Hello, and thanks for tuning in to another episode of The Directors Cut, brought to you by the

Directors Guild of America. On our 150th episode, we'd like to take a moment to show appreciation

to our listeners. We're grateful to continue to bring you today's top directors, sharing behind-the-scenes

stories of their latest films and insights into the craft of directing.

Please subscribe to our podcasts on iTunes or wherever you get your podcasts, so you can catch the next 150 episodes.

You certainly won't want to miss our next few episodes, featuring discussions with John Chu on Crazy Rich Asians,

Eugene Jurecki on The King, and Rob Reiner on Shock and Aw.

This episode takes us behind the scenes of director Spike Lee's new drama, Black Klansman.

Set in the early 1970s amid the ongoing struggle for civil rights, the film tells the true

story of Ron Stallworth, the first African-American detective on the Colorado Springs Police

Department. Ron's arrival is greeted with skepticism and open hostility by the department's rank

in file, but he soon makes a name for himself with a dangerous undercover mission

to infiltrate and expose the Kluplex clan.

With the help of his colleague, Flit Zimmerman, who poses as Ron in face-to-face meetings

with members of the hate group, they gain insider's knowledge

of a deadly plot.

In addition to Black Klansman, Mr. Leeds' many directorial credits also include the feature

films She's Gotta Have It, Do the Right Thing, Malcolm X, 25th Hour, Inside Man, and

Chirac, and the documentaries, if God is willing and a Creek

don't rise, when the levees broke, a requiem in four acts, and a Huey P. Newton story.

Following a recent screening of the film at the DGA Theater in Los Angeles, Mr. Lee spoke

with director John Singleton about filming Black Klansmen. During their Angeles, Mr. Lee spoke with director John Singleton about filming Black

...