Paul Duane: "Prohibition was a complete failure"

Championed by Hot Press last year and recently seen on Variety's '10 Directors to Watch' list, filmmaker Paul Duane is set to take 2014 by storm. Indeed, Irish audiences are still coming to grips with Amber, a controversial production that just concluded on RTE, one which Duane helped assemble two years ago.

In conversation with Roe McDermott as the subject of the latest Hot Press Interview, Duane discusses his next project; the Olaf Tyaransen-penned, Larry Love-starring Don't You Know Who I Am?. Both figures come with a certain amount of public perception where drugs are concerned, and Duane has plenty to say regarding Luke 'Ming' Flanagan's recent attempt at legalising cannabis.

"My feelings have been unchanged for years", he begins. "Which is, the world's criminal underworld is fuelled by and paid for from the proceeds of drug sales. If you suddenly, sweepingly legalised cocaine and heroin, let alone marijuana and everything else, tomorrow, and made it available to registered drug users from pharmacies - first of all, you'd completely cut the legs out from the criminal underworld. Where would they get their money for their guns, ships, smuggling and various activities, if they couldn't sell drugs?"

Expanding on the subject, Duane called the nature and effectiveness of Prohibition into question.

"Seems to me that Prohibition was a complete failure and we're just blindly following the same awful, stupid trail, with drugs. If people want to use drugs, the same with alcohol, they know the risks, let them do it, but in a controlled way where you go into a shop - but you can't buy two kilos of heroin. You're a registered user, as people were in living memory in London in the '60s. It was perfectly possible to be a registered heroin addict, and you'd go and buy enough drugs to keep you stable. You didn't have to become a criminal or deal with criminals and it was a success.

"As David Simon showed in the brilliant third season of The Wire, which focused on the legalisation of drugs: it's politically impossible for any politician to approach the subject of drugs, no matter how successful it would be if it was done. It's just completely impossible. I would be in favour of it, as you can see."

Check out the new issue (James Vincent McMorrow cover) for the full interview in which Paul talks his own experience with drugs, Amber and future projects, how he got spotted by Variety in the first place and the small matter of stealing Bono's hat...