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Gmail dima.shovgelia@gmail.com Instagram @true_shovgelia

DMYTRO SHOVGELIA

cinematographer/gaffer

about

Dmytro Shovgelia

Cinematographer / Gaffer
Based in London, UK

Finding the right way to tell a story and immerse the viewer across different genres is what drives my creativity. I believe that visual storytelling is not only about technique — it also comes from life experience, curiosity and the way we see the world around us.

I started my journey in Ukraine, where I learned to work in very different conditions, solve problems on the go and deliver the result no matter what. I hold a Master’s degree in Cinematography from the Kyiv National I. K. Karpenko-Karyi University of Theatre, Cinema and Television, and I’m constantly looking for ways to improve my craft.

As a cinematographer, I’ve shot 12 short films, including fiction and documentary projects. Some of them have received recognition at international festivals. My Unfortunate Cats (2023) won Best Animal Film at the Fort Smith International Film Festival in Fort Smith, Arkansas, USA, while Geese of Love (2024) won Best Student Film at the Phoenix Film Festival in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. The Paper Knight (2024) was shortlisted for the National Competition of the Molodist Kyiv International Film Festival in Kyiv, Ukraine, while Love Geese was also selected for the competition programme of Mykolaichuk OPEN in Chernivtsi, Ukraine.

Alongside cinematography, I’ve worked as a gaffer on dozens of narrative, documentary and commercial productions, including projects that have received awards and official selections at Ukrainian and international festivals.

My experience also goes beyond film. I’ve worked on commercials, music videos, branded content, promotional campaigns, events and other visual productions, taking on different roles depending on what the project needs — from lighting and camera to colour and post-production.

I enjoy the technical side of filmmaking just as much as the creative one. Lighting, camera movement, composition and colour are all part of the same process for me — finding the right visual language for each project.

Nothing feels better to me than seeing the work of different departments finally come together in an image on the monitor.

That’s what I work for.

Gmail dima.shovgelia@gmail.com
Instagram @true_shovgelia

WEB

FILM

COMM


SHOTDECK RECREATION CONTEST

Replicated a shot by @steveannisdop from the beautiful film Inside (2023). Much thanks to Shotdeck for mentioning and prize.

The hardest part, of course, was replicating the texture and colors of the projectors. I suspect the original used powerful laser projectors, while I only had two different chinese miracles of technology at my disposal, so I had to crank up the saturation in post-production.

As for the texture, at first we just tried painting a multicolored gradient, but that didn’t work. Then I rewatched the scene and grabbed a screenshot of the actual projected image, ran it through the projectors, and, miracle, it worked. We also added polly boards to bounce the image back and match the original brightness.

Matching the projector placement, their colors, object scales, and optics was hellishly difficult. All of this was a bit demoralizing at times, so I lost focus on certain details, even with solid prep. But the experience was super interesting.

watch


GESSE OF LOVE

Title: Geese of love
Year: 2024
Genre: Romantic comedy
Duration: 25 min
Synopsis:
In the heart of Kyiv, Hena, a charming daydreamer, falls for a mysterious girl he barely saw on a crowded bus. Armed with only a few clues, he embarks on a comical, bar-hopping adventure with his best friend to find her. But will Hena’s determination to chase love be enough to make their paths cross again?
Awards / Screenings:
Phoenix FIlm Festival: Best short film
Swedish International Film Festival: Outstanding Achievement
Crew / Credits:
Director: Artem Tumarchenko
Cinematographer: Dmytro Shovgelia
Color: Artem Kuzmenko
Notes:
Shortfilm we made during the war in Kyiv all funded and made by our small team off enthusiasts

IMDb


The Wild Hornets Shahed interceptor — STING

Commercial
Had one day to prepare for technically complicated shoot of very fast interception drone. Shot with two teams, one was on location and the other one shot pavilion scene.


PAX ROMANA | promo

Promo video for the music concert of MYR
Filmed and lit by Dmytro Shovgelia

watch


Rebellion: Behind the Scenes | doc

Documentary making of a theatre performance by MYR.
Will be screened in Ukrainian cinemas in February 2026

Director: Maksym Yakobchuk

Shot by Dmytro Shovgelia & Kostia Sergienko


“Dila” medical center | commercial

Client: @dila_ukraine
Producer, director: @katepaida
DOP: @eduardtymoshenko
Gaffer: Shovgelia Dmytro
1AD: @happy_girl_alex
Colorgrading: @klimyk.vova
Sound: @pavel.soundman
Backstage: @zero_esthetic

Order of St. Panteleimon | interview


Series of interview to summarize the progress and principals of the Order.

Shot and lit by Dmytro Shovgelia
Spark: Solodzhuk Maksym

Oh, brave new home | doc


On the outskirts of Kyiv stands an unremarkable, densely populated building — a centre for displaced people from the Luhansk region who have settled here “temporarily.” Life flows at its own pace: in the backyard, two young boys, Rostyk and Vlad, try to catch a mouse in a pile of leaves; two elderly women sit on the steps, recalling their past and the now-familiar nights spent under shelling; the youngest residents receive identical gifts from foreign partners; strange neighbours sort out their “relationships” among themselves.
Life here moves at its own tempo, and only unfamiliar faces occasionally arrive at the New Home, gradually filling it more and more.

Director — Bohdan Prykhodko
Cinematographers — Dmytro Shovgelia & Davyd Holovinov
Colorist — Dmytro Shovgelia
Producer — Yeva Zurian
Sound Designer — Eduard Slobodianuk
Editor — Bohdan Prykhodko


LBC MORTGAGE | commercial

Client: LBC MORTGAGE
Production: @holyshoot_films
DOP: @sipluy_marian
Gaffer: Shovgelia Dmytro

NAZVA – SLAVIC ENGLISH | Eurovision 2024


Directed by Alexander Khomenko    
Produced by Philip Vysotskyi
Line Producer – Anastasiia Petruk
Director of Photography – Mykola Schmundyr
Gaffer – Dmytro Shovgelia

MY UNFORTUNATE CATS | short romantic comedy (2022)


Director – Olga Artushevska
Director of Photography – Dmytro Shovgelia

Lyokha is dying. He solved all the things, but one thing left… cats.


