Q & A with Spike Lee : 10 Years and Nine Films Later . . .

Spike Lee compares his drive for filmmaking to “the Georgetown Hoya full-court press, nonstop 40 minutes of grind, no letup.” And with his latest, and ninth feature film, “Girl 6,” Lee caps off 10 years’ worth of provocative, form-bending movies.

In its depiction of a young, ambitious but frustrated African American actress trying to break into Hollywood--and fund her way there with a phone-sex operator job--the film’s release coincides with the Academy Awards protest led by the Rev. Jesse Jackson, whose charges of “institutional racism” in Hollywood come after a People magazine article describing under-representation of African Americans in Hollywood jobs on both sides of the camera.

Starting with “She’s Gotta Have It” in 1986, Lee has made what he calls “my mission” to provide work and apprenticeships to young African Americans trying to break into Hollywood. Now, in two recent books, John Pierson’s “Spike, Mike, Slackers and Dykes” and Erich Leon Harris’ “African American Screenwriters Now,” Lee is being called “a hero”--a status he says he is a little uncomfortable with, citing instead his own role models, including directors Oscar Micheaux and Melvin Van Peebles.

Now, Lee is trying to get past recent disappointments--last year’s “Clockers” barely clocked in at the box office, and his long-awaited epic, “Jackie Robinson,” recently went into turnaround at Turner Pictures--and on to new projects. While developing a new project, “Two Face,” about a white schizophrenic, Lee is about to film “Get on the Bus,” about a group of African American men traveling from L.A. to the Million Man March in Washington.

Lee, who turned 39 Wednesday, recently spoke at a Los Angeles hotel about “Girl 6,” which opens Friday, and the issues it raises.

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Question: After your family memoir, “Crooklyn,” and the intense urban tragedy of “Clockers,” why did you turn to the world of phone-sex operators with “Girl 6”?

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Answer: I don’t think “Girl 6” is an exploration of phone sex any more than “Jungle Fever” was about interracial love. That film was more about exploring drug abuse. The interracial love interest was a hook for Universal to sell the movie. For me, “Girl 6” is about a woman and an actress who’s struggling and trying to find her way in this life, and she thinks that phone sex is a way to get the money she needs to get to L.A., where she can get real work. She’s tired of subways, the snow and steppin’ in dog----. Girl 6 lives everywhere in the world, from Bangkok to Bombay, wherever people are star-struck by the Hollywood dream.

Q: Would you agree that the dream seems hard for African Americans to realize, that there is institutional racism in Hollywood as pointed out in both the People magazine report and Jackson’s Oscar protest?

A: Well, when [academy executive director Bruce Davis] says that the academy is probably the most liberal organization in America this side of the NAACP, I’ve gotta wonder what he means by that. Based on what evidence does he say that? The [People] report is great, especially as it coincides with the Academy Awards. I would like reporters to grill [academy president] Arthur Hiller on this. Only one black nominee this year? Is that because African Americans have no talent? Or is there any correlation between the results and the black-to-white voting ratio of the actual membership? I don’t think Hiller would have the answers. I think the process is just crooked, but I’m not gonna lie, I joined the academy when I was asked. Racism is a part of this country, part of its fabric, so why should Hollywood be immune from racism? Sports isn’t. The music business isn’t. Corporate America isn’t.

Q: Why did you turn to playwright Suzan-Lori Parks to write the script, when she’s never written for film before?

A: I had read her plays, but not seen them, and they are way, way out there. I felt her imagination was the key ingredient for getting to the heart of the story. Suzie wouldn’t limit herself, because she is very adventurous. I just gave her a brief, verbal description, and she went off for a few months. What she delivered was really something, and triple-X-rated. So we spent some time toning it back. Just before shooting, I brought in some more of my ideas. But even with the toning back, we got an NC-17 rating on our first two passes through the [MPAA] rating board. If you refer to “melons” in a suggestive way you’re in trouble with that group.

Q: One of your ideas seems to be Girl 6’s speech in the first scene, which is exactly what Nola Darling, the heroine of “She’s Gotta Have It,” says in her first scene. Were you consciously reflecting on your decade of feature filmmaking with that scene?

A: Definitely. I saw that “She’s Gotta Have It” and “Girl 6” could both be companion pieces. In each, it’s the woman’s story, and the men follow behind. The funny thing is, both women are the subject of confusion. Nola was a real feminist, in charge of her own body, but some critics attacked her as a stereotype.

Q: Considering your clout but also the controversies around your films, is it getting harder or easier for you to get your films made?

A: [These films] are getting harder and harder to make. We were surprised that “Clockers” under-performed, but I wouldn’t have made the film differently. It couldn’t get past the perception that it was another ‘hood movie. Blacks and whites alike have had their fill of that genre. I had said that I wanted to finish off the genre once and for all, and I guess we sure did that! What bothers me about those movies is that they’re usually so noncommittal about violence and gunplay, which isn’t something African American filmmakers should be doing. Young brothers are coming to see these movies. We wanted to show what bullets do to the human body.

“Jackie Robinson” has to be made at $35 [million]-$36 million, right around the average cost of a feature. And though it’s true I’ve got a lot of respect in the industry, it starts thinning out real fast once I get above, say, $25 million. That’ll get made, later. But with “Get on the Bus,” it’s a whole different story. Fifteen prominent African American men, including Johnnie Cochran, Will Smith, Danny Glover, Wesley Snipes and Bob Johnson [head of Black Entertainment Television], have provided the $2-million financing. It’s like the march, black men doing it on their own.

Q: Looking back on your track record of nine-and-counting movies in 10 years, how have you grown as a filmmaker and a person?

A: I have a better command of film vocabulary, of telling a story and working with actors. It wasn’t until “Do the Right Thing” that I was comfortable with actors. I had felt intimidated by them, which is typical of film students like myself all wrapped up in technical details.

I’m older and smarter, with a beautiful wife, Tonya, and a great daughter, Satchel, who’s 15 months. Filmmaking is more important for me now, not just because of my family, but because the arts are where the battles are gonna be fought. Forget bombs and guns--it’s who owns media outlets, and the product that’s going to be shown on them. The media tycoons need the product, and that’s the power artists have.