The film "Blitz" was born out of a captivating photograph. A small boy in oversized clothes stands on a train platform, waiting to be evacuated from London. Steve McQueen wanted to know who he could have been, and began spinning the threads of the story about nine-year-old George.
I thought, "he can change his entire narrative by jumping off that train". He takes himself back to London and his experiences on the journey will change him for life, says McQueen when we meet during his visit to the Stockholm Film Festival, where he receives both the festival prize Visionary Award and the Rolf Schock Prize for his art.
No Disney film
Steve McQueen is the video artist who became a film director and Oscar winner, with the shaking slave portrayal "12 years a slave" (2013). He still works with art in parallel, also focusing on social injustices and racism. "Blitz" is the first of his films aimed at a family audience.
But I haven't sugarcoated anything – I don't make Disney films. "Blitz" is like a Grimm fairy tale, and they are bloody dark. George gets to see death as it really looks.
Nine-year-old George is played by newcomer Elliot Heffernan, with Irish Saoirse Ronan ("Lady Bird", "Little Women") as his mother Rita. The Jam singer Paul Weller makes his acting debut as the boy's loving grandfather.
He was hesitant at first, but the end result was fantastic. Here we had a 66-year-old man, a 29-year-old woman, and a 9-year-old boy who loved being with each other, playing and singing together and just hanging out. All I had to do was place the camera and say "action".
A truer London
In "Blitz", we get to see a different London than the one usually portrayed in films about this period. It's the city of women, immigrants, and children – first a vibrant, curious 1930s where people dance and flirt in clubs, and then, when the bombs fall, a place where all kinds of people are affected and come together.
It's completely based on historical facts. I love telling true stories, but for some reason, these stories have been chosen by other filmmakers. It's about really seeing and telling. These people existed and lived their lives in London, that's just it. Others can answer why they haven't been seen before.
Born: 1969
Filmography (selected): "Hunger" (2008), "Shame" (2011), "12 years a slave" (2013), "Widows" (2018), "Small axe" (anthology series, 2020) and "Uprising" (documentary series, 2021).
Current: With the film "Blitz" which premieres in a limited number of cinemas on November 15, and on Apple TV+ a week later. On November 22, his documentary film "Occupied city" (about the German occupation of Amsterdam during World War II) will also be released in cinemas.
