Spike Lee Receives the 2008 Wexner Prize
He has a unique voice that’s much needed in American cinema. As a filmmaker, he’s fiercely independent—often with Hollywood money. That’s a difficult trick to pull off.—Martin Scorsese
Spike Lee, one of the foremost writers and directors in contemporary American film, has just been named the recipient of the next Wexner Prize. Always ready to break boundaries and challenge conventions with his influential works, Lee is the epitome of the ideals celebrated by the Wexner Prize. Nothing deters him from telling the stories he wants to tell, even though the unconventionality of his films has sometimes brought him intense criticism. He evocatively portrays contemporary issues such as race, sexuality, and the American experience with humor and tragedy. And he can engage, entertain, and enrage audiences simultaneously—while always leaving viewers questioning the world in which we live.
Wexner Center director Sherri Geldin comments: “he brings to all his projects a unique and independent vision combined with an unerring ‘street savvy.’ With this prize—his first from a multidisciplinary arts center—we honor Lee’s work in feature film, documentaries, television movies, music video, and even commercials.” Leslie H. Wexner, chair of the Wexner Center Foundation Board of Trustees, adds: “Spike Lee exemplifies what the Wexner Prize was created to celebrate: a bold creative spirit who is unafraid to provoke and challenge us. He tests the American mind, and its attitudes, assumptions, and values, and in doing so he has advanced American cinema in remarkable ways. We are thrilled to award the Wexner Prize to Spike Lee.”
Lee came to Columbus February 11–12 to participate in Wexner Prize events with Wexner Center members, Ohio State students, area teens, and others in our community. In celebration of Lee’s selection for the prize, we’re presenting a selection of his films in a series that runs all through February. You’ll also be able to watch When the Levees Broke, his epic and moving four-part documentary on Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath in New Orleans, in the Box throughout the month. Follow the links at right for more information.
More about Spike Lee
Lee is often labeled an “independent filmmaker.” Although some of his films—the bio-pic Malcolm X (1992) and the heist picture The Inside Man (2006)—have big budget backing, they never fall into the studio trap of being simple or predictable “popcorn movies.” With a consummate ability to weave intricate and thought-provoking stories, Lee blends imaginative creativity with hard-hitting reality. He first caught the attention of the American public with the provocative She’s Gotta Have It (1986) and has been working consistently, and prolifically, ever since. Lee was nominated for Academy Awards for best screenplay for his landmark Do the Right Thing (1989) and for best documentary feature for the moving Four Little Girls (1997). He received an Emmy Award for nonfiction directing for When the Levees Broke: A Requiem in Four Acts (2005), an epic four-part HBO series. Currently, he is working on a film based on James McBride’s novel Miracle at St. Anna about black soldiers who fought in World War II.
Lee’s films frequently center on his beloved city of New York, and might even be said to turn the city into an additional, pivotal character. Do the Right Thing (1989) investigates the ethnic divisions between Italian and African Americans and Summer of Sam (2002) looks at tensions felt during the reign of a serial killer in the dangerously hot summer of 1977. Lee is also known for his irreverent studies of the African American experience, which lull the public out of simple or close-minded views on race. Jungle Fever (1991) deals with the issues encountered by an interracial couple. The controversial Bamboozled (2000) satirizes the depiction of African Americans on television. His powerful documentaries Four Little Girls, about the tragic 1963 bombing of a Birmingham Baptist church, and When the Levees Broke, about Hurricane Katrina and its aftermath in New Orleans, also examine the tragic and poisonous consequences of racism.
Continuing the tradition of directors such as Orson Welles or Woody Allen, Lee himself often acts in his own films, appearing in ten of them between 1986 and 1999. The creative gene seems to run throughout the Lee family, and several of his films have been collaborative efforts. His brother Cinque and sister Joie have frequently appeared in his films, and Joie also helped to produce and write Crooklyn (1994). His brother David, a photographer, provided the still images for the film Summer of Sam. His father Bill, a jazz bassist and composer, provided the music for several films, including the jazz themed Mo’ Better Blues (1990). Lee attributes the artistic temperament of his family to “growing up in a very creative environment.”
Lee’s attention-grabbing work in film has allowed him to parlay his talents into additional creative and commercial projects. He has directed a popular series of commercials for Nike’s Air Jordan campaign, as well as commercials for Converse, Jaguar, Taco Bell, and Ben and Jerry’s. Lee has also directed music videos for recording artists such as Prince, Public Enemy, Naughty by Nature, and Michael Jackson. In another departure from his film work, Lee will be making his Broadway directorial debut next spring with an adaption of Billy Wilder’s Stalag 17.
