cultivating connection through story
Filmmaker. Oral Historian. Storytelling Strategist. Explorer.
Maggie Lemere is a 2021 National Geographic Explorer, documentary filmmaker, oral historian and master naturalist who has worked across the U.S., Africa, Asia, Latin America and Europe to cultivate connection through storytelling.
A big believer that the process of storytelling is as important as the output, Maggie holds six core values central to the work she does both independently and in collaboration with other artists and organizations to pioneer more inclusive and healing forms of storytelling. She is currently directing and producing independent documentary films in the Middle East and Southeast Asia that explore communities' efforts to protect the environment.
Featured Stories
As people and our relationship to the environment face unprecedented challenge—from the climate crisis to the sixth mass extinction—delve into stories about people and communities whose wisdom and resilience can teach us.
Land of Canaan
Collaboration with Canaan Fair Trade / The Palestinian Fair Trade Association ; Director
A Poetic Relationship between farmers and land… A story of Palestine’s olive harvest.
Face of the Protector
An Oral History Project from Standing Rock
A nation is not conquered until the hearts of its women are on the ground. Then it is done, no matter how brave its warriors nor how strong their weapons: Cheyenne proverb
Above and Below the Ground
Feature film in production; Producer
Above and Below the Ground tells the story of indigenous punk rock pastors who team up with women activists to protect a sacred river from a Chinese-built mega dam. When Aung San Suu Kyi breaks an election promise to cancel the dam, activists and musicians fight back the best way they know how—through protest, prayer, and Karaoke music videos
“With her ethical and collaborative approach, Maggie is an ideal partner on storytelling projects. We have worked with her to create stunning videos that capture our research on women’s experiences in conflict. Maggie understands both the substance and values of our work, and how to translate complex research into engaging videos, from animations to beautiful direct-to-camera testimonials.”
— Sarah Rutherford, Georgetown Institute for Women Peace & Security
