Oscar-winning filmmaker John Ridley has spent much of his past year investing time back into the Milwaukee area, where he grew up.
Ridley’s No Studios has been up and running for nearly a year. It’s hosted dozens of events. Now, the studio is preparing to host its inaugural capstone event, an arts-based social justice summit.
Ridley, the filmmaker behind '12 Years a Slave' and 'American Crime,' plans to bring a number of speakers, artists and musicians to No Studios for presentations focused on criminal justice reform, human trafficking and fair housing among other topics.
“We chose to start this business here because its important to us,” Ridley said, referring to No Studios.
No Studios’ intent is to bring people together with art as a vehicle for dialogue.
Ridley told TODAY’S TMJ4 most of his efforts over the past year were focused on Milwaukee and helping No Studios succeed in its first year.
The studio sits near the old Pabst Brewery in Milwaukee’s downtown. From the top floor, you see downtown to the east and the north side to the west.
“If you look to the east of the city, you see revitalization, you see growth, all the things that are aspirational,” Ridley said. “[To the west] There’s distress. There’s struggle and a lot of dollars going into the city aren’t flowing into this direction.”
Nov. 15, No Studios’ social justice summit hopes to help bring Milwaukee’s and the nation’s societal issues to the forefront, bringing people from all backgrounds together.
The social justice summit will happen on Nov. 15 and 16.
