Eli Hiller

Eli Hiller is a documentary director of photography (DP), director and documentary photographer based in Columbus, Ohio specializing in vérité cinematography for film. He is passionate about creating emotional, intimate and visually captivating character-driven films. While rolling he is actively listening and filming for the story.  

As a third-culture adult who has lived between Costa Rica, the Philippines and southeast Ohio, he is deeply curious about culture, environment, politics and where they intersect. He is most passionate about stories from the Global South about marginalized peoples who are fighting for change or equality against societal oppression. He sees storytelling as an approach to empathize with the human condition. For him, art is one part of a comprehensive plan to create lasting change. 

He has a bachelor’s degree from Ohio University School of Visual Communication (2016) and College of Arts and Sciences in Geography (2016). 

He is currently directing and shooting his first feature documentary, Becoming Us. The personal film is about finding a new family, grappling with mixed-race Filipino identity, and healing familial wounds through creating childhood memories on film.