It starts with the writer-it's a familiar dictum, but somehow it keeps getting forgotten along the way. No film-maker, irrespective of his electronic bag of tricks, can ever afford to forget his commitment to the written word.
Steven SpielbergRead
Making a movie and not directing the little moments is like drinking a soda and leaving the little slurp puddle for someone else.
Interpretation
What this quote means
A director must pay attention to every detail in filmmaking, just as one should not leave behind a mess after enjoying a drink.
Steven Spielberg emphasizes the importance of attention to detail in filmmaking. Just as enjoying a soda can result in a small mess that affects others, neglecting the smaller moments in a film can detract from the overall experience and impact, ultimately leaving the audience with an unfinished or unsatisfying product. This metaphor highlights the necessity for filmmakers to focus on and direct even the seemingly insignificant aspects of their work to create a cohesive and impactful narrative.
Themes
FilmmakingDetailsDirectionArtMoments
In practice
Example use cases
This quote can be shared in a film class to highlight the importance of attention to detail in directing.
More from Steven Spielberg
All quotes →When I was a kid, there was no collaboration; it's you with a camera bossing your friends around. But as an adult, filmmaking is all about appreciating the talents of the people you surround yourself with and knowing you could never have made any of these films by yourself.
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I just had a crazy, wild imagination all my life, and science fiction is the greatest outlet for me.
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From a very young age, my parents taught me the most important lesson of my whole life: They taught me how to listen. They taught me how to listen to everybody before I made up my own mind. When you listen, you learn. You absorb like a sponge - and your life becomes so much better than when you are just trying to be listened to all the time.
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I wanted to do another movie that could make us laugh and cry and feel good about the world. I wanted to do something else that could make us smile. This is a time when we need to smile more and Hollywood movies are supposed to do that for people in difficult times.
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There are so many rumours about so many of us in the public eye. Sometimes it's too hard to deny what is not true.
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