SXSW 2022 Exclusive: George Anthony Morton, Producer Roger Ross Williams & Director Rosa Ruth Boesten talk ‘Master Of Light’
Making its World Premiere at the 2022 SXSW Film Festival was the inspirational documentary Master Of Light, which marks the documentary feature debut of Rosa Ruth Boesten. The film was produced by Academy Award winner Roger Ross Williams, Anousha Nzume, and Ilja Roomans.
Presented by IMAX, the film won the DOCUMENTARY FEATURE COMPETITION.
“In both substance and form, Master of Light is a gift. The earnest and gifted painter George Anthony Morton embeds viewers in his world as he struggles to render his mother — both on the canvas and in his psyche. Boesten disabuses us of static tropes about America’s merciless drug war and about contemporary art. With astonishing intimacy, the film’s visuals build an artful bridge between two- and three-dimensional realms that are deeply rooted and utterly transcendent. Put this painting of a film in a museum, next to a Rembrandt and a Morton.”
George Anthony Morton is a classical painter who spent ten years in federal prison for dealing drugs. While incarcerated, he nurtured his craft and unique artistic ability. Since his release, he is doing everything he can to defy society's unlevel playing field and tackle the white-dominant art world. Now, he is on a journey back to his hometown of Kansas City, where he tries to heal the broken relationship with his mother-- who's in-and-out of jail-- and paint family members in the style of the Dutch Old Masters. Going back forces George to face his past in his quest to rewrite the script of his life and discover the contribution of African influences to the realist tradition.
Rosa’s debut documentary short was about her grandmother who was a single mother and struggling artist. She specialized in beautiful works of monumental textile art. Rosa told her grandmother’s story through her artwork, and suddenly a seed was planted. She studied directing of documentary film at the Netherlands Film Academy and graduated in 2013.
Roger Ross Williams is an award-winning director, producer, writer and the first African-American director to win an Academy Award with his short film Music By Prudence. His documentaries include: Life, Animated, which won the Sundance Film Festival Directing Award, won three Emmys in 2018, and was nominated for an Academy Award; God Loves Uganda, which was shortlisted for an Academy Award®; Emmy-nominated and Webby-winning VR experience Traveling While Black; and The Apollo which won a Primetime Emmy for Outstanding Documentary.
During the festival, the filmmakers and Morton spoke with Blackfilmandtv.com’s Wilson Morales about the making on this film.