He then began working on an idea for a film about slavery when his wife came across a long forgotten 19th century book on the subject. McQueen couldn't believe his eyes. “It was identical to my idea. But every turn of the page was a revelation, because you think you know what slavery is, and you're opening this book and thinking, my God. Every page was just, wow, really? It was such an eye-opener.” As an artist, he was very interested in telling the truth by showing it. As McQueen told Decca Aitkenhead in The Guardian, “Visualisation of this narrative hasn't been done like this before, and I think that's the thing. I mean, some images have never been seen before. I needed to see them. It's very important. I think that's why cinema's so powerful.” When asked by a Hollywood Reporter interviewer why it took a non-American to make a film about slavery, McQueen responded somewhat sharply: “The only difference between myself and an African-American is that their boat went right and my boat went left.” With regard to his career buzz in Hollywood as an A-lister now, McQueen says “You know, I'm not so interested in that. I'm only interested in the work. So all this chat, all this, you know, selling your soul, that's of no interest. To me, it's all about the work. It's the only thing one can do.” For his next project, McQueen is developing a drama for HBO, which he has co-written with Matthew Michael Carnahan and intends to direct. He is also working on an epic BBC drama about the lives of black Britons, which follows the lives of a group of friends and their families from 1968 to 2014. He also continues to make artwork and lives in Amsterdam with his wife and two children. Cause Magazine
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