South African filmmaker Michael Matthews expressed his honor after Beyoncé acknowledged his film as one of the inspirations for her latest country album, Cowboy Carter. Last week, the American singer revealed that each song on the album drew inspiration from a different Western film and that she often screened the movies in the background while recording. One of the films that she named was Five Fingers For Marseilles, a contemporary Western film directed by Matthews in 2017, which also happens to be South Africa's first Western film..
“It’s a huge honour to have made a mark on an artist as bold and innovative as Beyoncé,” Matthews told South African newspaper The Sowetan.
"And to be included among filmmaking royalty like [Quentin] Tarantino and [Martin] Scorsese," he continued, referencing Tarantino's The Hateful Eight and Scorcese's Oscar-winning Killers of the Flower Moon, which Beyoncé also cited among the influences for Cowboy Carter.
Matthews added that it was significant for Beyoncé to acknowledge a South African movie.
“The hope is that it leads to more eyes on the film around the world and on our incredible local films and filmmakers across the board.
