GOOD TALK WITH RACHEL LEAH JONES
Director and Producer of ADVOCATE
Rachel Leah Jones is an award-winning documentary filmmaker whose trajectory in the field — from researcher to writer to producer to director to editor — has spanned 25 years and three continents. Her work, which has been awarded by the Asia Pacific Screen Academy (APSA) and the Israeli Academy of Film and Television, was also nominated for the PGA and IDA Awards, selected by the EFA, honored by Cinema Eye, and shortlisted for the Oscars. A two-time Sundance Festival and Institute alumna, her critically-acclaimed films have screened in festivals worldwide like Hotdocs, Sheffield, IDFA and DocNYC and aired on dozens of channels, including: BBC Storyville, ARD Germany, France 2, RTS Switzerland, Channel 8 Israel, YLE Finland, DR Denmark, SVT Sweden, 2M Morocco, Radio Canada, HBO Latin America and PBS/POV. Born in Berkeley, California and raised in Tel Aviv, Jones has a BA in Race, Class and Gender Studies and an MFA in Documentary Media Arts. Her directing credits include: 500 DUNAM ON THE MOON (2002); ASHKENAZ (2007); TARGETED CITIZEN (2010); GYPSY DAVY (2012); and ADVOCATE (2019). In addition to making her own films, Jones has produced for others (e.g. WALL by Simone Bitton, which premiered at Cannes 2004 and won the Jury Prize at Sundance 2005), been affiliated with various progressive media outlets (e.g. DEMOCRACY NOW!), and worked extensively as a story consultant, directing mentor, lector, and curator.