The Sundance Kid

Festival founder Robert Redford discusses the big issues in film.

On the issue of diversity in filmmaking…

Diversity comes out of the word independence. Basically that’s the principal word that we operate from. It’s a word that I’ve operated from personally most of my life... If you’re independent-minded you’re going to do things different from the common form, then you’re going to have more diverse products.

On mainstream movies...

I want to make it clear that I’m not against the mainstream, because I’ve been very happily a part of that. A lot of the films I’ve been involved with have been mainstream films. So this independent film idea that we came up with for Sundance was not meant to be against – like insurgents coming in from the mountains to attack – the mainstream. It was meant to broaden the category, that’s all.

On film formats...

I’m old-fashioned enough to believe that it’ll always be important for people to go into a movie house. I will always believe that’s important. So whatever the technology drives us to that’s smaller and smaller and quicker and quicker, I will always believe that you can’t really replace the value of gathering in a community space, in the dark, with a big screen and being transported.

On advice for young filmmakers...

I guess film schools have become important; they didn’t exist when I was starting out. I’m not sure that’s the answer as much as experience, as much as getting out in the world and seeing what’s going on by firsthand experience, making an adventure for yourself. Hit the road. Don’t go from school to school then make a movie. You can, but you’re going to be relying on what you saw [ in other films]. Get out in the world, and have some real-life experience that’s going to feed your mind!