Picture North signs director Henry Behel

LA-based director Henry Behel, has been signed by Picture North. 

Behel is a director by trade and pilot by passion, often fusing these two elements together in his work. In his recent Unimatic x Hodinkee spot, he shot a grand race between the classic Nissan Z, a backcountry touring plane, and a sailboat utilising his own plane for air-to-air and ground tacking shots.

Despite the risk involved in precision flying and driving, Behel isn’t the adrenaline junky you might expect. He relies on trusted relationships, rigorous pre-production, and brings a calm focus to what really matters about each project.

Behel explains, “I’m interested in the story behind the speed and the emotions that come out of these heightened moments. There are often risks and you have to evaluate and re-evaluate them every day. Every adventure is an opportunity to learn to push the limits in a safer way. If I’m addicted to anything, it’s problem solving, not adrenaline. There’s nothing more satisfying than feeling like you accomplished the thing someone told you was impossible.”

Behel is a trained actor and writer, which adds nuanced grace and elegance to his action-packed sequences. After practicing theatre for many years in Chicago, he moved back to the west coast where he directed films for clients like BMW, Audi, and the U.S. AirForce. Because of his unique ability to pilot a plane and operate a camera at the same time, he’s quickly caught the attention of agencies, clients, and the flying community alike. With Picture North, Behel says he is excited to work on more conceptual projects.