Sieze the Means of Distribution with John Sayles & Maggie Renzi
Saturday, March 22 from noon to 3:00 PM
John Sayles is one of the most celebrated independent American directors of the last two decades. Together with partner Maggie Renzi, they have managed to define the meaning of the word "independent' anlways adapting to the changes in the industry and reinventing the model. Sayles never tackles the same topic twice and twists of class and power permeate his scripts.
In this Master Class they will talk about their approach and how recently during the making of Sayles' latest feature, Honeydripper they rediscovered the fun of filmmaking. They will also discuss their decision to self-distribute the film so that it has the opportunity to find its audience and in turn get those fans to market the film themselves.
John Sayles began as a novelist and short story writer. As a screenwriter for Roger Corman's New World Pictures his early screenwriting credits include Piranha , The Howling and Alligator. Using the money he earned writing 'creature features', he financed his first feature as a writer/director/editor, The Return of the Secaucus Seven. His other films include Lianna, Baby, It's You, The Brother from Another Planet, Matewan, City of Hope, Passion Fish, The Secret of Roan Inish, Lone Star, Men With Guns, Limbo, Sunshine State, and Silver City . Throughout his career Sayles has continued to function as a screenwriter for hire, working with a "who's-who: of American and international directors and writing over fifty scripts. He received the John D. MacArthur Award, given to 20 Americans each year for their innovative work in diverse fields. He is also the recipient of the Eugene V. Debs Award, the John Steinbeck Award, and the John Cassavettes Award. He was recently honored with the Ian McLellan Hunter Award fo Lifetime Achievement by the Writer's Guild of America.
Maggie Renzi has been John Sayles’ creative partner since 1978 and she has produced nearly all of his movies. She has also acted in many of them. Renzi and Sayles were students together at Williams College in the early 1970s, and have been together since 1973. Renzi began her professional association with Sayles when she played a leading role in his first film, The Return of the Secaucus Seven, where she was also Unit Manager and Assistant Editor. Renzi produced Karyn Kusama’s Girlfight and is Executive Producer with Sayles on the new Jewish/Mexican movie by Alejandro Springall, entitled Se Habla Yiddish or My Mexican Shivah.