Martha Ansara (born 9 September 1942) is a documentary filmmaker whose
films on social issues have won international prizes and been screened
in Australia, the UK, Europe and North America. Ansara was one of the
first women in Australia to work as a cinematographer, is a full
member of the Australian Cinematographers Society (ACS) and was
inducted into the ACS Hall of Fame in 2015. Martha is a Life Member of
the Australian Directors Guild and a founding member of Ozdox, the
Australian Documentary Forum. She has also worked as a film lecturer
and film writer and has been active in the trade union, women's and
peace movements.Ansara was born in the United States, where her father
was a leading figure in the Syrian-Lebanese community and her mother
an educator specializing in dyslexia. She migrated to Australia in
1969, becoming involved in the Sydney Filmmakers Co-operative,. She
started making films with other young filmmakers through the
Co-operative, but was unable to break into the then male-only domain
of professional cinematography. However, in 1975, following the birth
of her second child, she was admitted as a student in the first
three-year full-time course of the Australian Film, Radio and
Television School, directed by Professor Jerzy Toeplitz and Head of
Program, Storry Walton. There she studied cinematography under Bill
Constable and Brian Probyn BSC, working with a group of students which
included many filmmakers later to make their mark in Australia and
overseas.After graduating, Ansara gained experience as a camera
assistant and starting work as a cinematographer and maker of social
documentaries. She began writing reviews and articles on film for
Filmnews, the monthly newspaper of the Sydney Filmmakers Co-operative,
and then for a range of publications. She organized and taught in the
women's film workshops of this period, eventually lecturing in film
production at tertiary institutions and conducting short courses in
filmmaking throughout Australia. She also worked extensively as an
assessor of projects for government film bodies and was involved in
promoting the development of women's filmmaking through the Sydney
Women's Film Group and the Women's Film Fund of the Australian Film
Commission. Martha was the subject of a 2017 Salute organised by
Ozdox: The Australian Documentary Forum which surveys the collective
history of Australian film in which she was involved:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOPM94NvUJo.
films on social issues have won international prizes and been screened
in Australia, the UK, Europe and North America. Ansara was one of the
first women in Australia to work as a cinematographer, is a full
member of the Australian Cinematographers Society (ACS) and was
inducted into the ACS Hall of Fame in 2015. Martha is a Life Member of
the Australian Directors Guild and a founding member of Ozdox, the
Australian Documentary Forum. She has also worked as a film lecturer
and film writer and has been active in the trade union, women's and
peace movements.Ansara was born in the United States, where her father
was a leading figure in the Syrian-Lebanese community and her mother
an educator specializing in dyslexia. She migrated to Australia in
1969, becoming involved in the Sydney Filmmakers Co-operative,. She
started making films with other young filmmakers through the
Co-operative, but was unable to break into the then male-only domain
of professional cinematography. However, in 1975, following the birth
of her second child, she was admitted as a student in the first
three-year full-time course of the Australian Film, Radio and
Television School, directed by Professor Jerzy Toeplitz and Head of
Program, Storry Walton. There she studied cinematography under Bill
Constable and Brian Probyn BSC, working with a group of students which
included many filmmakers later to make their mark in Australia and
overseas.After graduating, Ansara gained experience as a camera
assistant and starting work as a cinematographer and maker of social
documentaries. She began writing reviews and articles on film for
Filmnews, the monthly newspaper of the Sydney Filmmakers Co-operative,
and then for a range of publications. She organized and taught in the
women's film workshops of this period, eventually lecturing in film
production at tertiary institutions and conducting short courses in
filmmaking throughout Australia. She also worked extensively as an
assessor of projects for government film bodies and was involved in
promoting the development of women's filmmaking through the Sydney
Women's Film Group and the Women's Film Fund of the Australian Film
Commission. Martha was the subject of a 2017 Salute organised by
Ozdox: The Australian Documentary Forum which surveys the collective
history of Australian film in which she was involved:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TOPM94NvUJo.
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