“It is magical to return again to the Marrakech International Film Festival, which I discovered for the first time in 2009,” said the filmmaker known for the movies “Stranger Than Paradise” (1984), “Down by Law” (1986), “Dead Man” (1995) and “Ghost Dog: The Way of the Samurai” (1999), during his meeting with filmgoers at the 19th edition of the Marrakech International Film Festival, held under the High Patronage of HM King Mohammed VI.
Sharing his unconditional love for Marrakech and Morocco, “a wonderful country and warm people,” the American filmmaker emphasized his strong attachment to the city of Tangier, where he shot “Only Lovers Left Alive” (2013).
“Tangier inspired me a lot and offered me the opportunity to build intense relationships with beautiful people,” said the director of this vampire movie starring Tom Hiddleston and Tilda Swinton.
Before an attentive and admiring audience, Jarmusch, a filmmaker who has always refused to do what everyone else does, shared his singular vision of cinema and creation. “I can’t define my cinema…I think of each scene as a film in its own right without thinking about how the scenes will connect…like beads on a necklace,” he explained.
A true observer of small human interactions and inspired by the details of nature and life, Jarmusch, a prime example of the American independent filmmaker, said that “a big part of my job is to have an antenna to capture ideas, emotions, situations.”
Refusing to define his cinematographic style, the filmmaker, who since the early 80s has built a work of great coherence, both minimalist, personal, free and disenchanted, stressed that “there is a limited number of stories to tell, but there is an unlimited number of ways to tell them.”
He also admitted his passion for disorientation. “I’m open to disorientation and reorganization… I like to be in places where I am disoriented and try to get lost and see if I can find my way back,” he noted, expressing his passion for new adventures in new cities and cultures.
In this sense, Jarmusch refused any categorization. “I don’t understand why we have to put categories instead of the infinite beauty of diversity … the most beautiful thing about life on earth is diversity,” he said.
