Errol Morris is widely considered to be one of the best American filmmakers, a reputation that is especially impressive considering that he works in the ghettoized genre of the documentary. Michael Meyer sat down with Morris in his Cambridge, Massachusetts, office to discuss photography, journalism, and the strangely overlooked fact that there is a real world out there. An extended print Q & A can be found here.
Video of the interview shot and edited by Malcolm Murray.
around the turn of the last century i was going to make a documentary about an ex-wrestling champ prize fighter who'd quickly become king of the hill as a promoter for a circus. however, this would be near gatsby near champ had to split town for being indicted by the AG for, basically, not being able to change his thieving ways. my chief interest aside this most colorful of characters were the various "pros" working in that line, and the amateurs at night, kids of all kinds, many of them ex-deliquents; anyhow, misfits.
The problem I faced this past winter, when someone expressed great enthusiasm for the underlying book material, was how to either [1] make a pseudo documentary, via all kinds of re-enactments and "found" footage and/or [2] turn the material into a film which exists in the realm of fiction, by articulating, bringing out the cops and robber, mob and backstabbing nature of this promotion business.
The first project entailed using as many of the "real" people involved originally, and in the same real promotion activity while re-enacting the documentary; and it got me into something that is a hybrid between play and film and that develops certain ideas of Brecht, Kipphardt, Handke and some French film makers; it was quite a long wrestling match for me and pal george malko expressed just the right unhappiness with something whose parts i kept very much in abeyance before i nailed them down, committed myself and I am probably not quite done with it yet while the second project, a straightforward film, then became very easy, and ends with a cop having a breakdown because wherever he turned there were thieves, including among the promoters who had worked the deal for his own department.
michaeel roloff
http://www.roloff.freehosting.net/index.html
mikerol.vcf
Posted by michael roloff
on Sun 20 Apr 2008 at 01:43 PM