LBC MORTGAGE | commercial

Client: LBC MORTGAGE
Production: @holyshoot_films
DOP: @sipluy_marian
Gaffer: Shovgelia Dmytro


PROTAGONISTS | YouTube show

Light concept and direction by Dmytro Shovgelia

Combination of dynamic stage lighting with film fixtures.
Show is filmed on the stage with real audience.


dop: Mykola Schmundyr
gaffer: Shovgelia Dmytro


VANITY | documentary portrait

Director — Oleksandra Totoeva
Director of Photography (DOP) — Dmytro Shovgelia
Gaffer — Kyrylo Tkachenko


The Wild Hornets Shahed interceptor — STING

Commercial
Had one day to prepare for technically complicated shoot of very fast interception drone. Shot with two teams, one was on location and the other one shot pavilion scene.


XAC – NE PRODAM | music video

Director – Oleksandr Khomenko
Director of Photography – Mykola Schmundyr
Production Designer – Sofia Pliatsko
Editor – Maria O’Reilly
Colorist – Dmytro Shovgelia
Gaffer – Dmytro Shovgelia
1st AC – Kostia Serhiienko
Focus Puller – Kyrylo Tkachenko
1st Dolly Grip – Sasha Vynnyk
2nd Dolly Grip – Yehor Palamarchuk
1st Assistant Director – Adil Abduramanov
Costume Designer – Oleksandra Chmil
Make-up Artist – Varvara Petymko
Producer – Serhii Horbyk
Manager – Oleh Shcherbyn
Lighting Crew – Oleksii Matiushenko, Yehor Hodenko, Illia Haman, Mihael Zielenkov
Best Boy – Yehor Shvets
Backstage – Ivan Khlopov


REMBRANDT

Director of Photography —Sophie Muzychenko
Gaffer — Shovgelia Dmytro

On this work we spent a lot of time in preproduction to study Rembrandt and tried to replicate his vision in light and texture.


MUHOMOR | commercial

Director — Ed Nechmohlod
DoP\Gaffer — Dmytro Shovgelia


LATEXFAUNA | unreleased concert

Shot and colored by Dmytro Shovgelia


PAPER KNIGHT | doc

The Russians have disfigured the face of Ukraine’s literary capital, but they have failed to tear out its heart. The people of Kharkiv have seen death and horror. They looked them straight in the face. Some lost relatives; others lost their own homes, their native streets, their past, their memories. Yet people still find the strength to fight, to gather together, to read poetry and discuss the work of writers.
Together with Roman Alimaskin — a political activist and cultural figure, founder of MARMURSTORE, the largest literary merch store in Ukraine — the film’s author travels to his hometown for the first time since the beginning of the full-scale invasion to hold a literary evening there.
The main character, Roman, is madly in love with poetry — and carries this love with him. Sometimes absurdly, faithfully, without reason — like Don Quixote, like a madman, like a true Paper Knight.

Protagonist — Roman Alimaskin
/ romanalimaskin
Director — Oleksandr Khomenko
/ drake_the_useless
Director of Photography — Dmytro Shovgelia
/ true_shovgelia


“Dila” medical center | commercial

Client: @dila_ukraine
Producer, director: @katepaida
DOP: @eduardtymoshenko
Gaffer: Shovgelia Dmytro
1AD: @happy_girl_alex
Colorgrading: @klimyk.vova
Sound: @pavel.soundman
Backstage: @zero_esthetic


LONG LIVE COMMUNISM (The Last 24 Hours of M. Khvylovy’s Life)

Director — Oleksandr Khomenko
Director of Photography (DOP) — Mykola Shmundyr
Gaffer — Dmytro Shovgelia
1st Assistant Camera (1AC) — Yehor Palamarchuk
Set Designer — Solomiya Kozolup
Lighting Crew
Yarema Holota
Dasha Kyrylenko
Kyrylo Mukoyid
Olya Koval
Cast
M. Khvylovy — Roman Alimaskin
Yu. Umantseva — Sandra Ney
M. Kulish — Lev Zadorozhnyi
Special thanks to Karpenko-Karyi National University of Theatre, Cinema and Television, whose students founded the MYR project.


Student short film

by Dmytro Shovgelia


YANOVYCH | promo

DOP – Mykola Schmundyr
Gaffer — Dmytro Shovgelia

XAC – Kiss me | music video

Gaffer – Shovgelia Dmytro


Delight | short feature

Thriller about a program designed to make life easier and happier, which slowly tightens its grip, turning care into control. What began as help becomes an unseen force reshaping human behavior.

Director – Maria O`Reilly
Director of Photography – Dmytro Shovgelia
Color – Dmytro Shovgelia
Gaffer – Danya Chornyi

Unreleased


USAID AGRO

Director — Alexander Khomenko
DoP — Dmytro Shovgelia


PAX ROMANA | promo

Promo video for the music concert of MYR
Filmed and lit by Dmytro Shovgelia

watch


Rebellion: Behind the Scenes | doc

Documentary making of a theatre performance by MYR.
Will be screened in Ukrainian cinemas in February 2026

Director: Maksym Yakobchuk

Shot by Dmytro Shovgelia & Kostia Sergienko


VICTORY DRONES | advertisement

Director – Vadym Adamov
DOP – Dmytro Shovgelia