Lisa Gossels is an Emmy® Award-winning documentarian whose films “The Children of Chabannes” and “My So-Called Enemy” have garnered twenty awards and honors, screened at 100 film festivals and aired on HBO, PBS and the WORLD Channel. Lisa became a documentarian because she believes in the power of film to effect social change.
“The Children of Chabannes,” which received a national Emmy® and 10 film festival awards, has been praised as “One of the most heartening Holocaust films ever made–splendid, informative and emotionally involving,” (Los Angeles Times) and “A seamless memoir of courage and a tribute to the human spirit.” (New York Daily News) “My So-Called Enemy,” which garnered 9 awards and honors – including Best Conflict & Resolution Film at the Hamptons International Film Festival – has been cited as “Moving, powerful, intelligent and brave.” (The Nation) and “A powerful exploration of both the pain and growth that real listening brings in a situation of conflict.” (The Princeton Packet)
One of Lisa’s greatest joys is traveling around the country with “My So-Called Enemy” and “The Children of Chabannes,” engaging youth, secular and faith communities in dialogue around building bridges of understanding across differences. A sought-after speaker and guest educator, she has presented her documentaries more than 280 times at film festivals and conferences, educational, cultural and religious institutions. Her talks and workshops “Don’t Make Any Assumptions” and “Everyone Has A Story” explore issues of diversity and inclusion, identity, girls’ and women’s empowerment, taking a stand in the face of injustice and conflict resolution.
Lisa is a consultant for fledgling documentarians on all aspects of filmmaking – from pre-production through distribution and outreach. She recently designed a series of workshops where she teaches the art and craft of personal storytelling in the medium of video. Her “You in Story” workshops cover everything from finding your story, script writing, concept development and on-camera presentation techniques through best practices around storytelling, branding and audience engagement, filming and editing.
Beyond her documentary work, Lisa produces and directs educational, advocacy, awareness and promotional videos for foundations, nonprofits and corporations through her New York City-based company, Good Egg Productions. She has worked on more than for 40 videos for corporations and non-profits as a production manager/coordinator, “real person” casting director, researcher and wardrobe stylist. Prior to a career in film and video production, Lisa worked in the Media and Account Management departments of numerous New York City advertising agencies.
In 2007, Lisa was selected to be a member of Selah, a national network of Jewish social justice leaders. In 2016, she was awarded an Ariane de Rothschild Fellowship in Cross-Cultural Leadership and Innovative Entrepreneurship.
Lisa is a Member Owner of New Day Films, a filmmaker-run distribution company providing social issue documentaries (including “My So-Called Enemy”) to the educational and institutional markets. In 2017, she completed a two-year term on its Steering Committee as the Director of Human Resources. Lisa has been a Juror for the News & Documentary Emmy Awards, The Cleveland International Film Festival, The Ivy Film Festival and The Woodstock Festival – and is a Phi Beta Kappa graduate of Brown University.