Lisa Hepner is a Canadian-American writer and documentary filmmaker.[1] [2] She is best known for directing the documentary features, The Human Trial and Women on the Frontlines.[3] [4]
Lisa graduated from Victoria College at the University of Toronto in 1993.[5] She began her career as a journalist in Canada, but turned her writing into producing non-fiction projects when she moved to New York City.[5] From 1995 to 2011, she produced documentaries for the CBC, PBS, HBO, Sony Pictures Classics, working alongside directors, Michael Apted, Jonathan Demme, and Lisa F. Jackson, among others.[6]
In 2004, Lisa co-directed the documentary feature, Women on the Frontlines, that premiered at the United Nations in New York and aired on PBS.[7] Soon after, Lisa and her cinematographer husband Guy Mossman started Vox Pop Films, a production company in Tribeca.[5] In 2009, the couple moved to Los Angeles where Vox Pop focused on branded content and commercials.[6]
In 2022, Lisa directed her first documentary feature, The Human Trial, with her partner Guy. The film follows a radical stem cell treatment that might be the cure for type 1 diabetes.[3] Since the film's release, it has been featured in the New York Times, NPR, The National News and Forbes, as well as the CBC and the Toronto Star.[8] [9] She is a member of the Producers Guild of America, New York Women in Film & Television, the Writers Guild of America, and Roco Voices, a speaker's platform for documentary filmmakers.[6] [10] [11]
| Year | Title | Contribution | Note | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | The Human Trial | Director, writer and producer | Documentary | |
| 2011 | Dreamland | Field producer | Documentary | |
| 2011 | Field producer | Documentary | ||
| 2011 | Buck | Field Director | Documentary | |
| 2010 | Native Century | Line producer | 1 Episode | |
| 2009 | The Winemakers | Field producer | TV Series | |
| 2008 | The Making of 'Across the Universe | Field producer | Documentary | |
| 2008 | Pressure Cooker | Post Producer | Documentary | |
| 2007 | Man from Plains | Post-production supervisor | Documentary | |
| 2007 | Right to Return: New Home Movies from the Lower 9th Ward | Executive Producer | TV Series | |
| 2006 | Coordinating producer | 12 Episodes | ||
| 2006 | Texas Ranch House | Story Producer | 8 Episodes | |
| 2005 | Operation Homecoming | Field producer | TV Series | |
| 2004 | Women on the Frontlines | Director and producer | Documentary | |
| 2003 | Naked World: America Undercover | Producer | Documentary | |
| 2003 | Married in America | Associate producer | Documentary | |
| 2000 | Face to Face: The Schappell Twins | Associate producer | Documentary | |
| 2000 | Life Afterlife | Co-producer | Documentary | |
| 2000 | Intimate Portrait : Cokie Roberts | Field producer | 1 Episode | |
| 1998-2000 | True Life | Producer | 2 Episodes | |
| 1998 | Molly O'Neill's New York: A Taste of the City | Co-producer | Documentary | |
| 1996 | Travels with Mom | Producer | 1 Episode |
| Year | Result | Award | Category | Work | Ref. | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Nominated | Humanitas Prize | Best Documentary | The Human Trial | [12] | |
| Won | Brussels International Film Festival | Best Documentary | ||||
| 2022 | Won | Mumbai International Film Festival | Best Documentary Feature | [13] | ||
| Won | Cine Paris Film Festival | Best Documentary Feature | [14] | |||
| Won | Filmocracy Fest | Best Documentary Feature | [15] | |||
| Won | Raw Science Film Festival | Raw Breakthrough Award in Science Communication | ||||
| 2014 | Nominated | Clio Awards | Long Form | The Comeback Initiative | [16] | |
| 2004 | Won | Golden Eagle Cine Award | Professional Telecast Non-Fiction Division | Women on the Frontlines | [17] |