‘Upstream Color’ Director Shane Carruth Says He’s Done With The Film Industry After His Next Project

This is a little old, from late last year, but we just noticed this and damn, if Shane Carruth means what he said, this would be a crying shame. When you look at some of the most unique film directors of the past couple of decades, it’s hard not to consider Carruth as part of that list. With only two feature films to his credit, “Primer” and “Upstream Color,” the writer-director-producer-actor-composer has left such a mark on indie cinema that it would be a shame to know that he’s never going to do it again. Well, according to an interview with Hot Corn, that’s seemingly exactly what’s going to happen.

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While speaking about his film “The Dead Center,” where he lends his talents as an actor, Carruth opened up about his future in the industry, and unfortunately, it appears that there isn’t much of a future left. The filmmaker says he has one more project on his plate, but after that, he’s calling it quits.

“I’ve got a massive thing that I’m doing, and after that I’m gonna get out of this, I’m gonna get out of film after this,” Carruth said. “I’ve got another half of my life to live and I want to think about charities and finding a way to help people, not doing this bullshit, caring about box office, distribution and all this.”

He added, “I’ve done some acting in the last year that will come out [in 2020], and I’ve enjoyed that process. But I’m inspired by the young people who are doing wonderful things, so I’m going to help others and find ways to navigate a new path.”

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What that “massive thing” is going to be isn’t really known, at this time. He’s talked previously about working on a film called “Modern Ocean,” which was once described as a “nautical action adventure” film. Perhaps he’s still working on that?

When you consider films like “Primer” and “Upstream Color,” it’s obvious that Carruth’s sensibilities were never going to be very mainstream. He’s always going to be considered one of the best to a specific contingent of cinephiles, but it’s not like Marvel Studios is knocking down his door to get him to direct Iron Man 7, y’know? In that sense, especially given how the studio system and the film industry, in general, have been trending in recent years, Carruth’s frustration does feel valid.

It’s just a damn shame.