Author: Elena Brooks, August 14 2022
Cinematographer Viktor Skogqvist doesn’t just capture images; he builds immersive visual worlds. Whether crafting dreamlike commercials or visually rich short films, his work transcends style, grounding itself in the deeper tones of story and atmosphere. In an industry often driven by spectacle, Skogqvist offers something rarer: images that feel alive, intentional, and quietly transformative.
Raised in the town of Falun, Sweden, he discovered filmmaking through skateboarding and snowboarding. With a borrowed VHS camera, he filmed friends carving lines through snow, intuitively learning to follow light, rhythm, and movement. “I wasn’t thinking about cinematography back then. I just wanted to capture the feeling of being out there,” he says. That early instinct, to read the light and respond to the natural world, continues to define his approach today.
His camera doesn’t just observe the world; it listens to it.
A Self-Taught Path: From Magazine Clips to Cinematic Brilliance
Skogqvist’s professional journey began at 18 when he was hired by Transition, a skate and snowboard magazine, to create video content. That work led to several years of filming with an international snowboard production based in Innsbruck, Austria. There, he shot on DV and 16mm before transitioning to RED digital systems.
After years on the road, Skogqvist moved to Stockholm and began freelancing. Initially working as an editor, he gradually shifted into cinematography. “Luckily, the transition to shooting went pretty smoothly,” he notes. “Soon, I could start calling myself a Director of Photography.”
From commercial campaigns to narrative shorts, he became known for a style that feels emotionally authentic, atmospheric, and restrained.
“Honour the Sound”: Where Craft and Feeling Meet
One of Skogqvist’s most celebrated collaborations is Honour the Sound, a brand film for Swedish audio company Audio Pro. Created to mark the company’s 40th anniversary, the film was directed by Mats Udd and stripped of all conventional product imagery. It chose instead to focus on something intangible, the emotional resonance of sound itself.
“The idea was to celebrate the sounds that move us: the ones that make us laugh, cry, remember, and feel alive,” Skogqvist explains. Shot in near silence, the film relied entirely on the visual tone to communicate meaning. Through careful framing, subtle light, and rich texture, the film evokes memory and mood with startling grace.
The industry took note. Honour the Sound was named “Film of the Month” by Resumé, a leading Swedish advertising journal, and received a Silver Egg at the 2019 Guldägget Awards in the Longer Film category. It also earned Silver at that year’s Roy Awards in Sweden, marking Skogqvist’s arrival as a cinematographer of depth and precision.
Listening with the Eyes: The Philosophy Behind the Lens
Though self-taught, Skogqvist brings the discipline and insight of someone who has long studied his craft. “I’m not interested in flashy visuals or over-stylized frames for their own sake,” he says. “It’s about the emotional tone, about creating an atmosphere that serves the story.”
His method is deeply collaborative. Working repeatedly with directors like Mats Udd and the duo Babybaby, Skogqvist thrives in environments where mutual trust allows for experimentation. “The more you work with the same people, the deeper you can go,” he says.
Whether on a commercial set or an independent shoot, he remains closely involved from concept to final delivery, helping shape tone, pacing, and visual structure long before the camera rolls.
Looking Ahead: The Frame as a Living Canvas
Skogqvist’s future aspirations point toward long-form narrative. “I’ve worked across music videos, commercials, and short films, but I’m drawn to the deeper emotional arcs that a feature allows,” he reflects.
Though he never attended film school, his years of practice, curiosity, and technical discipline have shaped a style that blends precision with poetic restraint. And while technology evolves at lightning speed, Skogqvist remains committed to something more enduring: Crafting images that don’t just dazzle, but stay with you.