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Lisa
Gossels (middle) & two of the subjects of her documentary |
Seeing a Better World
Through the Camera Lens:
Lisa Gossels
By Gillian Granoff
Her long brown hair cascades over her shoulder as she offers
me some tea. Her maternal instincts have become a large part
of her identity as a filmmaker. Despite her maturity she has
preserved an untainted idealism, rarely found in someone who
has paid her dues in the corporate world. Lisa Gossels, a
documentary filmmaker who after years of experience has struck
the desired balance between an artist and a savvy businesswoman.
Her years in corporate advertising gave her what she calls
the invaluable marketing skills necessary to sell any product,
a tool that has served her well as a documentarian, but it
is obvious that her heart was never in the corporate world.
Growing up as the child
of a poet and an attorney, Lisa Gossels describes herself
as someone who “was good at
many things but never a star at one.” After graduating
Brown University in the 80s with a degree in Literature and
Society, she chose a Jack Kerouac existence
as a backpacker throughout Europe. During her adventures in
France, she sampled a variety of jobs, but her experience in
freelance in the sexy world of European advertising planted
seeds for a career in advertising. She returned to
New York and made her way up the advertising ladder
to account manager. The turning point in her career came during
a session with a career counselor. “It was the best $200
I ever spent!” she comments. Adele Scheele, a former
journalist helped Lisa recognize her true identity as a filmmaker.
As Lisa’s passion
for filmmaking grew she channeled it into a project that
touched her heart. The story she uncovered led her to make
her first documentary film, The Children
of Chabannes. In it Lisa explores the touching story of the lives
of unsung heroes of Chabannes, a town that saved over 400 people
during World War II. Among the survivors were her father and
uncle. Their incredible heroism and humanity inspired Lisa
to pay tribute to them. Though the film was featured on HBO
and earned Gossels her first Emmy, Lisa’s passion for
filmmaking is clearly not driven by a desire for accolades;
her goal, she says, is to bring life to the stories of everyday
individuals doing extraordinary things.
“My films are about
the power we have as individuals to change the world. I don’t
believe in making films with political agendas. The Children
of Chabbanes is not just about the Holocaust; it is
a celebratory film about people who chose to save lives because
it was the right thing to do. She describes herself as someone
who takes the time to talk to everyone, the taxi driver,
the waiter at a restaurant. “I find inspiration in
the lives of everyday people.” This is a gift, she
says, that comes from her mother, an accomplished poet who
made an “everyday trip to the supermarket into a story.” Her
other mentors include her second grade teacher, Ms. Valerie Perrine, who inspired her to write poetry and nurtured her
creative side. One of the most rewarding aspects of filmmaking
for Lisa is the way in which it engages her many talents.
She credits every person on her film from the cinematographer
to the director.
Her latest film Imagining
Peaceis a celebration of those who stay true to their
conscience and fight for peace amidst the political pressures
of a violence of the real world. In it, she gives voice
to seven Palestinian teenage girls living in Israel and
the West Bank. The documentary, still in production, follows
the girls as they participate in Building Bridges for
Peace, a woman’s leadership program designed
to promote constructive dialogue. The film traces their
growth from their first introduction to the program, during
a 12-day intensive retreat set at the Trebor Garth Estate
in Bridgeton, New Jersey. The film follows the girls from
their experience at the retreat, during the height of the
Intifada, back to their lives at home. Lisa was inspired
to make the film by meeting with its founder Melodye Feldman
at a Jewish Educators conference in August 2001.
For
Lisa Gossels, bringing life to the stories of others is work
of the heart. Her goal is to educate. “If I weren’t a filmmaker, I’d
be a teacher,” she says. As she travels around the
country to attend screenings of her film she always speaks
to student groups She hopes her films help to illuminate
the lives and stories of people who have chosen to follow
their conscience and make a difference in the world. “I
make films to empower people and see that each voice matters.
I learned from Melodye and the girls in Imagining Peace that
I will never lose hope in us as human beings.”#
