At Lantern Films, we’re dedicated to creating impactful and visually compelling documentaries.

Our films have been supported by Sundance, Telefilm and Chicken and Egg, exhibited at the Whitney Biennial and the American Museum of Natural History, and screened at BFI Flare, BlackStar and Hot Docs.

Filmmakers we work with retain ownership of their work and creative control.

At Lantern Films, we believe that exceptional documentaries emerge from a thoughtful, critical, and deeply engaged creative process.

JESSICA HALLENBECK (she/her) PhD, producer, OWNER

Jessica Hallenbeck is a documentary filmmaker, independent scholar and community planner. With an undergraduate degree in media and film from Queen’s University, she has worked in documentary for 20 years. Jessica holds a PhD in Geography from the University of British Columbia and her multimodal research cuts across filmmaking, writing, and exhibitions. Jessica is a Sundance Institute and Chicken and Egg Alumni. Her dissertation (2020) won The Starkey-Robinson Award for graduate research on Canada and is currently under contract with UBC Press. She has been the recipient of multiple Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council Grants (SSHRC), including the prestigious Banting Postdoctoral Fellowship. Jessica is fluent in English and French. info@lanternfilms.ca

EMILY SHANK (She/Her) LINE PRODUCER

Emily’s experience has spanned traditional television, short & long format film, audio, and web-based content.  A consummate professional; she brings a steady hand to each of her projects with grace and savvy.  Among her numerous projects, Emily was: Production Manager, Kim Cattrall: Sexual Intelligence, hosted and executive produced by Kim Cattrall; Series Producer / Series Writer / Director, Think Big, which was nominated for the Gemini Award Best Direction Children’s or Youth Program or Series, the CFTPA Indie Award Best Children’s and Youth Programme or Series, and the Alliance for Children and Television Award of Excellence; Supervising Producer, Timber Kings, HGTV Canada’s #1 rated series in the network’s history as at 2014; Coordinating Producer, The Age of AI, hosted and executive produced by Robert Downey Jr.; Line Producer & Post Production Supervisor, British Columbia – An Untold History, narrated by Shane Koyczan; and Head of Business & Production Operations, Pacific Content, first to have simultaneous official selections with one production at Tribeca X and another at The Tribeca Festival 2024. emily@lanternfilms.ca

Martyna czaplak (she/ her) line producer, production manager

Martyna Czaplak is a producer with experience in multiple departments on and off set, finding her way into film after ten years in sales and promotion for many influential lifestyle brands in Canada. After returning from maternity leave, she now works as a freelance producer, director and writer. Martyna is fluent in Polish, German and English. martyna@lanternfilms.ca

Tanya Castaneda (She/her) Administrative Assistant

Tanya was born in Mexico City, moved to British Columbia, Canada in her early 20's. She holds an MBA and has extensive experience with Project Management. She is an avid traveler and has visited over 13 Countries mostly backpacking. Her hobbies are MUA, swimming, tennis, hiking, camping and traveling. Her favourite make up skills are gore, fantasy make up and runway alike. She has worked with different film companies as an MUA, Admin Assist & bookkeeping and also worked as an extra for several demos and movies as well. Tanya is fluent in Spanish and English. admin@lanernfilms.ca

Brenda Xiong (She/her) Office Production Assistant

Brenda Xiong was born in Chongqing, China, and later moved to Canada to complete her education in Business Administration. Her creativity and passion for storytelling led her to discover her true calling in documentary filmmaking. To pursue this path, Brenda graduated from both the Digital Film Production and Documentary Film Production programs at Langara College in 2020, refining her technical skills and deepening her understanding of the craft. In 2021, Brenda became an active member of the documentary community by joining DOC BC (now the DOC Northwest). As a filmmaker, Brenda focuses on capturing personal stories, emotions, and life experiences within the broader context of their socio-cultural and historical backgrounds. She sees herself as a lifelong storyteller and seeker of truth and knowledge. With her background in Business Administration, she brings strong organizational skills and a detail-oriented mindset to ensure smooth production workflows. Brenda firmly believes in the transformative power of storytelling, recognizing the importance of sharing personal experiences and collective memories. It is her unwavering conviction to share these narratives with audiences, knowing that together, we can make stories matter. Brenda is fluent in Mandarin and English. brenda@lanternfilms.ca