LOIS SHELTON
Filmmaker and New Media Artist
Lois Shelton was born in Seattle and grew up near the shores of Lake Washington. Her love of the Northwest landscape inspired her conservation film for children Old John: A Voice for the Living Earth (1998). Lois graduated from Westmont College with a B.A. in literature. She married Ron Shelton, writer/director, (Under Fire/Bull Durham) and began raising a family and teaching in Los Angeles. After earning a degree in filmmaking at Los Angeles City College she started working in the film industry as an art director.
In 1986 Lois wrote, produced, directed and edited her first film, Ernie Andrews: Blues For Central Avenue, a documentary on the post-WW II jazz scene in South Central Los Angeles. The film won a CINE Gold Eagle, and inspired a book on the history of Central Avenue.
In the late 1980’s Lois made two prize-winning videos in the Cambodian language for the post-Vietnam War Cambodian refugee community. Her subsequent documentary about race and culture, On Common Ground (1991) was awarded a Los Angeles EMMY.
After returning to independent life in the Northwest in 1991, Lois set up a film production company, Foxglove Films LLC, on a houseboat studio on Lake Union. Foxglove’s first production, Grief Is More Than Crying (1995), won a Gold Apple at the National Educational Media Festival, and tells the moving story of a Bainbridge Island mother coming to terms with the loss of her infant son. A CINE Gold Eagle and Special Jury prize was awarded to After Silence: Civil Rights and the Japanese-American Experience (2003), a documentary written and filmed in the months immediately following the World Trade Center attacks. It offers an examination of the WW II internment of Japanese-Americans from multiple points of view, including high school students who learn of this chapter in history through the lens of 9/11.
In 2007, Lois began working in new media, and in 2012 completed The Harborview Nursing Commemorative, a mixed media permanent installation of light, sound video and bronze, in collaboration with Maggie Smith.
Lois has served on the board of Women in Film/Seattle and 911 Media Arts and enjoys mentoring young filmmakers at Reel Grrls. Lois’ passion for education, children and the environment led Women In Film/Seattle to honor her in 2000 with their Spirit of Nell Award.
Lois lives on an island in Puget Sound and has two daughters, Stephanie and Gabrielle.