Raoul Peck talks about his filmmaking toolbox, the difference between directing fiction and nonfiction, and his preference for open endings in this interview from the 54th New York Film Festival. Peck’s portrait of James Baldwin, I Am Not Your Negro, screened in the festival’s Spotlight on Documentary section.

NYFF Soft Focus is created by filmmakers Jeff Reichert and Farihah Zaman. The interviews were shot using a 1986 Jupiter-9 85mm, a vintage Russian lens known for its “swirly bokeh,” which gives the videos their distinctive look.

Subscribe to our YouTube channel and check back daily for new episodes throughout the festival.