Speaking Engagements
About Rita Coburn
Rita Coburn is a Peabody and Emmy Award-winning Director, Writer, and Producer of radio, television, and film. Beginning her career as a producer and writer for various news outlets across the U.S., Coburn went on to produce for the likes of The Oprah Winfrey Show, Oprah Radio, Apollo Live!, and Walt Disney Productions. In 2016, Maya Angelou: And Still I Rise, which was co-directed and co-produced by Coburn, premiered at the 2016 Sundance Festival and went on to win a Peabody Award in 2017. Coburn directed Marian Anderson: The Whole World in Her Hands, which premiered nationwide on February 8, 2022 on PBS American Masters. On May 19, 2026, her third documentary for American Masters, W.E.B. Du Bois: Rebel With A Cause, will air. Check local listings for the premiere and additional airings.
Coburn’s value is such that she bridges the gap between generations and preserves African-American history. Through her work, she uniquely addresses topics from a multi-generational lens with a passion for impacting others through the untold stories of prominent figures and key ideals relevant to African-American culture.
Speaking Topics
Press Videos
Upcoming Events
University of Massachusetts Amherst - University Libraries Fall Reception
Event Date: Friday, September 18, 2026
Program: W. E. B. Du Bois on Film: An Evening with Director Rita Coburn
Venue: University of Massachusetts Amherst
Amherst, Massachusetts
Admission: Free and open to the public
I'll be joining scholars who participated in the documentary for an evening featuring selected excerpts from the film and a conversation about bringing Du Bois's story to life through the remarkable collections housed at the Robert S. Cox Special Collections & University Archives Research Center.
Presented by the University Libraries in partnership with the Robert S. Cox Special Collections & University Archives Research Center and the W. E. B. Du Bois Center.
Sponsored by the UMass Amherst Foundation and the Fine Arts Center.
International African American Museum - W.E.B. DuBois Rebel With A Cause Documentary
Event Date: September 24, 2026
Program: W.E.B. DuBois Rebel With A Cause Documentary
Venue: International African American Museum
14 Wharfside Street
Charleston, SC 29401
Admission: $25.00
Southern Premier Screening of W.E.B. Dubois -Rebel With A Cause Documentary narrated by Viola Davis with special guests Director Rita Coburn & producer B. K. Fulton. Refreshments included.
Join us for the Southern Premiere screening of the national PBS documentary W.E.B. Du Bois: Rebel With A Cause from Peabody Award-winning director Rita Coburn. The film examines Du Bois’s remarkable life from his birth, just five years after the Emancipation Proclamation; to his death, on the eve of the March on Washington in 1963, and how his legacy as an activist continues to resonate today.
Drawing from his books, articles, speeches, and archival audio, Rebel With A Cause illuminates the poetry and force of his language through dramatic readings by Common, Courtney B. Vance, and Jeffrey Wright, with narration by Viola Davis.
Past Events
Martha's Vineyard African American Film Festival
8/10/2026 - Oak Bluffs, MA
The New Olivet Worship Center
5/18/2026 - Memphis, TN
Gene Siskel Film Center
5/2/2026 - Chicago, IL
Clark Atlanta University
4/1/2026 - Atlanta, GA
Manhattan Neighborhood Network & Black Public Media
2/19/2026 - New York, NY
Gordon Parks Documentary Film Festival
8/3/2026 - Chautauqua, NY
Emmy Chicago
5/15/2026 - Chicago, IL
The New School
4/27/2026 - New York, NY
The Black Hollywood Education and Resource Center
3/20/2026 - Los Angeles, CA