Leo Behrens

Leo Behrens
Born (1986-08-19) August 19, 1986
Norway
Education
OccupationsFilmmaker, Cinematographer, Director
PartnerIlayda Cetinkaya (2022-present)
MotherVibeke Behrens
Relatives
  • Annette Behrens (aunt)
  • Brita Behrens (grandmother)
  • Lisa Adhiambo Kringstad (cousin)
Websitehttps://www.leobehrens.art/

Leo Behrens (born August 19, 1986[1]) is a Norwegian filmmaker based in Los Angeles, USA.[2] He is known for his award-winning transgender short film SKIN (2023)[3] and recent work as a cinematographer and director on projects like XY (2025)[4] and Pace (2024).[5] He started his career in Norway as a camera operator and director after graduating from Westerdals Oslo's Film and Television Production program in 2010.[6] Since then he has worked on various different projects from documentaries, music videos, TV shows, short films, to his first feature film, Shadow Watchers (2024).[6][7] In 2023, he graduated from the MFA Cinematography program at the American Film Institute Conservatory.[3][1] His cinematography style is highlighted for its poetic visual expression, and often features LGBTQ+ themes.[3][8]

Early life and education

Childhood

Leo Behrens was born on August 19, 1986 in Norway, to Vibeke Behrens, a business owner and entrepreneur.[1][9] He was assigned female at birth and went by a different name before his transition. Growing up, Behrens engaged in a range of creative and imaginative activities including role-playing, visual arts, dancing, and music.[10]

In 2003, he purchased his first camera and began learning how to shoot and edit his own short films.[10]

In May 2007, Behrens uploaded a video to YouTube titled 10 good reasons to be a lesbian (2007), which amassed almost 800,000 views and gained him international recognition in the online LGBTQ+ community.[11][12]

On December 31, 2008, his mother, Vibeke Behrens, passed away.[13][14] His time of grief following the loss of his mother, led him to reflect on his identity. He began his transition to male a few years later, starting HRT in 2011.[10][15]

Education

Prior to pursuing post-secondary education, Behrens joined the Norwegian military.[10]

In 2008, he was accepted into Westerdals Oslo School of Arts. There, he studied Film and Television Production. In the two years before graduating in 2010, he worked on a short documentary with Emmeline Berglund titled Historien om deg og meg (2009) which won the Gullkalven award for Best Documentary (2009) and several other awards.[16][17][18]

Following his graduation, he continued working and building up his experience in the film industry for several years, before being accepted into the American Film Institute Conservatory for a Masters of Fine Arts in Cinematography.[10][19] He graduated from the program in 2023.[3]

Career

Following his mother's passing, he worked at her store, Lille Arkana, in Oslo.[20]

After graduating from Westerdals, Behrens started his work as a camera operator for various production companies including STRIX, Mastiff, Rubicon TV, Nordisk Film TV, and ITV Studios.[10] He continued gaining experience and working as a director and cinematographer on music videos, documentaries, shorts, TV shows, and more.[10]

His film, SKIN (2023), is his most notable work. It is a transgender short film visually and symbolically describing the act of discovering oneself, as a woman discovers their identity and transforms into a man.[21] The film was originally created in response to a prompt as a second-year student at the AFI Conservatory, to tell a story visually through a 35mm film without dialogue.[22] The short film stars trans actor Lio Mehiel and has been shown at AFI FEST, LACA Film Festival, Oldenburg International Film Festival, Inside Out Toronto LGBT Film Festival and overall more than 50 film festivals around the world.[23][7] It has been nominated for and won various awards, most notably the Student Academy Award Gold Medal in the Alternative/Experimental category.[24] Behrens became the first openly transgender person to win a Student Academy Award.[25]

After graduating, he was selected for the ASC Vision Mentorship Program through which he received the 2024 Fresh Perspectives in Cinematography Grant from ARRI and ASC.[6] With this he was able to shoot his first feature film, Shadow Watchers (2024).[7] This grant also provided him with guidance from American cinematographer and director, Michael Goi.[26]

