Quotes from John Hillcoat

I'm actually a humanist, believe it or not, and I believe even when people are corrupted, even when they've gone to the dark side, they are still human beings.

I consider myself a humanist. Even if I do very dark worlds, I try to make those characters real humans as opposed to just cartoons.

I kept hearing about this incredible guy called Tom Hardy. I started watching his work, and I was awestruck - he was amazing.

'The Road' reminds me of Steinbeck's 'The Grapes of Wrath.'

Bands are actively seeking more film involvement - because the days of recording albums and MTV and even touring, to some extent, are gone.

Film has its own innate poetry.

I'm an Australian. And I'm speaking generally here, but Australians in general aren't patriotic or nationalistic. Our country was built by immigrants. So, by my experience, I've seen the way immigration has transformed nations. They are the key people who quite literally build civilizations, be it culturally or musically.

Fear shuts off possibilities. The first thing that kicks in when you're reacting with fear... This is what I love about Roosevelt's quote, "There's nothing to fear but fear itself."

I do love genres, but I love finding new ways into the genre, or making that world fresh again.

I am very keen to do a film that's female-led.

There are so many tricks and so much eye candy in cinema. What I love about the classicism of genre is that there's a discipline. I think it's a healthy thing to resist all that candy.

What's amazing about 'White Heat' is that, even for its time, it's very truthful in the way it deals with violence.

What was so amazing and inspiring about 'GoodFellas' was that it showed the foot soldiers; the people more at the bottom as opposed to focusing on the godfathers and the guys at the top.

Comedy, I'm still in awe of. I think you need a comic genius somewhere in the mix. It's got to be the actor or someone. But the 'comic genius' actors are the darkest people on the planet - and that kind of scares me!

I know the power of going to Mount St. Helens, and to see that level of devastation is quite something - the power of tsunamis, etc. But it's human cruelty, the base level of humanity, that scares me most.

Unfortunately, I've seen violence, and I think, in films, it is the dramatic extremity of it.

I like the realism of anti-heroes. It's a healthy thing. I think heroes can be very unhealthy at times because it doesn't connect you to reality.

Social media, Facebook, Instagram, Twitter - I steer away from them. They're alienating us socially as well as bringing us together.

For all the spectacle of CGI, there's something alien and unreal about that domain, like a videogame.

The one that I've always wanted - and I have Scott Rudin in my way blocking it - is 'Blood Meridian,' which Cormac McCarthy has offered to adapt into a screenplay.

I love strong women.

I always try and find a place for Guy Pearce. The great thing about him is he's so versatile, and I wouldn't work with an actor that much if it weren't for the fact that he had so much versatility.

I like to do commercials that are more than just flogging a product. It needs to have something to say. It's always an opportunity for a director to say something substantial and interesting.

What irritates me about sci-fi is that it got hijacked by video games and also became so high-concept it was all about ideas and gadgets and technology and nothing about the human experience.