In the past decade, the independent film scene has gone Hollywood. A-list actors are increasingly starring in low-budget films, and once “indie” film festivals such as Sundance and Cannes have become yearly battlegrounds for bidding wars between mainstream studios searching for the newest box office hit.
However, this Saturday at the Billy Wilder Theater, moviegoers will be able to see the works of one of cinema’s most talented, yet often overlooked, truly independent filmmakers.
In collaboration with the UCLA Film and Television Archive, the theater will feature two of alum Charles Burnett’s films, “Killer of Sheep” (1977) and “My Brother’s Wedding” (1983), as well as a short film about Hurricane Katrina, “Quiet as Keep” (2007).
“I remember we all thought of him as a legend. He was truly making films in the spirit that most embodies the UCLA ideal of filmmaking, really independent and visually compelling,” said associate film Professor Nancy Richardson, who attended UCLA with Burnett and has since helped to edit a number of his films.
Born in Mississippi and raised in Watts, one of the most violent areas of Los Angeles, Burnett came to UCLA in the 1960s to pursue an interest in filmmaking.
“From Watts to Westwood was a big jump. UCLA really helped him broaden his knowledge. It gave him the opportunity to branch out and see different parts of society,” said Charles Bracy, Burnett’s childhood friend and an actor who played a significant role in “Killer of Sheep.”
Growing up in Watts, Burnett experienced firsthand what life is like in a city often characterized by violence. However, such aspects are far from his focus as a filmmaker, as Burnett routinely breaks the mold by telling intimate stories of family, friendship, and other universal themes of humanity.
“Charles sticks to his guns,” Bracy said. “He doesn’t believe in showing a lot of sex and violence; he likes to show the other aspects of society. Therefore, when he is looking for scripts and they give him just a synopsis of the plot, he likes to read the whole script. He does not want to be held to something he does not believe in.”
His first feature film, “Killer of Sheep,” tells the story of an impoverished family living in Watts, whose father struggles to keep his family afloat while working at a local slaughterhouse. Though “Killer of Sheep” incorporates the raw realities this particular family is forced to deal with, many of Burnett’s other films focus on equally real moments of family, friendship and personal triumph.
“He often has said that he is not trying to present answers, but presenting real life, which is messy and complicated and has no easy answer,” said Ross Lipman, a film preservationist for the Film and Television Archive who worked closely with Burnett on the restoration of “Killer of Sheep.”
Though he has received recognition for his work, Burnett’s name is rarely recognized by the average moviegoer. Nonetheless, he has continued to produce quality and true independent films for decades, straying far from the usual products of mainstream cinema.
“He has often been called America’s greatest African American filmmaker, but I would call him one of the greatest independent filmmakers,” said Lipman.
Surrounded by an industry that thrives on flashy blockbusters, the screening of a truly genuine independent film serves as a reminder of the priceless passion of filmmaking.
“The public really hasn’t seen what this genius can really do,” Bracy said. “A lot of people could benefit from looking at his work, seeing the creativity, the articulation. They are really missing out on something.”