As of early 2025, Behrens is represented by Zero Gravity Management.[27] He is also a member of the Norwegian Society of Cinematographers (Foreningen Norske Filmfotografer) along with the Society of Camera Operators (SOC).[28][21]

One of Behrens' latest projects working as a cinematographer, The Last Draft (2025) directed by Nicholas Giulak, premiered at FilmQuest in the fall of 2025.[8]

Projects in development

Behrens' first feature film, Shadow Watchers (2024), is in post-production.[29]

He is also working as a cinematographer on the psychological-horror thriller, Oma, which is in pre-production and set to film in Austria.[30][7][1]

Style and themes

Leo Behrens' cinematography works a lot with colour and atmospheric visual effects.[8] These are seen throughout his work, notably in his alternative/experimental films, from his early short, Hjertets Sang (2008),[31] to his Student Academy Award winner film, SKIN (2023), and his recent work on The Last Draft (2025).[8] He explores poetic and emotional expression through visuals in abstract and experimental style film, with a focus on using sound rather than dialogue.[22] He is described as working like a painter on visual productions.[8]

A lot of Behrens' work centres around LGBTQ+ themes and storylines. His earlier works like his YouTube video, 10 good reasons to be a lesbian (2007),[11][12] his short, Hjertets Sang (2008),[31] and his documentary following his previous relationship with fellow student and filmmaker, Emmeline Berglund, Historien om deg og meg (2009),[16] follow lesbian storylines. Meanwhile, his more recent works, SKIN (2023),[3] Evan Ever After (2023),[32] XY (2025),[4] and Pace (2024),[5] highlight transgender experiences. His projects draw from his personal life experiences and resonate with queer people around the world.[11][16] He has openly discussed his experiences as a queer and trans person and filmmaker in various interviews including Blikk Magazine,[11][20][18] NFMLA Stage 5 (2025),[22] and Mensen (2020).[33][15]

Behrens' work explores themes of personal identity, the connection between internal identity and outward expression, and transformation.[22]

He finds inspiration in other transgender filmmakers, Lana Wachowski and Elliot Page, because they break the definitions set upon them by others.[15]

Filmography

Director

  • SKIN (2023) (Short)[34][3]
  • Lær Mag (2021) (Music Video)[1]
  • Redd (2020) (Music Video)[1]
  • Influenserne (2019) (7 episodes, TV series)[35]
  • I'll Be There (2018) (Music Video)[1][36]
  • Gift ved første blikk (2018) (3 episodes, TV series)[1]
  • Redningsskøyta (2012) (TV Series)[1]
  • Historien om deg og meg (2009) (Short)[11][16][37]
  • Hjertets Sang (2008) (Short)[31]

Cinematographer

  • The Last Draft (2025) (Short)[8]
  • XY (2025) (Short)[4]
  • Hunger Games: Sunrise on The Reaping - The Donner Sisters - Fan Fiction (2024) (Short)[38]
  • Pace (2024) (Short)[5]
  • Washed Up (2023) (Short)[39][40][41]
  • Possible Stranger (2023) (Music Video)[42][43]
  • SKIN (2023) (Short)[3]
  • Groomsperson (2023) (Short)[44]
  • Evan Ever After (2023) (Short)[32]
  • Tell Me Something True (2022) (Short)[45][46]
  • Next to Benevolence (2022) (Short)[1]
  • T4T (2022) (Short)[1]
  • Lær Mag (2021) (Music Video)[1]
  • Redd (2020) (Music Video)[47]
  • Klassen (2020) (12 episodes, TV series)[33]
  • Ex on the Beach Norge (2020) (24 episodes, TV series)[1]
  • Torpet kjendis (2019-2020) (19 episodes, TV series)[1]
  • The Window (2019) (Short)[48]
  • Influenserne (2019) (15 episodes, TV series)[35]
  • Charterfeber - After Beach (2019) (6 episodes, TV series)[1]
  • Alle mot 1 (2019) (9 episodes, TV series)[1]
  • Torpet (2018) (1 episode, TV series)[26]
  • I'll Be There (2018) (Music Video)[1][36]
  • Gift ved første blikk (2018) (9 episodes, TV series)[1]
  • Sinnasnekker'n (2016-2018) (42 episodes, TV series)[26]
  • Født i feil kropp (2017) (4 episodes, TV series)[49]
  • Stomping Ground (2017) (Music Video)[50]
  • Sykt Perfekt (2016) (6 episodes, TV series)[1]
  • Norges Hagemester (2015) (TV series)[1]
  • Redningsskøyta (2012) (TV Series)[1]
  • Historien om deg og meg (2009) (Short)[11][16][37]
  • Luksusfellen (2008) (1 episode, TV series)[33]

