Q&A with Spike Lee

By Lewis Eichelberger / VOX Staff

Spike Lee, the most influential African-American filmmaker of our age, entered the room without an entourage and without any of the ego you might expect from someone so famous. He was dressed in comfortable clothes, as well as his trademark Yankees cap, Air Jordans and distinctive glasses. With a couple of heavy bags slung across his shoulders and an umbrella in his hand to fight off the chilly rain that day, he carried himself like a family friend who had just arrived for a weekend visit.

In reality, Lee came to town — specifically Clark Atlanta University — to promote and discuss “When the Levees Broke,” his eye-opening documentary series about the people whose lives were devastated by Hurricane Katrina. My father was one of Lee’s film professors at Clark Atlanta, which gave me an in to getting an interview with him for VOX.

Even though Lee is sometimes portrayed in the media as an angry black man who lives to point out the wrongs of white oppressors, in fact he’s always shined the spotlight of scrutiny equally on the prejudices of people all across the color spectrum. Lee’s landmark movies, such as “Do the Right Thing” and “Malcolm X,” paved the way for film to present open discussions about the divides between races and nationalities. And since then he’s developed into a more well-rounded director, as evidenced by last year’s critically acclaimed, but definitely commercial bank heist film “The Inside Man,” which was Lee’s biggest box office success.

After the screening of “When the Levees Broke” and a Q&A session at Clark Atlanta, I got the chance to talk to Lee about his filmmaking career, his teen years and the importance of mixing politics and social observations with art.

VOX: How old are your kids, and do they watch your movies?

LEE: My daughter, Satchel, is 11, and my son, Jack, is 9. The only film of mine that they have seen all the way through is “Inside Man.”

VOX: I personally like the scene in “Inside Man” where you contrast the kid playing a very violent video game called “Kill That Nigga” with the bank robber who tells him he shouldn’t be playing games like that. Was that a message you wanted to get across?

LEE: I don’t know if it was an extra touch but it was just a way that kids play video games and I just wanted to incorporate this discussion between this bank robber and this little kid that is playing these violent video games. The kid was very good. I liked that scene very much, too. That was not in the script. I added that.

VOX: I knew you added that. Do your kids play video games?

LEE: We try to curtail them, but my son plays some. He has a PS2. We let them play video games, but they are not addicts.

VOX: How was your teenage life?

LEE: It was fun. I grew up in New York, so it was fun.

VOX: What type of student were you in high school?

LEE: I was an average student. I was smart but I just didn’t apply myself. I just did good enough to get by until I decided to become a filmmaker, and that’s when I decided to really got serious.

VOX: So did you decide to become a filmmaker when you were in high school?

LEE: No, when I got in college.

VOX: What advice on life do you have for young people these days?

LEE: I don’t really try to go around saying you should do this and you should do that. But it’s important for young people to think, you know, just try to educate yourself and read as much as you can. Young people don’t read anymore, not like they used to.

VOX: What advice do you have for young up-and-coming filmmakers?

LEE: Shoot. Shoot as much stuff as you can. Don’t worry about doing epics. Shoot little vignettes. Shoot, shoot, shoot and shoot some more.

VOX: “Inside Man” was your biggest grossing film. Do you want to keep doing more commercial films like this, or will you still mainly concentrate on your very socially and politically conscious creations such as “Do the Right Thing” and “Bamboozled”?

LEE: It’s not a plan, you know. If you get a good script and you like it, we do it. It’s not orchestrated when you throw it out on paper. I didn’t plan on filming “Inside Man.” I got sent the script and I liked it. I didn’t say I wanted to go out and do a bank heist film. [For the record, after the interview, VOX discovered that Lee has reportedly started working on a sequel to “Inside Man.”]

VOX: “When the Levees Broke” isn’t your first documentary that takes a close look at race issues. Earlier, you did “4 Little Girls,” a look at the bombing of the 16th Street Church in Birmingham where four African-American girls lost their lives. Is this something you want to do more of?

LEE: Oh yeah, I hope to do many more documentaries. But I don’t know what the subjects will be.

VOX: What types of films do you plan on doing in the future?

LEE: [laughs] Hopefully they’ll all be good films.

Lewis, who is 16 and home schooled, admits he was nervous sitting down with Lee, but that interviewing him was a dream come true.