WHAT’S YOUR FAVOURITE?
What’s Your Favourite...?
Filmmaker and CAA Member Guy Maddin on old movies, friendly dog parks and his surprising side hustle.
By Nicole Keen
GUY MADDIN HAS BEEN MAKING FILMS since 1985, in a singular style that references silent films of the 1920s and 30s. He’s also accumulated accolades along the way, including being appointed to the Order of Canada in 2012. But Maddin sees his career as a bit of a slow burn. “Finally, after a major gap of many decades, I have gotten to know a few famous people,” he jokes. One such famous person is actor Cate Blanchett, who stars in Maddin’s movie Rumours, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival in 2024. And while he may travel a lot, to attend film festivals and for a teaching stint at Harvard, Winnipeg will always be home.
PHOTO: KAREN ASHER
What do you love about living in Winnipeg?
My friends. My friends keep me inspired. I watch movies with them and they give me book recommendations.
Are you reading anything good at the moment?
Elect Mr. Robinson for a Better World by Donald Antrim. He’s side-splittingly hilarious and astonishingly brilliant. He’s the closest thing to the kind of movies I want to make right now.
What are some of your favourite movies?
I’ve always liked Jean Vigo’s Zéro de Conduite. It’s a 40-minute-long French film from 1933. Love Me Tonight [1932] by Rouben Mamoulian is as close to a masterpiece as you’re going to get.
Growing up, were there any filmmakers you admired?
I wasn’t really a cinephile growing up. I liked the Minnesota Twins baseball team.
If you could work with anyone, living or dead, who would it be?
Fred Astaire. My daughter’s all grown up now, but when she was little, we watched a lot of Fred and Ginger movies together.
Do you and your French bulldog, Lil, have a favourite dog park?
We do. It’s called Little Mountain. It’s never too crowded and the people and the dogs are always nice.
You mentioned you make and sell collages through Instagram (@guy.maddin). How did that come about?
It started as work avoidance, I think, [from] way back, when I was working on that picture with Shelley Duvall in 1996. I usually storyboard movies, but I started using oil paint and collages. I discovered it was fun. Then my friend Paul Butler, a pre-eminent collage artist, invited me to join him at some collage parties and I had a blast. It’s really one of my favourite things to do. CAA
“My friends keep me inspired. I watch movies with them and they give me book recommendations.”
A selection of Maddin's collages: Prologue, The Dream; Winnipeg Route 90; The Bride | PHOTOS: COURTESY OF GUY MADDIN
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