Movies aren't finished, they're abandoned. And you have to make your peace with that.
David FincherRead
For a number of years, I'd been around the kind of people who financed movies and the kind of people who are there to make the deals for movies. But I'd always had this naive idea that everybody wants to make movies as good as they can be, which is stupid.
Interpretation
What this quote means
This quote reflects a disillusionment with the film industry, highlighting that not everyone shares the same artistic values.
David Fincher expresses his realization that, in the movie industry, the motivations of people can vary significantly. While he once believed that everyone involved in filmmaking aimed to create quality movies, he has come to understand that many individuals prioritize financial gain and business deals over artistic integrity.
Themes
FilmmakingArtistic IntegrityDisillusionmentIndustryMotivation
In practice
Example use cases
In a film class discussing industry ethics, this quote can help students understand the complexities of motivations behind filmmaking.
More from David Fincher
All quotes →You’ll find that the movie business is paid for by those mega movies. The movie business is paid for by Big Macs. By movies as product. Movie studios use that term “product” all the time. Product? You mean you have a lot of stories? No, we have a lot of product. You have stories.
David FincherRead
In film, we sculpt time, we sculpt behaviour and we sculpt light.
David FincherRead
Entertainment has to come hand in hand with a little bit of medicine. Some people go to the movies to be reminded that everything's okay. I don't make those kinds of movies. That, to me, is a lie. Everything's not okay.
David FincherRead
The fact is, you don't know what directing is until the sun is setting and you've got to get five shots and you're only going to get two.
David FincherRead
In film, we sculpt time, we sculpt behavior and we sculpt light.
David FincherRead
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