Meet Dorathea Deforest | Cinematographer

We had the good fortune of connecting with Dorathea Deforest and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Dorathea, why did you decide to pursue a creative path?
I got a degree in engineering. I didn’t know what I wanted to do in high school but I was good at math so my parents pushed me towards a sensible career where I wouldn’t have a hard time getting a stable, well-paying job. Even as a freshman I knew that wasn’t really what I wanted, but I figured that I would get the engineering degree, get a good job for a few years, make some money, and then I’d have the freedom to do what I wanted and the time to figure out what that would be. By my junior year I had realized that I never wanted to work a single day as an engineer. I had also figured out in that time that I had a strong interest in cinematography and film making that I wanted to pursue. I finished the degree, but in the last year I was also enrolled in film school. I had at least a few people tell me that I wouldn’t be successful in an artistic career, but I came to understand that there was no way I was going to be successful trying to do something I had no passion or interest in doing.

Can you open up a bit about your work and career? We’re big fans and we’d love for our community to learn more about your work.
I’ve been taking photo for many years; my dad enjoys photography as a hobby so we have photos that I took as a young child (they’re bad!). He even got me my first camera when I was 8. Since I’ve been taking photos for so long, I tend to rely a lot on intuition for my choices in composition and style. I’m very introverted so photography has always been a great way for me to express myself and show people how I see the world. Once I graduated film school, I was able to slowly start getting work on film sets in either the camera or grip/electric (lighting) department. Finding work in the film industry is mostly about networking, which is hard for me as an introvert. I’ve had to learn a lot about how to collaborate and connect with people quickly which has helped me make many new friends and be able to work with them on their projects.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
I enjoy hiking and there’s plenty of beautiful parks in Colorado. I would definitely take them to the top of Mt Blue Sky, see the red rocks in Roxborough, drive over Kenosha Pass, and take a trip down to the Sand Dunes. But some other good places to visit are the Kirkland Museum, the Hidee gold mine, and downtown Evergreen.

The Shoutout series is all about recognizing that our success and where we are in life is at least somewhat thanks to the efforts, support, mentorship, love and encouragement of others. So is there someone that you want to dedicate your shoutout to?
This shoutout goes to my amazing cinematography teacher Kyle Steinbrinck who is so knowledgeable and helpful, and was the first person to really believe that I could have a successful career as a cinematographer.

Website: https://deforestdp.com

Instagram: @dledeforest

Image Credits
Aaron Archuleta, Will Owens, Justin Schaffer