Meet the Crew: Oxana Onipko

By Joy Ma

I met Oxana on our first shoot in NYC. As we started working together, she was behind the lens all the time and me, sometimes in front of the camera, I got to see her in action and developed a great respect for her. Over the next few months as we met for shoots, I learned more about her, marveling at her energy and dedication to the film. Oxana is the very essence of documentary filming in action. With experience in verité-style documentary production focusing on character-driven storytelling, she brings a discipline to her work that focuses on  putting the character and the story first and simply amazing. 

Production photo: Deoli camp survivor Joy speaking to writer Kwai Yun Li.

We shared long hours in production, sometimes in metropolitan Toronto, and other times in the field. One of our favorite shoots was in Broad River, a gentle lazy waterway near Shelby, NC where we filmed a scene with Michael Cheng, one of the Deoli camp survivors who immigrated to Shelby, NC in 1981, where he became an influential member of building the local community. We drove from Shelby to a spot outside of town to meet the Broad RiverKeeper volunteer team led by David Caldwell. We helped Oxana into a sturdy, stable canoe (see Oxana’s perspective below) and watched the team prepare. It was a warm sunny day. A volunteer’s dog waded into the river. The prospect of getting in and out of the water pulling abandoned tires off its shallow silted bed seemed more inviting than Lulu’s and my position down river where we waited for the flotilla of kayaks and canoes to appear around the river bend while Oxana filmed all the action. 

Production photo: Verite shooting of Michael Cheng and fellow volunteers picking up abandoned tires from Broad River.

Production photo: Verite shooting of Andy Hsieh, Moses Cheng and Bobby Wong at the tree planted in memory of Deoli Camp survivors.

I had a chance later to find out more about the woman behind the work and how she thinks about filmmaking.

On action framing, she says, “First of all I need to understand what the story is. The story moves me as I have to pick what is important according to the story.

“Also it's really important to have a great connection with the director and we both have to understand what kind of shots we are looking for in order to reveal the story. After that, I am looking to frame the shot so that it is the most beautiful and emotional via the lighting and composition. Also, I try to be invisible. The person I am shooting has to be comfortable. I try to be as unobtrusive as possible. I don't want to get in the way of the people's behavior who are around me.” 

Production photo : Sit down interview of Deoli camp survivor Andy Hsieh and his wife Jenny.

Following the story had taken us to many places including the Broad River which she brings up, “I love shooting verité style. I think it's the most complicated and interesting part of my job. For example, in this project, I was in a small boat shooting people cleaning tires from a river. The river was shallow and I had to get in and out of the boat, into the water, to follow the subject who was cleaning the river. Physically it was challenging because I had to maintain my balance on slippery rocks, with the current, an unstable boat -- and I had to make sure I did not miss anything important that the subject was doing. I had to juggle a lot of things in my head, it was a fun challenge I really enjoyed a lot.” 

An experienced documentary photographer, she spoke about the unexpected and the decisions she had to make. “During production I learned that I have to be flexible all the time. It's always teamwork and collaboration. Sometimes it can seem like something is missing, like the light is not the best, or there's not enough gear, or it's too noisy. Sometimes it can feel like the conditions are not ideal. But even so I have to persevere, adapt to the situation and make sure I get the best possible results. I need to turn to my instincts and experience to solve these problems. I want it to be perfect, and I try my hardest to make it that way using the creative process.”

Film still : Michael Cheng kayaking in the Broad River.

Film still : Michael Cheng and fellow volunteers pumping a float insert to transfer abandoned tires to the shore.

Have a question for Oxana or for us? Please send in your comments, encouragement and thoughts.