Rob Lucas is one busy guy. He sits on the board of Akron Film+Pixel, which runs Akron’s newest independent theater, The Nightlight. He’s also the father of a three-year-old and works full-time as editor for Gray & Company Publishers. Still, after two of the authors he works with wrote short stories about celebrated Olympic athlete Stella Walsh, Lucas was inspired to take on another project and began making his own documentary. “I thought her story was so interesting,” Lucas told me. “I wondered why no one had done a book or a movie about her.” A Cleveland legend, Stella Walsh was killed during a 1980 robbery. Her autopsy revealed a genetic condition that put Walsh’s gender in question and her records at risk. “My background in film and my job as a book editor came together in this project that ended up taking almost five years to finish.” The result, a documentary just shy of 15 minutes in length, has been part of the Austin Film Festival and in the Short Film Corner at Cannes Film Festival. It is showing again this Wed., March 25 at 9:20pm as part of the Cleveland International Film Festival (CIFF) Ohio Shorts program. (Remember to use the Maltz Museum code MMJH29 to save $2 on any ticket you buy for CIFF.) I talked to Rob about his Stella Walsh’s legacy, his film and the upcoming festival.
When you first heard about Stella Walsh, what drew you into her story?
I have always been interested in stories about gender. I thought I had heard all of the big sports stories involving Cleveland but obviously I hadn’t. Stella Walsh was very popular in Cleveland at one time. She coached thousands of kids over the years and there is even a rec center named after her. I saw this as a good opportunity to make an informative film with a local interest angle and a good story. The topic of gender in sports also had become very timely.
She had a lot of medals, ribbons and records, but ultimately what about her story is important to you?
What I tried to illustrate through her story is that gender is not always binary. It’s not always black and white. It’s not always male and female. Whether it’s sociological, genetic, biological or psychological, gender can be very complicated. She was an example of that. She lived in an era of extreme discrimination. She ran in the 1936 Olympics in Berlin and ran the 100-meter-dash in front of Hitler. And even though she had this genetic condition that could have been exposed, she was driven to compete in the public eye. She did everything to the best of her ability and she inspired a lot of people.
So, how do you think the public discovery of some of the ambiguity around her gender affects her legacy?
There are people I have spoken to who want to focus exclusively on her records and don’t want to take into account her biography. People who do take that into consideration may look at her legacy differently than they might have if she didn’t have this genetic condition. But, there are many athletes that competed for years that we’ll never hear about and whose legacies have died out completely. Hers hasn’t. Maybe that is in part because of the story. There is a give and take there. I have experienced some criticism about making this movie from people who feel it might further damage her sports legacy or bring her medals into question again, but this information is already out there. Every four years when there is an article about gender and the Olympics it’s likely to include at least a mention of Stella Walsh. Many of those pieces aren’t even factual . . . they’re speculative. Those articles, I believe, are unfair. I tried to be as objective as I could in my documentary. But I can understand the position that the discovery and subsequent coverage of her genetic condition may have hurt or altered her legacy.
What 
do you think is her place in Cleveland history?
Gender verification testing became required for the Olympics and many international sporting events beginning in the early 1960s through 1999. A lot of the rules regarding gender were drafted in part as a reaction to the discovery of her gender. Her name in Cleveland is still very important. Her name in Poland is still very important. She broke many records and she influenced many people when she was alive. There were several people that she trained and mentored that went on to win medals too.
You mentioned appreciating the Maltz Museum. Can you talk about that?
The first time I visited the Maltz Museum was for an exhibition about the 1936 Olympics—the year that Stella competed. There was a little information about her in it. What I liked about the Museum overall was that the information about Jewish culture, history and heritage was accessible for people who weren’t Jewish and just wanted to know more about it. My wife and I both learned a lot. And I just loved the architecture of the building. I’s say it’s one of my favorite buildings in Northeast Ohio.
What has been the reaction to the film?
It’s been overwhelmingly positive, for the most part. People are really intrigued by her story and they want to know more about her beyond what is in the documentary. Everyone asks if there is going to be a follow up feature, which I would like to do. But that wouldn’t be only about Stella. It would be about gender in sports or gender and the Olympics.
When is Stella Walsh: A Documentary playing at CIFF and will you be there?
Yes, I will be at Tower City Cinemas on March 25 at 9:20pm for the Ohio Shorts program.
What is your favorite thing about CIFF? Why would you tell someone to go who might not have had the experience?
I think you could go and see a random movie and enjoy something about it. I have never seen anything there that I really disliked. And it’s pretty accessible. There’s free parking. It’s in downtown Cleveland, so there are things to do and see and places to eat between movies.
Do you have one insider tip about how to negotiate such a busy festival?
Buy your tickets in advance. Almost every film goes on standby. Also, get there early. If you get there too late, you might not get in.
