Ella Van Cleave

Our Coast (2022) Camera Operator | Director | Editor | Producer

James Lawson’s ties to British Columbia’s coast run deep. The young fisherman has spent his life harvesting seafood across the region’s waters, but today the longevity of his way of life is uncertain. Low fish stocks and a nefarious regulatory landscape that favours corporate interests over coastal communities are forcing more and more fishermen out of their livelihood. Our Coast paints a portrait of James’s life as he prepares for the upcoming fishing season and reflects on the experiences along British Columbia’s coast that have shaped the person he is today.

Big Ocean Islands (2020) Director | Producer

What do climate change, the legacies of nuclear testing, and exploitative fishing practices have in common? Through the eyes of Sherwood Tibon, a senator from the Marshall Islands, and Kaure Babo, a Member of Parliament from the Republic of Kiribati, this short-form documentary explores the consequences of power structures that have forever altered the lives of many Pacific Island communities.