Films byTexts by Charles Burnett
FILM
To Sleep with Anger
Charles Burnett, 1990, 102’

African-American drifter Danny Glover shows up at the LA doorstep of his old pal Paul Butler. In the spirit of auld lang syne, Butler takes Glover in, though his wife (Mary Alice) is not happy with this intrusion.

FILM
Killer of Sheep
Charles Burnett, 1977, 81’

Set in the Watts area of Los Angeles, a slaughterhouse worker must suspend his emotions to continue working at a job he finds repugnant, and then he finds he has little sensitivity for the family he works so hard to support.

 

FILM
Several Friends
Charles Burnett, 1969, 21’

“Charles Burnett’s first 16mm student film, Several Friends, showcases his early facility with a documentary approach to fiction, his ability to draw out eccentric and endearing characterizations from an ensemble of nonprofessional actors, and his sensitivity to the expressive possibilit

Conversation EN
14.06.2017
Meeting Charles Burnett

“This was also the case with Killer of Sheep: its objective was to change the perception of coloured people, in spite of what Hollywood had created, this myth, and to give voice to people who didn’t have access to Hollywood to tell their story. The film was made for multiple reasons: to demystify filmmaking in the community and to introduce filmmaking to kids, notably by having children work on the sound and on other technical aspects of the film. We wanted to show people who were interested in making a change in the community, to use film as a means for social change.”

Article NL EN
14.06.2017
Binnenstadsblues

Elke andere kunstvorm viert het leven, het schone, het ideaal, en heeft een progressief effect – behalve de Amerikaanse cinema. De situatie is van die aard dat je steeds gevraagd wordt om je integriteit aan te tasten, en als de sociaal georiënteerde film eindelijk gemaakt wordt, zullen de vertoningen doorgaans beperkt zijn en zullen zij voor wie de film gemaakt is en over wie hij gaat, hem waarschijnlijk nooit zien. Om filmmaken levensvatbaar te maken, heb je de steun van de gemeenschap nodig; je moet deel worden van haar agenda, een aspect van haar voortbestaan.

Article NL EN
14.06.2017
Inner City Blues

Any other art form celebrates life, the beautiful, the ideal, and has a progressive effect – except American cinema. The situation is such that one is always asked to compromise one’s integrity, and if the socially oriented film is finally made, its showing will generally be limited and the very ones that it is made for and about will probably never see it. To make filmmaking viable you need the support of the community; you have to become a part of its agenda, an aspect of its survival.