Watching a filmmaker campaign for an Oscar can be a tedious and disingenuous process. Director Steve McQueen (12 Years A Slave), however, has kept discussion of his craft at the forefront of press interviews and today we have lengthy dialogue with the visual artist-turned-narrative filmmaker.
In this recent conversation held at Minneapolis’ The Walker Art Center, McQueen is candid about the stylistic and intellectual fascinations that fill his works. At one point, the British director admires the humor in John Ford‘s The Searchers and concludes it’s something he needs to learn how to do.
The conversation, led by Stuart Comer, covers some of the most contentious images in McQueen’s trio of films (Hunger, Shame, 12 Years A Slave) and discovers their origins in some of McQueen’s lesser known visual art installations. Take a look at the video (with a hat tip to The Playlist) and discover the artistic journey taken by one of the boldest filmmakers working today:
What did you glean from the conversation?