Steve James is one of the best documentary filmmakers to ever have lived. His
movies examine the fault lines that underlie American society, often (but not
always) those of race and class, and how those who have power often attempt to
maximize the amount they wield over those who do not. His seminal 1994 film
Hoop Dreams, one of the greatest movies ever made, served as a kind of calling
card for his interests going forward. He was going to tell stories about what
it means to grow up and to live in a country that takes certain social strata
for granted. But Hoop Dreams also marked James as a filmmaker of real
ambition. The film took almost eight years to make, and it required shooting
250 hours of footage. That ambition has been further realized in the new
10-part documentary America to Me, now airing on the Starz network. James and
his crew trace one year in the life of a racially diverse high school in the
Chicago suburbs, and along the way, they reveal some of the underlying
hypocrisies in white progressivism, as well as a story of how racial
inequities in education can perpetuate themselves even in a school that lauds
itself for its commitment to social justice. James joins the show this week to
talk about making America to Me, about his many wonderful other films, and
about making movies tackling issues of race as a white filmmaker.
Read more
Steve James is one of the best documentary filmmakers to ever have lived. His
movies examine the fault lines that underlie American society, often (but not
always) those of race and class, and how those who have power often attempt to
maximize the amount they wield over those who do not. His seminal 1994 film
Hoop Dreams, one of the greatest movies ever made, served as a kind of calling
card for his interests going forward. He was going to tell stories about what
it means to grow up and to live in a country that takes certain social strata
for granted. But Hoop Dreams also marked James as a filmmaker of real
ambition. The film took almost eight years to make, and it required shooting
250 hours of footage. That ambition has been further realized in the new
10-part documentary America to Me, now airing on the Starz network. James and
his crew trace one year in the life of a racially diverse high school in the
Chicago suburbs, and along the way, they reveal some of the underlying
hypocrisies in white progressivism, as well as a story of how racial
inequities in education can perpetuate themselves even in a school that lauds
itself for its commitment to social justice. James joins the show this week to
talk about making America to Me, about his many wonderful other films, and
about making movies tackling issues of race as a white filmmaker.
Read less