bio
Jen Gilomen is an award-winning documentary producer, director, and cinematographer who has created nationally and internationally distributed films, including LIFE ON THE LINE (PBS, 2014, distributed by New Day Films, UFVA award best short doc), IN MY SHOES (Audience Award, Frameline / distributed by Frameline), and DEEP DOWN (Independent Lens, 2010, distributed by New Day Films), which was funded by ITVS and MacArthur Foundation, participated in the U.S. State Department’s American Documentary Showcase, and received an Emmy nomination in 2011. In 2015-16, Jen was a Supervising Producer and programmer at ITVS, where she oversaw a $3 million portfolio of over fifteen feature documentaries and interactive media projects. She is an Associate of the U.C. Berkeley Investigative Reporting Program, Member-Owner of New Day Films, co-founder of the Collective of Documentary Women Cinematographers, and lives in San Francisco where she recently produced/shot UNSETTLED, a feature documentary about LGBT refugees and asylum seekers.
[IMDB]
in progress
Delivering Justice: A Movement Is Born
Synopsis: In the U.S., more and more women, especially women of color, die in childbirth each year. Delivering Justice: A Movement Is Born will investigate why, and will follow women across all walks of life – pregnant mothers, midwives, researchers, and leaders — who are building a movement to achieve “birth equity.”
The feature documentary was developed in part during an SFFILM FilmHouse residency in 2020, and received a Cal Humanities R&D grant for 2020-2021.
Related project (in production): Born for This.
select films
Coach Emily, by Chandi Films (in production 2023) — Consulting Producer
Ricochet (2022) — Consulting Producer
Unsettled
Seeking Refuge in America
Synopsis: Unsettled is a feature-length documentary revealing the untold stories of LGBT refugees and asylum-seekers who have fled intense persecution from their home countries and who are resettling in the U.S. As new leadership in America continues to demonize immigrants and drastically restrict the flow of refugees and asylum seekers into the U.S., Unsettled humanizes a group few people know – LGBT migrants – who are desperately trying to create new and safer homes.
Roles played: Producer, Director of Photography (Director/Producer: Tom Shepard)
Distribution: WORLD Channel (PBS broadcast), The Film Collaborative (festivals), Good Docs (educational)
Life on the Line
Coming of Age Between Nations
trailer | film on pbs.org | site
Synopsis: Life on the Line is a half-hour cinema vérité documentary that follows a year in the life of 11-year-old Kimberly Torrez as she and her family await the visa that will allow them to return to the United States after unforeseen circumstances trap them in Nogales, Mexico. Living literally steps from the border, Kimberly crosses each day to attend school just across the line in Arizona. While Kimberly’s father finds himself unemployed, stricken with Hepatitis C, and in need of a liver transplant, Kimberly’s mother desperately awaits the visa that will allow her to live in the U.S. with her American children if her husband dies. A slice-of-life portrait film told through Kimberly’s eyes, Life on the Line illuminates the changing face of America through the story of this one family.
Roles played: Producer/Director (with Sally Rubin), Cinematographer
Distribution: PBS television broadcast, New Day Films (educational), film festivals, PBS.org, organizational partnerships
Deep Down
A story from the heart of coal country
trailer/site | film on newday.com
Synopsis: Deep in the Appalachian mountains of eastern Kentucky, where coal is king, Beverly May and Terry Ratliff find themselves at the center of a contentious community battle over a proposed mountaintop removal coal mine.
Roles played: Producer/Director (with Sally Rubin), Cinematographer
Distribution: PBS television broadcast on the series Independent Lens, New Day Films (educational) , film festivals, streaming on PBS.org/Netflix/Hulu, U.S. State Department’s American Documentary Showcase, organizational partnerships, 200 community screenings
In My Shoes
Stories of youth with LGBT parents
colage site | full film via Frameline | excerpt
Synopsis: In a time when LGBT families are debated and attacked in the media, courts and Congress, from school houses to state houses across the country, five young people give you a chance to walk in their shoes – to hear their own views on marriage, making change, and what it means to be a family. In My Shoes was produced through a unique collaborative/participatory process with the young people featured in the film.
Roles played: Director, Cinematographer, Facilitator, Youth Mentor
Distribution: festivals, organizations, Frameline (educational)
web series & interactive
LifeLinesinteractive youth portrait series
full series | Maria’s story | Vanessa’s story
Series Synopsis: The stories of several young people growing up on the U.S./Mexico border paint a diverse picture of border life.
Maria’s story: Maria Guerrero is a 16-year-old girl who lives a few miles north of the Mexico/Arizona border with her family. After her father passed away, her mother moved Maria’s family to Arizona in search of a better life– better schools, and a dream of better health care for Maria’s younger sister, who suffers from an often fatal degenerative disease. On the border, however, Maria discovers racism and bullying at school, and her mother finds that Arizona’s health benefits won’t cover her daughter’s needs. In this short piece, Maria and her family contemplate moving to California, and what it may mean for the family.
Roles played: Producer, Director, Cinematographer
Vanessa’s story: In this interactive story, produced through a participatory video process, Vanessa shares her own personal story of having her mother deported suddenly when she was little. As the eldest, she describes maintaining a “brave face” for her younger siblings, and related to Kimberly’s story from the documentary Life on the Line.
Roles played: Producer, Director, Instructor, Facilitator
Distribution: Web, DVD extras, organizations
People Powershort documentary portraits of change-makers
full series | Episode 1: Susan Lapis
Series Synopsis: From the makers of Deep Down, People Power is a short documentary portrait series highlighting just a few of the Americans who are making a difference for the air, water, and mountains that we all share.
Episode 1: Susan Lapis: Susan Lapis lives in Bristol, Virginia, a small town in Appalachia near the border of Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. She grew up roaming the mountains, hiking, and loving nature. So when she saw the Appalachian region being altered by mountaintop removal mining beginning in the early ‘90s, she wanted to do something, and she found the power to do so in one of her many talents. In this episode of People Power, we’ll see a creative way to make change as we get a birds-eye view from Susan’s small Cesna plane.
Roles played: Producer/Director (with Sally Rubin), Cinematographer
Distribution: Web, DVD extras, some festivals and organizations