Film auteur and self-proclaimed “filth elder” John Waters spoke to nearly 200 people in the Sun Room of the Memorial Union Tuesday on subjects including his filmmaking career, strippers, capital punishment, and exploiting welfare fraud for fun and personal entertainment.

Waters, director and writer of the films “Hairspray” and “Pink Flamingos,” answered those who asked why he would be a part of a lecture series.

“These aren’t lectures — this is my vaudeville act,” Waters replied.

Although much of the evening centered on his filmmaking career with stories of making films in which characters eat feces or engage in bizarre acts of “teabagging,” Waters also tackled the issue of making books cool again, with his trademark humor.

“If you go to someone’s house after the bar, if they don’t have books, don’t sleep with them,” Waters said.

Waters offered one more key for success in filmmaking.

“When I described my movies as trash epics, I cut off the critics,” he said.

“You beat the critic to the typewriter and they’re helpless.”

Waters said his latest opportunity to confront critics came about in the release of the Broadway version of “Hairspray.” He clearly relished the opportunity, and told of his mother’s experiences after the Broadway premiere.

“For years, they’d been trying to trick my mother into being uptight,” Waters said.

“After the premiere on Broadway, they asked what she thought and she said, ‘I always wanted him to make a second ‘The Sound of Music.’ Now he did, and it’s better.'”

Those who came to see Waters speak had varying knowledge about his prior works, but “Hairspray” seemed a common interest.

“I had seen ‘Hairspray’ and it was a nice use of Ricki Lake’s talent,” said Sara Geiken, senior in psychology.

Kathy Norris, instructor in theater, said she encountered Waters’ work in a way seemingly appropriate to the director’s work.

“I loved ‘Hairspray’ and ‘Pink Flamingos,'” Norris said. “Because of my background [in theater], I used to choreograph for drag queens, and all my friends knew about him.”

Her praise for Waters also covered his treatment of identity.

“My best friend and I have been exploring comedy, and we’re into anything comedy,” Norris said.

“I really admire what he does — pushing the envelope on comedy — he’s really a role model. I’ve always loved that he’s so out about who he is. That’s a big thing for me and that’s what I teach.”