Nestled somewhere on the calendar between Sundance and the Oscars, the Santa Barbara Film Festival took place this week with guests including a few of the most prolific directors of 2017. Christopher Nolan, Greta Gerwig, Guillermo del Toro, Jordan Peele, and Paul Thomas Anderson all attended the festival where they were honored with the Outstanding Directors of the Year Award.
In the midst of all the festival panels and procedures, a duo of bold middle-schoolers from Santa Barbara Middle School Press seized an opportunity to interview Paul Thomas Anderson on the red carpet. The gracious director seemed enthused to see the pair (with camera and mic at the ready) and took a few minutes to thoughtfully answer their questions. The encounter is pretty heartwarming and a fine example of what makes PTA such a class act in the troubled Hollywood landscape.
Not to mention he gives all of us a great piece of advice.
“I think that I do what I love, [and] I think I do it because I love it,” Anderson explained when asked what he could attribute his success to. “I just happened to be lucky enough to make money at it and get awards, I don’t do it because of that. I do it because I need to and it’s important for me to do.” He later added, “Work with your friends, that what I say.” That's a great tip, especially when you happen to be friends with the great Daniel Day-Lewis.
