Ira Sachs
Ira Sachs
Ira Sachsis an American filmmaker. His first film was the acclaimed short Lady...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionDirector
Date of Birth21 November 1965
CountryUnited States of America
art context films meet naive nature possible within
I always think of my films within the context of where aesthetics meet economics. That's the nature of making art - not being naive about what is possible and getting what you need to tell the story you want to tell.
found rehearsal rehearse rehearsed sydney time turn
I don't rehearse with my actors... the first rehearsal is the first time we turn the camera on... Sydney Pollack never rehearsed his actors, and I found out that's allowed... so you film reactions; you don't create them.
born civil grew history king liberties luther martin member three
I grew up in the 1960s in Memphis, and my father was a member of the American Civil Liberties Union. I was born three years before Martin Luther King was killed, and I think that history of civil action was something that I had in my blood.
catching life middle thrown
I like a film that makes the audience feel like they are in the middle of life as it is moving, and in a way, they are catching up. They are thrown into things.
discovered early few movies paris stay three watched
I started making movies in the early '90s, a few years after I discovered 'the cinema' during a three month stay in Paris during which I watched 100s of films.
effect experience
I think it's interesting: What is the generational effect of the experience of being a gay person in America? For my generation, it was very difficult.
films four interested longer nature subject
I've made four films about the destructive nature of relationships, of secrets and lies, and I think I'm no longer interested in that subject - which is a wonderful relief.
aspects exciting good hidden life movies revealing secrets truths
Secrets make for good drama, and revealing the hidden truths and contradictions of life is, for me, one of the most exciting aspects of making movies.
bad behavior consequences energy great judgment lights loved shy similar
What I loved about 'Goodfellas' is that it's a film about bad behavior - but told with great energy and without judgment - but it doesn't actually shy away from the consequences of that behavior in the characters' lives, which I think is similar in 'Keep the Lights On.'
based history places realize
As a filmmaker, you realize that places have character based on their history as much as a face does or an actor does.
art gotten less life loving
As I've gotten less righteous, less pedagogic, I have become more loving of the artificiality, the art form, the imitation of life in film.
hard interested
I've always been interested in how the individual comes to know and accept him or herself, which I think has been hard for me.
adam artists campaign center downtown filmmaker films invites love name obama present queer realized series soon structure york
Working on the Obama campaign was a life-changer for me. I realized during that campaign that structure is the name of the game, and so, soon after the election, filmmaker Adam Baran and I started Queer/Art/Film, a monthly series at the IFC Film Center in downtown New York that invites queer artists to present the films they love to an audience.
films
All of my films have been autobiographical - it's all I've got to go on.