I am big. It's the pictures that got small.
Interpretation
The quote suggests that the grandeur of a person's vision or ideas can be diminished by the limitations imposed by external factors, such as the medium or context.
Billy Wilder's quote, 'I am big. It's the pictures that got small,' reflects the idea that an individual's potential and greatness may be undermined by the constraints of their environment or the perceptions of others. It speaks to the tension between one's true self or capabilities and the restrictions that society or circumstances can impose, particularly in the realm of artistic expression and creativity. Wilder emphasizes the importance of recognizing that greatness is inherent, while sometimes the platforms or formats we use may not do justice to it.
In practice
During a speech about innovation in film, you might use this quote to discuss the challenges creators face.
Film’s thought of as a director’s medium because the director creates the end product that appears on the screen. It’s that stupid auteur theory again, that the director is the author of the film. But what does the director shoot-the telephone book? Writers became much more important when sound came in, but they’ve had to put up a valiant fight to get the credit they deserve.
What critics call dirty in our pictures, they call lusty in foreign films.
I have ten commandments. The first nine are, thou shalt not bore. The tenth is, thou shalt have right of final cut.
Happiness is working with Jack Lemmon.
Hindsight is always twenty-twenty.
I'd worship the ground you walked on if only you walked in a better neighborhood.
Drawing includes three and a half quarters of the content of painting... Drawing contains everything, except the hue
When you write, you lay out a line of words. The line of words is a miner's pick, a wood carver's gouge, a surgeon's probe. You wield it, and it digs a path you follow. Soon you find yourself deep in new territory. Is it a dead end, or have you located the real subject? You will know tomorrow, or this time next year.
Architecture does not change anything. It's always on the side of the wealthy. The important thing is to believe that it can make life better.
Hip-hop is a perfect mix between poetry and boxing.
If you're a film fan, collecting video is sort of like marijuana. Laser discs, they're definitely cocaine. Film prints are heroin, all right? You're shooting smack when you start collecting film prints. So, I kinda got into it in a big way, and I've got a pretty nice collection I'm real proud of.
The world has never before had as much drama as today. Radio, films, television and video inundate us with drama. But while these forms can engage or even enrage the audience, in none of them can the viewer’s response alter the artistic event itselfThat is why theatre is signing its own death warrant when it tries to play too safe. On the other hand, that is also the reason why, although its future often seems bleak, theatre will continue to live and to provoke.
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