Interview with Sam Taylor Wood

It is not surprising that 2010 was marked by special attention to the figure of John Lennon. It is this year that not only the 70th anniversary of Lennon, but also the 30-year anniversary of his death will be held. In the homeland of Lennon, these dates were prepared thoroughly: at the end of 2009, the film “To become John Lennon” (the original name is Nowhere Boy) was released on the British screens. The director of the film was the famous English artist Sam Taylor-Wood, one of the brightest, along with Damien Hurst, representatives of the Young British Artists movement, for whom “to become John Lennon” turned out to be a debut in big cinema. On the eve of the premiere of the film in Kyiv, the editorial office of TOP10 magazine took an exclusive interview from Sam.

What prompted you to make a film about young John Lennon?

The script that fell into my hands. I immediately realized that I want to remove it. It’s not even a matter of Lennon - after all, I, in fact, have never been a bitter -beast, at least before filming the film. I decided to make this film because I was just amazed at how close this scenario was close to my own biography.

Previously, your works were shown in museums and galleries, and now in a regular film distribution.

It's just amazing. I am happy that I have the opportunity to turn to the general public. Although, of course, I did not expect that my film would become a rolling hit.

Is it possible to say that “becoming John Lennon” is a continuation of your works such as “crying men” or “pieta” with Robert Dauni Jr., where you deconstruct the concept of celebrities?

Yes, of course, with the difference that in my past works I could more rely on my own intuition. When you work in a movie, you need to understand much better what you are doing in order to be able to explain it to others.

You accompanied Aaron Johnson in the American promotional tour of his new film “Pick”. Tell us about your impressions.

Everything is exactly as you imagine. America is an ideal place to work in the cinema. But, unfortunately, I realized that I needed a different approach to creating films.

Read the full text in the fresh issue of the magazine top10