Willem Dafoe talks with Wolfgang Spindler for Euronews

Wolfgang Spindler talks to the actor tonight on Euronews series ‘Cinema’.

“I like to submit to a director and people think that sounds strange but is the only way to be their creature, to act on their behalf because I think if you serve yourself you are limited in your impulses.” – Willem Dafoe

Euronews cultural correspondent Wolfgang Spindler met with actor Willem Dafoe in Berlin, at the International Film Festival. The American actor was honoured with a Golden Bear award for his career.

His performances across stage and screen have spanned over four decades. He was a member of the experimental theater company the Wooster Group and has been nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor three times for his roles as Elias in Oliver Stone’s Platoon (1986), Nosferatu actor Max Schreck in the horror film Shadow of the Vampire (2000), and Bobby Hicks in The Florida Project (2017).

Dafoe was born in Appleton, Wisconsin in July 1955. One of eight children of Muriel and Dr. William Alfred Dafoe he studied drama at university before moving to New York in 1976 to begin his steps into professional performance. It would be 1980 when he made his big-screen debut and 1986 when he arrived on television screens.

Popular parts include roles in movies such as Heaven’s Gate, Wild at Heart, Light Sleeper, The English Patient and Shadow of the Vampire. Television appearances include on programmes such as The Simpsons, American Experience and The Hitchhiker.

Cinema with Willem Dafoe will air this evening on Euronews and will be available later on the Euronews website.

Wolfgang Spindler, a German reporter and producer joined Euronews in 1992 and since then he covers major cinema, music and arts events around the globe. Wolfgang has interviewed many film and music stars like Nicole Kidman, Harvey Keitel, Steven Sonderberg, Stevie Wonders, David Bowie or BB King.