Cody Rheault is a hybrid storyteller in a variety of mediums to include: photography, filmmaking, and writing. He started taking pictures on disposable cameras when he was just 6 years old. A brewing passion for capturing life grew into adulthood. At first it was easier to capture landscapes; because working with people terrified him (the introverted type). But after a college career and a very short stint as a paramedic (because he felt the need to get a real job), he fell back into what he knew best - camera work. It wasn't until his late twenties and a handful of international projects later that his passion took a turn - shifting his focus from a mere camera junky to wanting to become a true storyteller.

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He believes storytelling and the process is vital to people and culture. Creating imagery is only part of that process. The art of storytelling through the knowledge of interacting with people and shaping images to evoke the character of a person, place, or thing is a process he strives to implement in his work. It takes time, experience, and an instinct that can only develop over multiple years.

 

Those experiences vary but everything points to the desire to tell those aforementioned stories. As a freelancer, his photo work frequents the pages of the small-town Nugget Newspaper and larger local publications such as the Bend Magazine, Visit Central Oregon, and Travel Oregon. Often tasked with editorial assignments, Cody has become a local asset when Editors look for photo essays to tell their printed stories.

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As a filmmaker his work blossomed in 2018 when he took the helm of the weekly feature War Stories for Central Oregon Daily News in Bend, Oregon. His weekly task was to produce, director, shoot, and edit 3-5 minute individual profile features on local military veterans. He was also added to the state-traveling team for Destination Oregon where he filmed over 200 features highlighting history, activities, and travel throughout the state of Oregon, often filming and editing entire features alone. In 2021 he moved to American Warriors, a Youtube series profiling veterans in longer form stories.

 

Cody's freelance business loosely started in 2016 and has since grown into a self-sufficient production company. His work has now taken him around the world to more than 20 countries and involves equal work as a filmmaker and stills photographer. Whether documenting Ukrainian refugees in Poland, water wells in Uganda, or filming hunting and fishing TV shows in Alaska and Hawaii, his work continues to expand around the concept of story.

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He currently lives and operates his business in Sisters, Oregon with his family at the base of the scenic Cascade mountains.