I'm here to make good pictures. If I don't see it, I won't touch it. I may not make a good picture, but I still gotta believe in it!
William WylerRead
Everything a director does must help the story and the performances. Otherwise, it is useless.
Interpretation
A director's choices should always serve the narrative and the actors' performances, or they lack purpose.
This quote emphasizes the crucial role of a director in filmmaking, stating that every decision made in the direction of a film should contribute meaningfully to the story being told and to the actors' portrayal of their characters. If the choices do not enhance these elements, they are rendered pointless, highlighting the importance of intentionality in creative leadership.
In practice
In a film class, discussing the importance of a director's vision.
I'm here to make good pictures. If I don't see it, I won't touch it. I may not make a good picture, but I still gotta believe in it!
The slightest thing can ruin a scene, but you must be willing to take chances.
A director must push his actors to the utmost limit to get everything possible out of each scene - without being corny or sentimental or going overboard.
I really - I don't take my work that seriously, and I think that's what keeps me loose. If I try to write, if I catch myself trying to write, I'll fall right on my face. I'll see it. If I see in the prose that I'm - 'Boy, look at me writing,' I rewrite it. I rewrite it because I don't, because I think it's distracting.
My sense of style is influenced by how I feel. I want to express myself because they see you before they hear you. You want to come on stage, and what you look like should represent the song you are playing or the set you are about to play or the message in your music.
One must let the play happen to one; one must let the mind loose to respond as it will, to receive impressions, to sense rather than know, to gather rather than immediately understand.
Writing is just work-there's no secret. If you dictate or use a pen or type or write with your toes-it's still just work.
There is but one art, to omit.
The tango is a direct expression of something that poets have often tried to state in words: the belief that a fight may be a celebration.
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