Ben Affleck’s upcoming release Air was featured in the South by Southwest Film & TV Festival in Austin on Saturday was quick to make it clear how much he wanted his Amazon Studios project to be a success.
“This is the most important night of my professional life,” Affleck declared from the stage, amid some self-deprecating references to previous projects that weren’t very popular. “This is an upbeat, hopeful film about people. So I can’t hide behind being an auteur filmmaker – [as if to say] ‘You don’t have to understand my film.’ I really hope you enjoy it… So no pressure but it’s up to you.”
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Affleck directed and starred in Air, a biographical drama chronicling the revolutionary creation of Nike’s Air Jordan footwear line. Judging by the audience’s reaction to the premiere, Affleck needn’t have worried about his reception: the film and its scene-stealing cast received a standing ovation. Air stars Matt Damon as the Nike exec who hired Michael Jordan for his first sneaker deal.
Affleck plays Nike CEO Phil Knight, and the film also stars Viola Davis, Jason Bateman, Marlon Wayans, Chris Tucker, and Chris Messina. Damon called his role and being reunited with his “best friend” and collaborator Affleck “the best job I’ve ever had.”
“I was performing every day and I had five to seven pages [of the script] to deal with actors like this, it was ridiculous,” said Damon. “I’ve never had more fun. Ben and I, from the moment we read [Alex Convery]’s script to the last cut we made in the edit, it was an absolute delight.”
In a rather bold creative decision, the actor said, “This is not a documentary. This is not meant to be the absolutely perfect story of who did what and what said… all faults in the film are mine.”
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Still, it’s hard to imagine Nike not being blown away by the extremely positive presentation of their company in the film. In Affleck’s recent cover story in The Hollywood Reporter, the actor-director discussed the film and how he approached directing a film where American society intersects with black culture. “I would not make a film whose central premise is the appropriation of black culture by white Americans for profit,” he said. “It’s not my movie. I’m telling a story that’s about a combination of things, and that’s one aspect of it. I won’t omit it because omitting it would further aggravate the disrespect. What I’m going to do is talk to people who understand it better than I do and who can help me put it in context, and that was [costume designer] Charlese [Antoinette Jones], that was Viola.
Air is set to be released in theaters on April 5.