James Salter and Robert Redford on Downhill Racer

In June, we lost the inimitable American writer James Salter. The author, one of the great novelists of the twentieth century, also had a career as a Hollywood screenwriter—which included penning Michael Ritchie’s 1969 Olympic skiing drama Downhill Racer. Our edition of the film, released on Blu-ray earlier this month, includes a piece featuring Robert Redford, the film's star, and Salter, who was handpicked by Redford to write the screenplay. In the clip below, watch Redford discuss what attracted him to Salter’s work, and hear the writer talk about what drew him to cinema.