To the present day the spirit of the Swinging Sixties continues to exert a fascination: the coexistence and conflict of the memories of the not-so-distant Second World War combined with the harsh realities of industrial labour on the one hand, and the mixture of hope for the future, cultural revolution, and hedonism on the other. The Beatles, who initially performed, like many other rock 'n' roll bands of the time, in shoes with pointed toes and leather jackets, quickly became a symbol of the era. Epstein, who began his career as the manager of the family record store in Liverpool, shaped the band into the legendary Fab Four. In a manner akin to Epstein's life story, the production history of the feature film MIDAS MAN was marked by ups and downs: two directors, Sara Sugarman and Jonas Åkerlund, dropped out before Joe Stephenson took over.
The director was especially interested in two aspects of Epstein's life story that illustrate how the manager was able to advance from the periphery to the centre of society and came to shape the latter – without ever fully belonging.
Stephenson: “The thing is, so much of the industry was based in London, in and around London, in the U.K. I think first off, there was this prejudice to anybody outside of that world. So Brian comes in with these Liverpudlian lads, and everyone’s like – what? What do we do with this? That was one of the great things that Brian did, was make opportunities for people who weren’t from that world. “
And about Epstein's relationship to his Jewish heritage:
Stephenson: “He was very proud of his Jewish background and his family. [….]It was a huge part of him, and he suffered a lot of antisemitism when he was younger. He went to a lot of different schools when he was younger, and he suffered bullying for his Jewishness. So it affected him, and it was a huge part of him. I think there was obviously a complicated relationship there with it, especially as a gay man. When you’re doing a biopic of somebody who is real, you’ve got to pinpoint the things that are incredibly formative, both positive and negative. Obviously, society was negative particularly on his sexuality, but his Judaism and his relationship with both the religion and his family was incredibly important, incredibly strong. His loyalty and generosity, I think, it all spins out of that. “
Quotes from here
Text: Bernd Buder
Following the screenings on May 8th, 9th and 10th there will be a Q&A with director Joe Stephenson.
JFBB goes OPEN AIR
Sa, May 10, 20:30
INSELBÜHNE POTSDAM (OPEN AIR)
(Burgstraße, 14467 Potsdam)
