Not Quite a Memoir ― Of Films, Books, the World

Not Quite a Memoir is a unique collection of pieces about the many filmmakers and writers from around the globe—Europe, the Americas, Asia, the Middle East—who populate Judy Stone's world. In these articles, we clearly hear their voices as they talk art, politics, and culture. We get to see past the cinema screens and past the pages of books and hear lively conversations about personal freedoms, political change, nationalism, religion, women in society, gays in society, the influence of history, ideas about creating a better tomorrow, and much more.In this book, Stone talks with and writes about more than 120 creative people who range from the pioneer Inuit filmmaker Zacharias Kunuk to the great Polish poet/essayist Czeslaw Milosz; from the innovative Iranian director Abbas Kiarostami to the writer/provocateur Jean Genet; from the tantalizing Turkish storyteller Orhan Pamuk to the “underground” Chinese filmmaker Jia Zhangke. From Israeli Amos Gitai to Palestinian Elia Suleiman, filmmakers whose films are devilish irritants to their own “tribes.” From popular actors Jeremy Irons and Sinead Cusack to actor/filmmaker Liev Schreiber. . . .

Judy Stone has been writing about international cinema for the San Francisco Chronicle and other publications, including The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, and Ramparts, for over forty years. She is also the author of Eye on the World: Conversations with International Filmmakers and The Mystery of B. Traven.