Exclusive Podcast: John Sayles on Honeydripper

Nov 15, 2007 12:00 PM

John Sayles is probably the doyen of American independent filmmakers. Over the past three decades, he has been able to direct a fiercely independent body of work, while helping fund his career by being screenwriter and screendoctor on such films as Piranha, The Howling, Apollo 13, and Jurassic Park IV. Directing almost 20 films, he has covered much of America’s 20th-century history and social movements, with some foreign locales and subjects as well. He has tackled everything from disillusionment over the Vietnam era (Return of the Secaucus 7) to labor unrest (Matewan) to race relations and culture clashes (Brother from Another Planet, Sunshine State); identity and sexuality (Baby Its You, Lianna); the wilds of Mexico (Men With Guns) and Alaska (Limbo); and baseball (Eight Men Out).

For his latest film, Honeydripper, Sayles has moved to the crossroads of rural Alabama looking for the intersection of Delta Blues and rock ‘n’ roll. He has found it with the help of some dynamite performances from actors and musicians and some beautiful cinematography from Dick Pope, the DP on most of Mike Leigh’s films. To listen to a podcast of our interview with John Sayles at the Hollywood Roosevelt Hotel, click here