Gus Van Sant
Gus Van Sant
Gus Green Van Sant, Jr.is an American film director, screenwriter, painter, photographer, musician and author who has earned acclaim as both an independent and more mainstream filmmaker. His films typically deal with themes of marginalized subcultures, in particular homosexuality; as such, Van Sant is considered one of the most prominent auteurs of the New Queer Cinema movement...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionDirector
Date of Birth24 July 1952
CountryUnited States of America
couple thinking hunting
In rare cases, I've had music before I shot the movie. I think that for 'Good Will Hunting' I had an Elliot Smith record or a couple of them and I just somehow felt like the sound had something to it that reminded me of the story. So in that case there was music beforehand.
independent thinking guy
I don't think American independent films have ever really been particularly experimental, except for the original guys from the '60s who were huge influences, like Stan Brakhage, Robert Breer, and Stan van der Beek. They were the true independents.
drama animal ideas
I have my ideas of what a good documentary is, but drama is a different animal because you're arranging everything.
different filmmaking really-weird
I'm going in a really weird I-don't-know-where direction, but I prefer anything [different] from how standardized filmmaking has become.
directors executives ifs
If it were up to the executives, they probably wouldn't have directors at all.
brother character kids
Because I didn't have brothers, I was always interested in the kids down the street that had four brothers in their family, so I became one of them - but it was not my family. I've always been attracted to temporary families. They tend to be lost characters.
movie hunting actors
I'd come into filmmaking as a painter so, for me, making 'Good Will Hunting' was experimental because I didn't know how to do it.
people balls helping
Sometimes, the people who are helping you can drop the ball.
real people trying
I try to shoot the first rehearsal because people are more spontaneous. People in real life don't really know where they are going to be either positioning themselves or how they will be saying their words. When people goof during the first take, it usually looks realistic.
teenage adventure space
The area of teenage life is not necessarily rarefied; we've all gone through that period. It's not as rarefied as a western or a space adventure or a gangster film, but it has its own dynamic.
thinking information cinema
Modern-day cinema takes the form of a sermon. You don't get to think, you only get to receive information.
trying stories actors
I'm usually trying to react to what the actors are coming up with. And then the environment, and then the story.
casting assuming concern
Casting the locals is my primary concern because all the other things you assume will be manageable.
movie viewpoints actors
Even when you're making a movie about life, death is a presence, and I guess it's part of my dramatic viewpoint. I'm not sure why exactly.