Quotes from Karthik Subbaraj

When I hear the news that the pirated version of my film is doing rounds, I cannot keep quiet.

At any filmmaking class, you learn the power of the visual medium and are always trying to minimise the words.

In a silent film, the visuals are of utmost importance.

Cinema is a visual medium one has to communicate through visuals, and therefore, dialogues should be less.

You need actors and performers, but there has to be content in a film.

For 'Neer,' we spent about Rs. 70,000 just on the boat.

I would say my parents were really supportive after a point. I had to prove to them that I am not just dreaming; I can really make it.

Short films are good, especially since independent films are making waves now, more than before.

The girls who come into Tamil cinema today are educated and from well-to-do families. Unlike the actresses of my generation, they do not need cinema for survival. We cannot write a small role - dead cast, as I call it - and expect them to be excited.

When I made 'Pizza,' all I had in my mind was to make the film reach as many people as possible.

Although technology has been playing a key role in filmmaking, I feel there are plenty of opportunities in other branches of filmdom.

You need to be a good filmmaker to make a compelling two-minute film as well.

I started learning filmmaking by joining a weekend film school in Bengaluru. I made some amateur short films that got appreciation from people around me.

'Iraivi' is about women, men, and their priorities. It talks about women's freedom, how men look at it, and how women use it. It's neither preachy, nor is it about women's empowerment.

When I was working in Bangalore, short film making was fun - almost like a weekend getaway for me and my friends from the software industry.

Even during my short film days, I approached theatres with the idea of playing them during the interval. They thought it was problematic to screen an offbeat short film in between a commercial film.

I roughly draw the scene beforehand to be more confident on the set. Instead of talking and explaining certain things, I try to visually communicate the scene to my team with the story board. This is how I work.

If one makes a short film with reasonable technical finesse, it will cost between Rs. 50,000 and Rs. one lakh. That's a lot of money for someone starting off.

Having spent five years in the technological domain, I see the experiences in the entertainment industry from a technological perspective.

In India, we always look at feature films as a progression over short films. But, abroad, people make a living making short films. The revenue might not be as much as in feature films, but the return on investment is good.

I did a lot of short films before doing feature films.

I made a lot of short films before making a feature film. Actually, I learnt film-making by making short films.

On an average, any short film will cost at least Rs. 60,000. Apart from film festivals, where is the avenue to get that money back?

Filmmaking is never easy as long as you continue learning from the process.