There is little difference between the Rolling Stones and gypsies, according to Albert Maysles.
Albert Maysles would know best as the documentary pioneer behind the Stones' Gimme Shelter and cinematographer of Jasmine Dellal's exploration in musical culture, Gypsy Caravan.
"It is one of the best films I've ever seen," Maysles says humbly of Dellal's second directorial foray into the subject. "It conveys such an important message in such a profound way. You learn so much of humanity and decency."
Regarding his relationships with rock stars and Roma bands, Maysles claims they are all the same. "I have a special relationship with stars and feel on common ground with them. I empathize with them, which generates that much more trust."
His close relationships have furthered filming opportunities. Sean Lennon recently requested that he film a concert, and in the process he met Rufus Wainwright -- who devoted a song to Maysles' cult favorite, Grey Gardens -- who proposed that Maysles in turn film his concert.
"Some of it falls into my hands, but others take a long time," Maysles said. He has been working on one project, In Transit, for many years. Riding on half a dozen trains throughout the world, he encounters intriguing commuters and follows them off of the train to discover the bigger story.
"It is my attempt in one film to bring the whole world together," Maysles says of his mission. He looks for the little things in subjects and even stumbled upon a woman heading to meet her mother for the first time. "I had a sense of something going on. She looked nervous, so I started filming right away."
This study of the human condition is not so surprising considering that Maysles' first profession was as a psychologist. Serendipitously, he felt that he could report more thoroughly with a movie camera, and a filmmaker was born.
Maysles' subjects have ranged from rock stars to Muhammad Ali to artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude. He has documented the latter six times, with the latest being The Gates (Al Jazeera has requested a copy). "It's the perfect kind of art for making a documentary," he explains, "As they struggle to get permits and all the thousands of people's reactions to it."
Maysles knows well the importance of reaction, as one of his most celebrated films, Grey Gardens, initially fell to bad press. However, the story of two eccentric relations of Jackie O living in a dilapidated mansion has achieved rebirth through a recent Criterion Collection DVD, a musical adaptation and an upcoming feature film.
"As with so many good things, the time has come," he proclaims. "Though originally, it got a lot of flack." Walter Goodman of the New York Times felt it was a terrible exploitation of two women too crazy to be filmed. "He was too small minded to recognize that they deserved to be filmed," Maysles proposes.
Through his cinematic eye, all good stories deserve their time on film. With his late brother David, they pioneered the "direct cinema" genre in the United States. It utilizes the "equipment and philosophy of letting things happen," Maysles explains.
In Gypsy Caravan, he relishes these captured moments. "There's a moment where (Nicolae Neacsu) draws a string across the violin, and a little shakiness adds a kind of melancholy tone to it that seems so gypsy. The whole history of that group comes forth with that one pull of the strings."
Maysles is following the Roma documentary with a film about Jewish Klezmer music in Kraków. No matter the topic, he feels that his style of entertainment focuses on engaging its audiences as much as it has engaged him.
Maysles concludes, "I've had such a good life, and so much of it is recorded on film."