Brandon Navratil – WLC Member Blog Series
Hello everyone! My name is Brandon Navratil and I am a wildlife filmmaker, naturalist, and guide based in the Yellowstone area. I have been pursuing my dreams of working in nature, capturing beautiful imagery, and making inspirational change since I was 7 years old. Always wanting to be a wildlife cinematographer and host, but thinking it was a ‘dream life’ that was impossible to achieve, I began my schooling in wildlife biology.
I graduated with degrees in wildlife biology and environmental sciences because I wanted to develop a foundational knowledge in these areas, understand how they relate to us in the modern world, consider the professions in each field, and see how I can make the most impact. Up until I graduated college I lived on the east coast of the US and always dreamed of moving out west as a stepping stone to future international endeavors. So, in 2010 I took a seasonal job in Yellowstone and never looked back.
Progressing from housekeeping to being a wildlife guide in 3 seasons, I flourished in what turned out to be the best area in the lower 48 I could’ve landed. Yellowstone’s diversity and abundance of wildlife is world-class. Living back east I had no idea what Yellowstone even was. It became a perfect place for me to develop into my professions.
In connection with my passion to work with wildlife, I have always felt an inner drive to make a difference and do all I can for nature. I have always wanted to be in front of the camera getting people excited about nature and using their attention to create impact. Without a career pathway to being the next ‘Attenborough’, I knew I could develop into the person behind the camera doing what it took to capture the beauty of nature and inspire audiences.
Utilizing my artistic eye from photography and other mediums was always a driving force for a growing seed in my mind. I always knew my purpose was to make a difference through wildlife filmmaking, even though it seemed impossible to become a professional. After leaving the Yellowstone ecosystem behind and achieving a lifelong dream of living in Australia for a year, I returned with a clear vision of what I had to do.
Instead of returning to school for filmmaking, I followed the advice from colleagues and began to develop my own vision. I utilized my knowledge of Yellowstone as the perfect environment to begin my wildlife filmmaking career. I focused all my energy, time, and finances to pay off school loans. I knew being debt free was crucial to starting a career that would require investing all my free time and money to become a professional.
‘Behind The Lens’ is my journey going from a beginner filmmaker with boxes of equipment to getting hired to fly in a helicopter and film wolves for National Geographic. I chronicled my journey through Yellowstone as I taught myself how to film wildlife with the intention to make a mini-series. This gives me experience in front of the camera, as well as filming wildlife, editing, and going from vision to final product. With limited knowledge and gear to start with, I am happy with the progression of episode quality from start to finish.
My vision is to personably connect with audiences and bring them into my world. So many people around the planet are disconnected in varying ways. Not only do I want to inspire them with beautiful imagery, but I also want to connect with them on a personable level by sharing my journey ‘Behind The Lens’. With the audience’s attention, my ultimate drive in filmmaking is to educate people on what is happening to the natural world and motivate them to be more involved.
What I want to make films about is two-fold. I want to capture beautiful and inspirational imagery of nature and wildlife before it is gone. I then want to create films about conservation stories, issues, and current events to better educate people about what is really happening. Connecting audiences to issues and current events in nature, along with beautiful imagery, will provide me with the avenue I envision to ultimately motivate people to reconnect and be more involved.
From the Siberian tiger to the blue whale, I will use my life to create as much positive impact world-wide as I can.
Currently I am working on developing my career as a professional cameraman and filmmaker. I guide in the Yellowstone area throughout the summer to stay connected with one of my favorite areas while gaining footage and funding for future endeavors. As I continue to gain stock footage and put together future projects, I look towards international stories to cover.
In 2019, I traveled to the Indian Ocean and was able to swim with and film my number one animal in the world to see, the majestic and surreal blue whale! In 2020, I developed an expedition traveling back to that area of the world to film orangutans, Asian elephants, sperm, and blue whales. Landing in Jakarta March 14, 2020, plans changed rapidly. I am still collecting donations to resume this expedition next year. Look for the full story in a following post:
I joined the Wild Lens Collective back in 2017 because of how helpful the podcast was in my development. Listening to Matt’s voice explain the field of wildlife filmmaking while I worked on a pecan farm in rural Australia envisioning my return to Yellowstone with a camera inspired me a lot. I am continually inspired by the Collective; the work we’re involved in, our ethics, comradery, and overall mission. I really enjoy how our members go about creating content, the issues we’re involved with, and what effect we are all looking to make.
See more at: https://www.inspirewildmedia.com
Find out more about becoming a Wild Lens Collective member here:
wildlensinc.org/join-the-wild-lens-collective