Marshall Curry
Marshall Curry
Marshall Curry is a two-time Academy Award-nominated American documentary director, producer, cinematographer and editor. His films include Street Fight, Racing Dreams, If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front and Point and Shoot...
NationalityAmerican
ProfessionDirector
CountryUnited States of America
edit work
When you work on something in an edit room with just a couple of other people, you never know how it is going to be received.
attracted bunch design english jobs public taught web worked
After college, I did a bunch of different jobs - taught English in Mexico, worked in public radio, worked for a web design company - but there was something about documentaries that really attracted me.
experience front magic time unfold watch works
The first time you watch a movie that you like, all of the magic works on you. It's an experience of having a world unfold in front of you. But if you watch it again, you start to see where the seams are.
gatherings
I've often thought even ragtag gatherings of documentary filmmakers are more fun than gatherings of fiction filmmakers.
both drawn dreams films kids mayor nascar people three wants
I think I'm drawn to people who dream big, and both films have that. In 'Street Fight, Cory Booker wants to become Mayor of Newark, and in 'Racing Dreams,' three kids want to become NASCAR drivers.
fond frame full generous magical outside pacing showing throwing trying
Full Frame is where I had the first showing of my first film, 'Street Fight.' I have a fond memory of pacing around outside the theater, nervously trying to keep from throwing up. It's a magical festival, well curated, with a warm and generous spirit.
definitely kinds social understanding
My understanding of environmentalism, of the things that radicalize people, of the ethics and effectiveness of different kinds of social protest have definitely become more nuanced and more informed, but they aren't much clearer.
environmental mainstream
I was surprised to see how much the mainstream environmental movement hates the ELF.
course hold point
Of course no documentary is completely 'objective.' Every decision you make - who to interview, how to edit, where to hold the camera - imposes a point of view on the film.
environmental people positive
I have a pretty positive view of environmental activism, but I didn't know much about the ELF. A lot of people make documentaries because they have something they want to say, but I make them because there's something I want to explore.
clever facebook minute moment notice park post present wandering
I find often I'm wandering around the park with my kids, and I notice something, and I think, 'Oh, I could come up with a clever Facebook post about that.' It's like, 'Wait a minute - that's not what I should be thinking. I should be present in the moment with my kids.'
complexity dreams election found lots people took urban within
With 'Street Fight,' it took an urban mayoral election and found lots of complexity in there. The same with 'Racing Dreams.' I wanted to show complexity within this world that most documentary people don't know anything about.
afraid awkward looking magic people performance second turn
When you are interviewing someone, never let your camera person turn off the camera. The second you turn off the camera, they'll say the magic thing that you'd been looking for the whole interview. People want to relax after the performance is done. Don't be afraid of awkward silence. That is your friend.
against bang films points sparks
To me, the most interesting films are films that take very strong points of view and bang them up against each other and let sparks happen.