Biography
Who is Lindsay Ellis?
Early life and education
Lindsay Ellis was born in Johnson City, Tennessee. She grew up there as the only child of James C. Ellis and Sue Ellis. During her teenage years, she met future collaborators on fanfiction.net.
Regarding her academic background, Lindsay attended Science Hill High School. She later earned a BA in Film Studies from New York University in 2007. She finished her education with an MFA from the USC School of Cinematic Arts in 2011.
Career in video and film
Between 2008 and 2014, she hosted the web series The Nostalgia Chick for Channel Awesome. She produced over 100 videos for that series before moving toward long-form video essays. Her YouTube work includes topics like Walt Disney Pictures films and the Transformers series in The Whole Plate.
Lindsay Ellis also worked on the documentary short The A-Word in 2010. She co-wrote and edited the documentary The Hobbit Duology in 2018, which was a finalist for a 2019 Hugo Award. She currently shares content through the Nebula streaming service and has returned to YouTube in 2024.
Other projects include the It's Lit! Web series for PBS Digital Studios and the MusicalSplaining podcast. In 2025, she released a video regarding Ms. Rachel and the Gaza genocide that raised over $850,000 for the Palestine Children's Relief Fund.
Writing and literary work
As an author, she published the science fiction novel Axiom's End in July 2020. This book reached the New York Times Best Seller list and was part of the Noumena series. The novel was also a bestseller for the Los Angeles Times and Wall Street Journal.
She was previously known for writing the paranormal romance parody Awoken under the name Serra Elinsen. This project was a collaboration with Elisa Hansen and Antonella Inserra. Her writing achievements led to her being shortlisted for the Astounding Award for Best New Writer.
Personal life
Lindsay is a vegetarian and identifies as bisexual. She currently resides in Long Beach, California, with her husband and their two children.
Throughout her time as a content creator, Lindsay Ellis has dealt with various campaigns of online harassment. She previously announced a retirement from YouTube in 2021 due to these issues and cancel culture, though she later returned to the platform in 2024.
Birthday and age
Lindsay Ellis was born on November 24, 1984, which makes Lindsay 41 years old today. That birthday falls under the Sagittarius sign. Lindsay shares the date with 35 other famous people.
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