Past Film/Video | Documentaries

Living with Pride: Ruth Ellis @ 100

(Yvonne Welbon, 1999)

Live Q&A follows | CBIFF opening night!

Virtual

Ruth Ellis sits on a bench in front of a piano and houseplant.

We’re proud to partner with the Columbus Black International Film Festival for the fourth year in a row on its opening night event with a screening of Yvonne Welbon’s Living with Pride: Ruth Ellis @ 100. Made with support from the Wexner Center’s Film/Video Studio, the documentary is followed by a virtual Q&A with the director.

When LGBTQ rights activist Ruth Ellis passed away at the age of 101 in 2000, she was widely considered to be the oldest surviving African American lesbian, having come out in 1915. Welbon’s heartfelt Living with Pride chronicles Ellis’s trailblazing life and explores her rich past, offering an inspiring document of our history as lived by one remarkable woman. Ellis  shows us what kind of life is possible if one not only lives long and ages well, but lives with pride.

After the screening, join us for a Q&A with the director moderated by CBIFF founder Cristyn Steward and Film/Video Studio Curator Jennifer Lange. (62 mins., digital video)

Ruth Ellis sits on a piano bench in front of a piano and houseplant.

Ruth Ellis, photo courtesy of the filmmaker

Ruth Ellis crouches down against a car with her arms drawn around herself.

Ruth Ellis, photo courtesy of the filmmaker

A 1901 photograph of Ruth Ellis and her brothers.

Ruth Ellis and her brothers, photo courtesy of the filmmaker

Director Yvonne Welbon smiles while wearing a red shirt.

Director Yvonne Welbon, photo courtesy of the filmmaker

About the artist

Yvonne Welbon chevron-down chevron-up

Award-winning filmmaker Yvonne Welbon is Senior Creative Consultant at Chicken & Egg Pictures and founder of the Chicago-based nonprofit Sisters in Cinema, a resource for and about African American media makers. A past guest at the Wex—both to present her films and to work on projects in our Film/Video Studio—she has produced over 20 films, which have screened on multiple platforms (PBS, Bravo, BET, HBO, Netflix, iTunes) and in more than 100 film festivals around the world. 

Living with Pride was supported by the Wexner Center's Film/Video Studio.

The Columbus Black International Film Festival is sponsored by The Columbus Foundation, 400 West Rich, ROY G BIV Gallery, Nicolettecinemagraphics, and Streetlight Guild.

MADE POSSIBLE BY
Greater Columbus Arts Council
Ohio Arts Council
American Electric Power Foundation
The Columbus Foundation
Institute of Museum and Library Services
Nationwide Foundation

ADDITIONAL SUPPORT PROVIDED BY
Huntington Bank
Jeni's Splendid Ice Creams
Kaufman Development
Cardinal Health Foundation

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Past Film/Video

Living with Pride: Ruth Ellis @ 100