Charles Burnett

“And of course, I see my film here. And it’s the first time I’m seeing Killer of Sheep on Blu-ray. And I look forward to showing it to all my friends who hadn’t seen it. Be something to talk about.”

“Dodes’ka-den. It’s one of my favorite films. Every chance I… have, I would watch this film. It was such a wonderful film. It’s such a treat to watch and see. Dodes’ka-den. Yes.”

“A Day in the Country by Renoir. I like his… his choreograph– I mean his… the way he arranged characters. And when he was living in California, he lived quite near UCLA at the time and I would sneak past his house hoping that I would see him out on the street or something like that, but never had an opportunity. Anyway, he was one of my favorite filmmakers. I like his acting and I like the way he presents a community and how he dramatizes it. Another good filmmaker. You can learn a great deal from him.”

“Il Posto. You got all the best films here. Ermanno Olmi. I remember I was at a… I used to work for Chasin-Park, which was an agency, a talent agency, and some Italian producers came in and I was really excited about– “Oh, some Italians are coming in, so we can talk about Ermanno Olmi,” but it was a… a real sort of… a disappointment because they were very commercial, and… Ermanno Olmi was making films that were really relevant, but not exactly commercial. So he wasn’t very popular among producers who were out to make a lot of money, as opposed to creating a cinema that speaks to humanity. And… he’s one of my favorite Italian filmmakers. And filmmakers period.”

“One of my favorite film noir pieces. Double Indemnity is this film. It’s really a suspenseful film. I met Fred MacMurray. Because I used to work for this agency that handled him. I had to take scripts over to him and people like that, have them sign it, and that was my job. I was like a messenger. And he was such a nice person. A very talented actor. Good stuff.”

“And here I have Melvin Van Peebles, who I met years ago after he did… The Story of a Three Day Pass, I forget– it’s been so long. And he inspired a lot of filmmakers, people of color, and I remember him coming to UCLA and speaking to the class, and it was such a treat. And… I’m glad you have this film. I’m glad I can take this away. The classic.”

“Ousmane Sembène… Ousmane. And Emitaï is one of my favorite of his films. And… thinking about colonialism, and how they control all aspects of the people that they’ve colonized, and they’re forcing these Africans to go into brutal war for them and die for their cause. Fine film. Tragic, of course. But it’s still… it says a lot about humanity. It’s one of my favorite of Ousmane Sembène.”

“Okay, do we have… Ingmar Bergman? This is too much. This is very great. This is… The Seventh Seal I liked. I remember that. The Magician… Virgin Spring. You can’t go wrong with this. All of them. Persona was a big hit. Look at the body of work that he did. I look forward to sitting at home watching that on a rainy night or whatever. Or a hot night. Whatever night. Be special. Well, I can’t thank you enough.”