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The secret to film is that it's an illusion.
George Lucas
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Interpretation

What this quote means

Film creates a reality that may not be true, but evokes emotional responses.

George Lucas suggests that film is fundamentally an illusion, meaning that what audiences experience on screen is not real life but rather a crafted representation intended to manipulate feelings and perceptions. This understanding emphasizes the artistry behind filmmaking, where directors and storytellers create immersive worlds that can evoke genuine emotions, despite being purely fictional.

Themes

FilmIllusionArtStorytellingEmotion

In practice

Example use cases

During a film festival discussion on the art of storytelling in cinema.

More from George Lucas

Fear is the path to the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to suffering.
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When you are a beginning film maker you are desperate to survive. The most important thing in the end is survival and being able to get to your next picture.
George LucasRead
The technology keeps moving forward, which makes it easier for the artists to tell their stories and paint the pictures they want.
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I've come to the conclusion that mythology is really a form of archaeological psychology. Mythology gives you a sense of what a people believes, what they fear.
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I wanted Yoda to be the traditional kind of character you find in fairy tales and mythology. And that character is usually a frog or a wizened old man on the side of the road. The hero is going down the road and meets this poor and insignificant person. The goal or lesson is for the hero to learn to respect everybody and to pay attention to the poorest person because that's where the key to his success will be.
George LucasRead
So this is how liberty dies. With thunderous applause.
George LucasRead

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