Ellen Martinez directed and produced AFTER SPRING, a feature documentary about the Syrian refugee crisis. The film was executive-produced by Jon Stewart, had its World Premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival, and was broadcast on Starz. 

Her second feature SLUMLORD MILLIONAIRE follows the story of four residents fighting back against corrupt landlords and developers in New York City. It had its World Premiere at DOC NYC 2024 and won the Audience Award. It won Best Documentary at CAAMFest 2025. The film will be broadcast on PBS in July 2025. 

Her work has been supported by the Sundance Institute, Firelight Media, Latino Public Broadcasting, the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, Center for Asian American Media, New York State Council on the Arts, New York Foundation for the Arts and others.

She was the Casting Producer on PETS for Disney+ and has worked on projects for HBO, PBS, Participant Media and Imagine Documentaries. She was named a Netflix Nonfiction Directing/Producing Fellow in 2022.

Ellen grew up in Dubai, Venezuela, and Syria and studied at NYU’s Tisch School of the Arts. Before working in documentary she worked as a Directors Assistant and Production Assistant for major motion pictures in New York City including THE AMAZING SPIDERMAN 2, NOAH, EXTREMELY LOUD AND INCREDIBLY CLOSE, SIDE EFFECTS, LAW AND ORDER: SVU and UGLY BETTY. She is now based in Brooklyn, New York.