Outstanding Director Award – David O. Russell, SBIFF 2014

Reviewed by Caroline Juul Mortensen at Santa Barbara International Film Festival, 2014

(Creative review)

D: irector of 11 movies, writer of 8 scripts and Producer of 8 movies

A: merican Hustle (2013) is nominated for 10 Oscars, it has 45 wins and 80 other nominations

V: ague is not a word you would use to describe Russell’s work

I: am a huge fan of David O. Russell and I fell even more in love with him after this interview

D: id in the end of the interview say: “Yeah, I’m a late bloomer” because his first directional effort was in the 1994 independent dark comedy “Spanking the Monkey”

O: wned the interview with Roger Durling Friday night January 31st

W: inner of SBIFF Outstanding Director Award 2014

E: nded up agreeing with Durling that he is now more prone to seek the delights of what too-short life offers than he was before

N: oted that Jennifer Lawrence is a “gift” in his films

R: “ussel has matured into one of the most essential voices in film today” recalled SBIFF Executive Director Roger Durling

U: ses techniques like handhold camera, Steadicam, shot on Ektachrome slide photography stock, filming explosions in one shot etc.

S: tarted out as a waiter and served for celebrities in Hollywood

S: pent his spare time on writing scripts and documenting his experiences after majoring in English and Political Science at Amherst College

E: asier to interview Russell now than Durling’s first interviews with him years ago

L: ots of jokes about who was controlling the interview – Russell or Durling?

L: adder with thousands of steps is what you need if you want to reach David O. Russell’s level of film making