There’s always been this hocus-pocus or magical, mystical thing associated with the making of film that sort of psyches people out and makes them think that this cannot be done; that this is a craft that cannot be learned.
Interpretation
Spike Lee emphasizes that filmmaking is often seen as a mysterious art that can only be mastered by a select few.
In this quote, Spike Lee addresses the misconception surrounding the craft of filmmaking, suggesting that it is often viewed as an elusive and unattainable skill. He implies that many people are intimidated by the idea of making films because they believe it is a complex art that cannot be learned or mastered, when in reality, it is a skill that can be developed through practice and dedication.
In practice
Use this quote to inspire aspiring filmmakers during a workshop.
I think that anyone who lives in New York, who's lived here, who's spent any time here, knows that it's basically a love-hate relationship, you might say. Even though I still think it's the greatest city in the world and I wouldn't live anywhere else, there're still things about it one doesn't like. The love far outweighs the negative.
There's an unwritten law that you cannot have a Jewish character in a film who isn't 100 percent perfect, or you're labeled anti-Semitic.
The truth is I've been doing Kickstarter before there was Kickstarter; there was no Internet. Social Media was writing letters, making phone calls, beating the bushes.
It gets dangerous when you start allowing people to validate your work.
All directors are storytellers, so the motivation was to tell the story I wanted to tell. That's what I love.
Because many advances have happened, we've lost the urgency (and that's just human nature) that we had before, when we couldn't vote, couldn't use mass transportation, or drink from the fountains.
Being on stage is magic. There's nothing like it. You feel the energy of everybody who's out there. You feel it all over your body. When the lights hit you, it's all over, I swear it is.
Music, I think, is best when it honestly explores personal demons, and it stirs around in the silt of the psyche to find out what's really there.
Art is the close scrutiny of reality and therefore I put on the stage only those things that I know happen in our society.
Then what shall I write? I can't just write that this happened then this happened then this happened to boring infinitum. I'll let my journal grow just like the mind does, just like a tree or beast does, just like life does. Why should a book tell a tale in a dull straight line? Words should wander and meander. They should fly like owls and flicker like bats and slip like cats. They should murmur and scream and dance and sing.
Writers should provoke disagreement.
They're the best critics. Workshops are good, and drama teachers are fine, but the best is the audience. And even better if they're paying!
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