Thanks to his exceptionally original scripts for films such as ‘Being John Malkovich’ (1999), ‘Adaptation’ (2002) and ‘Forget me not!’ (for which he received an Oscar in 2005), Charlie Kaufman is considered one of the best authors in Hollywood. He also launched a directing career in 2008 with ‘Synecdoche, New York’, but although the existentialist tragicomedy became a cult favorite and American star critic Roger Ebert later called it the best film of the 2000s, the film was a Box office flop .
This was followed in 2015 with ‘Anomalisa’, a love story among dolls. The 64-year-old produced his last film to date, the nightmare comedy “I’m Thinking Of Ending Things” (2020), no longer for the screen, but exclusively for the streaming service Netflix. But even though Kaufman has already scored four Oscar nominations and all of his projects have received critical acclaim, he finds it difficult to realize new projects. No wonder he isn’t very fond of the American film industry…
Charlie Kaufman: “Writers are trained to eat garbage and write.”
During a masterclass at the Sarajevo Film Festival, Kaufman not only expressed support for the SAG-AFTRA strikes, but also lashed out at Hollywood (via Far Out Magazine).
“At the moment you can only make money with waste,” were the clear words of the filmmaker. “It’s very tempting for the studios, but also for the people who get involved in becoming the creators of this mess, especially when they are then praised for the mess because they don’t look inward and have to think about what they’re actually doing . .”
Last but not least, he meant his colleagues, because “Writers are trained to eat garbage and write (…) As long as they’re trapped in this arena and have to do this shit, you might as well let an AI do it.”
The screenwriters’ strike is not just about better wages, but also about the real fear of being gradually replaced by artificial intelligence. “Like you […] Once studios are allowed to write their scripts using AI, there will be no turning back and no hope. Because AI cannot create moments of humanity. As long as there are people dealing with it and fighting against it, there is still a chance that something will come out of it that is of value to people.”
In a speech he gave to international industry experts, Kaufman also called on attendees to “make as many films outside the studio system as possible and look for ways to make that happen.” He himself has the dream of setting up an artists’ organization. to fund and support filmmakers “who are doing something worthwhile.”