Abby Ellis is a Peabody and Emmy nominated Director who makes films about the moments and institutions that shape us.

Ellis’s films explore the political, environmental, and cultural forces that shape our lives. Combining cinematic storytelling with deeply investigative reporting, her work is distinguished by a patient, observational style that uncovers complexity without sacrificing emotional intimacy. Critics have praised her ability to transform urgent subjects into nuanced, character-driven films, with Slate calling The Lake "more than a standard issue-driven documentary" and RogerEbert.com comparing its observational approach to the work of legendary filmmaker Frederick Wiseman.

Her latest feature, The Lake, premiered at the 2026 Sundance Film Festival, where it received the Special Jury Award. The film, executive produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, was included in Rolling Stone’s 12 Best Movies at Sundance.

Before directing features, Ellis spent more than fifteen years making investigative documentaries and nonfiction television. Her FRONTLINE documentary Flint's Deadly Water was the culmination of a multi-year investigation that uncovered an unusually high number of deaths during the Flint water crisis, exposed the negligence that allowed a deadly outbreak to continue, and revealed efforts to obstruct the legal and scientific investigations that followed. In 2020, as PBS's Hollyhock Filmmaker-in-Residence, she wrote, directed, and produced Shots Fired, an unflinching examination of police shootings, and American Patriot: Inside the Armed Uprising Against the Federal Government. She also produced the Emmy-nominated series America Divided, executive produced by Norman Lear and Shonda Rhimes, exploring inequality across the United States through deeply reported, character-driven storytelling.

Ellis began her career at VICE, where for over six years she developed, produced, and edited some of the company's defining documentary programming, including VICE on HBO. She later spent seven years at FRONTLINE, helping produce award-winning investigations on subjects ranging from public health and environmental disasters to government accountability.

Her work has earned a Peabody Award, multiple Emmy nominations, an Edward R. Murrow Award, a Scripps Howard Award, an Izzy Award, a Livingston Award, and numerous other honors. In 2023, she was named to DOC NYC's 40 Under 40, recognizing the next generation of documentary filmmakers.

Ellis is currently developing multiple feature documentaries, a premium nonfiction series, and her first narrative screenplay, inspired by one of her investigations.

A member of the Arab and Middle Eastern Journalists Association, Ellis frequently serves as a juror, moderator, and panelist for film festivals and funding organizations. She guest lectures at colleges and universities across the country and is an adjunct professor in the University of Utah's Film & Media Arts program. She is also an active member of Video Consortium, where she helped build a community-driven database tracking hiring practices and pay equity across the nonfiction industry.