Alison Klayman: ‘Bannon’s into the Great Man theory of history and he’s certain he’s one of those great men’
The award-winning documentarist on getting far-right strategist Steve Bannon to reveal himself in her new film, The Brink
Alison Klayman’s documentary Never Sorry about the Chinese artist Ai Weiwei received a special jury prize at the 2012 Sundance festival. Her new film, The Brink, follows Steve Bannon, Donald Trump’s former chief strategist, in the 13 months following his acrimonious departure from the White House in 2017. It covers a period during which Bannon campaigned for Republicans such as Roy Moore, the far-right Alabama politician who was accused of sexual misconduct, and established a new pan-European populist organisation, the Movement.
Why did Bannon give you so much access? Is it because, as he says in the film, he learned from Trump that there is no such thing as “bad media”?
Only he knows the answer to that. When my producer approached him, she appealed to his ego and his vanity. He’s into the Great Man version of history, and he’s certain he’s one of those great men.