Kalila Suckley

Kalila is a dedicated and patient collaborator, grounded in reliability and adaptability through her work in lighting for film, television, and theatre. Working as a Lighting Designer—and moving towards a future behind the lens as a Director of Photography, she is drawn to the quiet power of light: its ability to shape atmosphere, reveal emotion, and guide an audience’s gaze without a word.

During her second year at Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, she stepped into the world of film as a Gaffer and Camera Operator. Since then, she has grown into an attentive and intuitive Camera Assistant, drawn to the rhythm and collaboration of a film set, where every role contributes to a shared visual language.
Her work is driven by a desire to create imagery that feels imaginative, expressive, and emotionally resonant. Moving between theatre and film, she embraces the dialogue between the two, allowing each discipline to inform and deepen the other.
Curious and creatively ambitious, Kalila continues to challenge herself—pushing the boundaries of what light can do, and shaping her voice as a visual storyteller as she moves toward becoming a Director of Photography.

BOVTS AND EXTERNAL CREDITS:

FILM AND TV
– Director of Photography / Focus Puller – Pork Scratchin’ (Short Film)
– Gaffer – Phantoms (Bristol Old Vic Theatre School)
– Camera Assistant – Acid House (Channel 4)
– Gaffer – Unimaginings (Bristol Old Vic Theatre School)
– Art Department Assistant – CUKCUK (Short Film)
– Camera Operator – The Lay-By (Bristol Old Vic Theatre School)
– Camera Assistant – Feet of Clay (Bristol Old Vic Theatre School)
– Camera Assistant – Say You’re Sorry (Bristol Old Vic Theatre School)

THEATRE
– Lighting Designer / Programmer – Weston Dance (Bristol Grammer School)
– Lighting Designer / Operator – Days Of Significance (Bristol Old Vic Theatre School)
– Deputy Stage Manager – Christmas tour; Wonderland (Bristol Old Vic Theatre School)
– Deputy Stage Manager – Deposit (Bristol Old Vic : Western Studio – Bristol Old Vic Theatre School)
– Lighting Designer / Operator – Merry Wives of Windsor / Comedy of Errors (Bristol Old Vic Theatre Shcool)
– Assistant Stage Manager – Black Mountain (The Wardrobe Theatre – Bristol Old Vic Theatre School)

– Former Casual Technicial at SLX and Five Star Events