The_Film_That_Changed_My_Life

Harlan County U.S.A.
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is to want to tell compelling international stories. But I think abroad, it’s a
bit more like it was here twenty to thirty years ago, where people weren’t so
jaded and suspicious. People are more inclined to embrace you if you show
an interest.
Tell me about your perception and experience with this film on subsequent
viewings. You watched it as a younger man and now you watch it
deep into your career. How has your perception of it changed?
James: As I said earlier, I think my recollection of it before watching it again
was that it was much more of a pure verité film. Seeing it now, I didn’t even
remember because it was so long ago that there were historical parts beyond
just the credits at the beginning, which some films will typically do. She
really puts that history in there. I think realizing what an eclectic documentary
approach was, was something that I had not remembered.
In that, I could even find more of its influence on me, because I’ve always
felt that it’s important to interview subjects. And some of the best interviews
are with subjects in the midst of a situation. Not sitting them down and saying,
“OK, now we’re going to have a formal interview.” You see that all over
this film, where people are standing out there right after a protest action or
waiting for something to happen, and that’s when Barbara’s asking them
questions about the moment. That was a way in which it influenced me.
How would your life or work be different if you hadn’t seen the film
when you saw it?
James: Who knows? That’s one of those impossible questions to answer.
Maybe I might still be trying to make dramatic films. I like dramatic films,
too, but the truth is that I think I would have found my way to documentary
anyway. I think that documentary, or at least the kinds of documentary that
I’ve tried to make, combined these two strong interests that I had. One was
storytelling: to tell a story, not explore an issue, but tell a story. The other
was journalism. Documentary just seemed like a perfect blend of that desire
to want to tell a story that made me fall in love with Stanley Kubrick’s work,
Arthur Penn’s work, but also to have it have the resonance that comes from
good journalism. I think Barbara’s film came along at just the right time.
There were other films that influenced me, too. Certainly Michael Apted’s