'My Name is Pauli Murray' Co-Director Julie Cohen on preserving the legacy of the LGBTQ and civil rights activist

In this episode, we’re throwing it back to a creator talk from the 2021 Festival, with one of the filmmakers behind the documentary My Name is Pauli Murray. Co-directors Julie Cohen and Betsy West received an Academy Award nomination for their documentary RBG, on the life and career of late Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg. It was from RBG that they first learned about their next subject – the late Pauli Murray – a non-binary Black lawyer, priest, poet, and LGBTQ and civil rights activist who was instrumental in shaping landmark litigation—and consciousness—around race and gender equity.Speaking to Canadian writer/director Kevin Eastwood, Cohen details the daunting process of unpacking Murray’s life and work via hundreds of documents and audio recordings; and, ultimately, how they gave shape to the multifaceted identity of this civil rights and women’s movement trailblazer in a way that’s accessible for a contemporary audience.This conversation was recorded on October 7, 2021.––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––This podcast is brought to you by the Vancouver International Film Festival.Presented on the traditional and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) nations.The Greater Vancouver International Film Festival Society is a not-for-profit cultural organization that operates the internationally acclaimed Vancouver International Film Festival (VIFF), the year-round programming of the theatres at the VIFF Centre and the online streaming platform, VIFF Connect. See what's playing now.As a nonprofit cultural organization, VIFF relies on community support to help make everything we do possible.  You can show your love of cinema by making a tax-deductible gift to VIFF. goviff.org/donateThis podcast is brought to you by the Vancouver International Film Festival.Presented on the traditional and unceded territory of the xʷməθkʷəy̓əm (Musqueam), sḵwx̱wú7mesh (Squamish), and sel̓íl̓witulh (Tsleil-Waututh) nations.