Gus Van Sant's directorial work has ranged from the avant-garde (Gerry and Last Days) to the transgressive (Mala Noche and Drugstore Cowboy) to Hollywood crowd-pleasers (Good Will Hunting and Finding Forrester). His latest feature, Don't Worry, He Won't Get Far on Foot, is a bio-pic about the life of still-controversial Portland cartoonist John Callahan.
In this freewheeling conversation, Gus talks with S.W. Conser about his early career with indie-film pioneers Penny Allen and Eric Edwards, adventures with notorious authors William S Burroughs and Walt Curtis, his influence on the New Queer Cinema movement of the 1990's, the Old Portland charm of My Own Private Idaho, and the many years spent adapting John Callahan's story into a film with the help of Robin Williams.
If you'd like to hear an archival Words & Pictures conversation with John Callahan from 2005, that show can be found at this link.
- KBOO