An archival photo of Ike Maxwell blowing past defenders from Fremont Ross High School.

A longtime Elyria resident is finally set to bring the story of Elyria football phenom Ike Maxwell to life on film, after a half a decade of work and a lifetime of hearing the tales of Maxwell, his family and the city that made him.

On Feb. 6 filmmaker Tara Conley will hold the first public screening of her film “Dry Bones,” which explores not just Maxwell’s life and football career, but the realities of sports, community and race that grip Elyria and so many cities like it.

Maxwell stands at the center of that story because of his prominence in the community, but also because his younger brother, Daryl Maxwell, was shot in the back and killed by a white Elyria police officer in 1975, kicking off three days of protests and violence that rocked the city.

“We focused on that incident in the film and how it impacted Ike’s trajectory after that point,” Conley said. “He was a rising football star, he was compared to all the greats that came out of Ohio including (former Ohio State and Cincinnati Bengals running back) Archie Griffin. But this incident, along with some other compounding issues that he had, derailed his trajectory.”

"Dry Bones" will be screened to the public for the first time at Karamu House, 2355 E. 89th St. in Cleveland on Feb. 6. The screening is free and doors will open at 5 p.m. with the screening to begin at 6:30 p.m. and a discussion with the filmmakers to follow. Attendees should register with the Greater Cleveland Film Commission at clevelandfilm.com.