Famed sex therapist Dr. Ruth Westheimer changed the conversation around intimacy with her frank and exuberant advice. Ask Dr. Ruth charts her meteoric rise and reveals how her incredible life shaped a profound desire to help people find pleasure. Director Ryan White follows Westheimer as she traverses the globe. At 90 years old, she still has a calendar packed with speaking engagements, and their enjoyable rapport leads to moments of both humor and poignant reflection. Beautiful animation captures memories from her childhood and the tremendous loss she experienced as a young girl—she was separated from her parents during the Holocaust and never saw them again. Her recollections eventually lead us through the milestones of her life, including her own love stories, her journey to America, her career before she became a household name, and her role as a mother and grandmother. Throughout, excerpts from Westheimer’s vivid career in television and radio remind us of the ways these personal experiences influenced her public identity and still-unfolding legacy.  ST

Filmmaker Q&A following screening