Bruce James Bales is a filmmaker from Des Moines, Iowa, who works as a writer, director, producer, and editor, though he primarily focuses on cinematography. His work spans short films, documentaries, feature films, and commercials.

Bales’s filmmaking journey began in his youth, making skits with friends using a VHS camera and later creating rollerblading videos. His experience as a rollerblader influenced his filmmaking, teaching him a unique perspective and a DIY mentality. In high school, he discovered a passion for visual storytelling through a 35mm black and white photography class, finding it magical to see an image appear in a darkroom.

While studying English literature in college, Bales continued to make skate videos and worked on 35mm film projects with friends. He initially didn’t consider filmmaking a viable career path and planned to become a teacher. However, an internship with a music video production company in Pittsburgh introduced him to lighting, and working as a production assistant and extra on larger Hollywood sets solidified his fascination with the filmmaking process.

Bales believes his diverse life experiences, including his English literature studies, have been crucial in shaping him as a filmmaker by teaching him story structure and narrative. He is known for his work on projects like the web series Friendly Faces (CRIFF 2024 Pro Feature Gold), the feature film Knee High (CRIFF 2024, Pro Feature Silver), and the autobiographical short film Thick as Thieves. 

He was accepted into the American Society of Cinematographers (ASC) Vision Mentorship program, which has connected him with seasoned industry professionals.

Bruce also produces an educational filmmaking podcast “That’s A Take” available on Apple Podcasts.

Recently he served as director of photography on Death of a Brewer starring Crispin Glover and Mena Suvari.

Crews Bruce has been a part of describe him as a collaborative visual storyteller, and all-around team player who is raising the bar in Iowa filmmaking and makes projects he is a part of, better.

He is accustomed to adjusting to conditions and at filmmaking at different levels of budget, striving to make the most of what you have creatively.