Writer

  • SKIN (2023) (Short)[3]
  • Hjertets Sang (2008) (Short)[31]

Producer

  • SKIN (2023) (Short) (Executive Producer)[3]
  • Historien om deg og meg (2009) (Short)[11][16]

Cast (self)

  • Stage 5 (2025) (1 episode, TV series)[51][21]
  • Mensen (2020) (1 episode, TV mini series)[33]
  • Endelig Meg Selv (2018) (short)[52]
  • Født i feil kropp (2014) (1 episode, TV series)[49]

Awards and nominations

SKIN (2023)

  • Student Academy Award Gold Medal in Alternative/Experimental (2023) - Winner[53][54]
  • Los Angeles Cinematography Awards: Best Short, Best Picture of the Month, Best Cinematography, Best Screenplay, Best Producer, Best Production Design, Best Editing (2023) - Winner[2]
  • GemFest Awards: Best Cinematography (Short), Best Editing (Short) (2024) - Winner[55]
  • TINFF Award for Best Short LGBTQA+ (2024) - Winner[56]
  • AFI FEST Grand Jury Award (2023) - Nominated[17]

Evan Ever After (2023)

  • Florida Film Festival Audience Award for Best Florida Short (2023) - Winner[7]
  • Out on Film LGBTQ Film Festival: Jury Award for Best Documentary Short, Audience Award for Best Documentary Short (2023) - Winner[57]
  • Stamped Film Festival Jury Award for Best Documentary Short (2023) - Winner[58]

Groomsperson (2023)

  • Los Angeles Cinematography Award for Best Drama (2023) - Winner[59]

Født i feil kropp (2014, 2017)

  • Gullruten (Golden Screen) Norway Best Documentary (2015) - Winner[60]
  • Gullruten (Golden Screen) Norway Best Participant Award (2017) - Nominated[17]

Historien om deg og meg (2009)

  • Gullkalven award for Best Documentary (2009) - Winner[16]
  • Skeive Filmer Blikk's Audience Award for Best Short Film (2009) - Winner[18][37]
  • Oslo Fusion Film Festival Norway Audience Award (2009) - Winner[17]
  • The Norwegian Documentary Festival Award for Best Documentary (2009) - Nominated[17]

See also

References

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  2. ^ a b "DECEMBER 2023 Winners | Los Angeles Cinematography AWARDS". 2023-12-18. Retrieved 2025-10-07.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h i "AFI Conservatory Film SKIN Wins Gold Medal at Student Academy Awards". American Film Institute. 2025-10-01. Retrieved 2025-10-07.
  4. ^ a b c XY (Short 2025) - Full cast & crew - IMDb. Retrieved 2025-10-07 – via www.imdb.com.
  5. ^ a b c Jackson, Destiny (2024-10-08). "Filmmaker Beck Williams Talks Highlighting The Trans Experience Through Personal Narrative in 'Pace' Short Film". Deadline. Retrieved 2025-10-07.
  6. ^ a b c AbelCine (January 9, 2024). "2024 Fresh Perspectives in Cinematography Grant Recipients Announced". AbelCine. Retrieved October 7, 2025.
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