HELLO,

Thanks for dropping in, I’m Lucas Tomoana but some people call me L.T. Tomoana is my father’s name and it is Maori, meaning “of the sea”. My ancestor rescued a number of people from the ocean hence the name. My mother is a Karene, she is a Samoan Matai (Chief) and the tattoo on my arm is dedicated to her.


At 18 I was set on joining the military full time like my father so I joined the Australian Army Reserves whilst I studied. Although I would’ve enjoyed the military, I soon discovered the camera and knew that was where I was meant to be, besides I was much better at shooting film than a rifle.

I left the Army reserves and began camera assisting on commercials while at Griffith Film School. In 2010 I was awarded the Cinematography Award of my graduate year and in 2013 I was selected as 1 of 10 to study cinematography at AFTRS, the National Film School in Sydney.

documentary

Once finished at AFTRS I traveled interstate and overseas shooting documentaries. I worked in the UK, France, Belgium, Germany, China, NZ and all over Australia. I learned to work quickly, to be resourceful and how to make people feel comfortable around a camera and myself.

  • FLANDERS, BELGIUM

  • mornington island, australia

  • LONDON, UK

  • Northern France

  • beijing, china

  • Wujal-wujal, australia

  • bamaga, australia

  • northern beijing, CHINA

commercials

Between documentaries I would hone my craft by shooting commercials. This is where I learnt to work with bigger crews, light larger setups and work with dollies, cranes and remote heads.

So far I have won 23 ACS Awards including 9 Golds and 1 National Award of Distinction. In 2022 I was fortunate to be awarded 2 Golds and 1 Bronze in the National / International Commercial category.

Although Operating is my focus, I still shoot commercials between shows so feel free to reach out as I am always happy to help.

OPERATING

In 2020 COVID swept the world and Queensland, Australia became one of the safest destinations to film. This was my introduction to narrative and I quickly fell in love with it. Narrative story telling is why I entered the film industry.

The Camera Operator is a special position, to me it is more than just panning and tilting. It requires creativity, technical expertise, leadership, physicality and most importantly, support for the Director and DP. My years shooting documentary and commercials has taught me to understand coverage, editing and to be another pair of eyes on set for the Director and DP.

  • Amazon Prime series 'The wilds'

  • DP JULES O'LOUGHLIN ACS ASC

  • TANK WORK

  • Director Mark toia

  • CAMERA OPERATOR ANDY CONDER ACS SOC

  • Director Jeff Walker

  • cambodia with tony o'loughlan acs soc for 'Monsters of man'

  • scorpio 45'

  • 1ST AC KIRI G MULLEN

  • mount tamborine

  • DP MARTY MCGRATH ACS

  • NBC YOUNG ROCK SEASON 2

THANK YOU

By 2021 I made the decision to focus on Camera Operating. That same year I became one of the Vice Presidents of the Australian Cinematographers Society Queensland and was named a ‘Rising Star of Cinematography’ by Inside Film Magazine. In my spare time I run a podcast called Cinemapodgrapher to give career advice and help the next generation of filmmakers.

That’s my journey so far, thank you for your time. I am based in Brisbane, Australia and am available for interstate and international jobs. Feel free to browse the website and if you would like to get in touch hit the contact button below.

Cheers,
L.T