11 Sep 2019
My People My Culture
A sincere and straightforward statement by Lav Diaz about the art life. I share these principle and generally think along similar lines. But I have never understood or felt empathy for the notion of “my people” and “my culture.” I have always found such concepts utopian and far-fetched. I think my only duty (without any moral hidden agenda) is to offer a shadow vision of what life might have been or may have been looked or sounded like. This vision needs no justification beyond itself. My work demands complete freedom of imagination to summon reality in a sort of seance, to seek out its uncannily incomprehensible nature and to render an impossible perspective on it. Therefore I sell my soul to a universe which only cinema can materialise. This is my struggle, one which hopefully some others might feel the need to share.
“I’m very fatalistic about life. Whatever happens, happens. The imperative for me is that I do my contribution for my people, for my culture. I still want to make films for them. I still want to make films that confront our struggles.” – Lav Diaz