Video: "Hunger" at the New York Film Festival

Tuesday, September 30, 2008 | 2:08 PM

Steve McQueen (not to be confused with the late "Bullitt" star) went from Turner Prize-winning artist to lauded filmmaker with his directorial debut "Hunger," about the 1981 Irish hunger strike in which IRA prisoners, led by Bobby Sands, tried to win political status by refusing food. "Hunger," which won the Caméra d'Or prize at Cannes, made its U.S. debut at the New York Film Festival, where McQueen sat down with moderator J. Hoberman of the Village Voice to address the press. In the video below, he talks about the origins of the film -- he was 11 years old when the strike took place: "It was one of those moments where things just stick in your head -- an event where it sort of resonates."

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More videos from this press conference after the jump.

McQueen also addressed the central scene in his film, in which Bobby Sands (Michael Fassbender) has a conversation about his motivations with a priest (Liam Cunningham).

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Finally, McQueen touched on the relationship between film and politics:

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For more coverage of the New York Film Festival, click here.