge and personal philosophy in my posts. Some newer operators have told me they have been partially inspired to pursue this career from seeing my work on social media. I also think my posts would inspire some DPs and Directors to try new things with camera movement.
If you had the ability to choose to work on any TV show or film, or work alongside any co-star, or with any director, what or who would that be, and why? You never know who might see this article, especially if we tag them. :-)
It would be really cool to work on a camera movement dominant film like 1917 directed by Sam Mendes and DP’d by Roger Deakins. I love camera movement and it would be a great challenge to utilize so many tools to make these shots work.
The show OZARK that my mentor Dave Chameides was the “A” Camera Operator on has a distinct visual language that interests me. It would be a lot of fun to work with that crew and contribute to an interesting narrative with a special visual style.
How can our readers follow you on social media?
My instagram is @boyufilm
This was very meaningful, thank you so much! We wish you continued success!
