Liz Marshall


Liz Marshall is a Canadian filmmaker based in the Greater Vancouver area. Since the 1990s, she has directed and produced independent projects and been part of film and television teams, creating broadcast, theatrical, campaign and cross-platform documentaries shot around the world. Marshall's feature-length documentaries largely focus on social justice and environmental themes through strong characters. She is known for The Ghosts in Our Machine and for Water on the Table, for which she also produced impact and engagement campaigns, and attended many global events as a public speaker. Water on the Table features water rights activist, author and public figure Maude Barlow. The Ghosts in Our Machine features animal rights activist, photojournalist and author Jo-Anne McArthur.

Biography

In the early 1990s, Liz Marshall studied film, video and photography in the Media Arts program at Ryerson University in Toronto.
In the mid 1990s, as a queer and emerging filmmaker, she took on her first TV job as a co-host and a lead producer for the groundbreaking cable show Cable 10%. As part of an all-volunteer team, she produced, shot and edited dozens of weekly segments for the program.
She has since worked as a director, writer, producer, executive producer, videographer and cinematographer, often collaborating with award-winning filmmakers and producers. Her body of work includes productions featuring musicians, dancers and authors, as well as documentaries for organizations. Marshall often assembles production teams under the auspices of her company LizMars Productions.
Clients, employers, broadcasters and partner organizations have included: Righteous Babe Records; CHUM Limited television channels Bravo!, MuchMusic, BookTelevision; War Child Canada; The Griffin Trust for Excellence in Poetry; Canadian Journalists for Free Expression; Right To Play; the Stephen Lewis Foundation; Plan Canada; MTV Canada; CTV; the Independent Film Channel; W Network; TVO; Knowledge Network; CBC; Fusion Network; Netflix; the Animal Legal Defense Fund; the New England Anti-Vivisection Society; Animal Equality UK; We Animals; Farm Sanctuary; Women Make Movies; the Bertha BRITDOC Connect Fund and Viceland.
As an active member of the Canadian film community, Marshall has served for three terms as an elected board member of the Toronto chapter of the Documentary Organization of Canada, which formed the DOC Institute, the collective voice for Toronto’s indie documentary filmmakers. She is a core member of the Toronto chapter of Film Fatales, a global collective of female directors dedicated to the creation of more films and television by and about women.
In 1995, American folk singer-songwriter Ani DiFranco and her independent record label Righteous Babe Records commissioned Liz Marshall to document Ani on tour in parts of Canada and the US. Marshall directed a multimedia archival collage consisting of super 8mm, 16mm film, hi-8 video, and DAT recordings.
In 2013, Marshall declined a Queen [Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal] along with Maude Barlow, Naomi Klein and Sarah Slean.
In 2017, Marshall completed her Master of Fine Arts in Cinema Production at York University.

Filmography

Documentaries



Grandmothers: The Unsung Heroes of Africa /
A Generation of Orphans /
Women: The Face of AIDS /
  • Inside Your Threads
  • Voices of Dissent: The Struggle For Freedom of Expression in Turkey
  • ''Musicians in the War Zone''

    Shorts and music videos

  • Mawal Saba
  • Listen
  • The Weight of Memory
  • Messages: To the World's Leaders
  • Ani Does Laundry
  • ''Chemical Valley''

    Awards, nominations and distinctions

2015

For The Ghosts in Our Machine

  • Best Direction in a Documentary Program, Canadian Screen Awards nomination
  • Best Photography in a Documentary Program, Canadian Screen Awards nomination

  • Best Sound in a Documentary Program, Canadian Screen Awards

    2014

For The Ghosts in Our Machine
  • Official Honoree, 18th Annual Webby Awards, Best Use of Interactive Video

  • Shortlist, International LUSH Prize

    2013

For The Ghosts in Our Machine
Marshall respectfully declined the honour in support of the Idle No More movement.

2011

For Water on the Table
For Water on the Table
  • Best Canadian Feature award, Planet in Focus Environmental Film Festival
  • Donald Brittain Award for Best Social/Political Documentary, Gemini Award nomination

    2005

For Inside Your Threads
For Musicians in the War Zone