Quotes About Narrative

Every time I get a role, or the opportunity to explore a role, I look at it, and I think, 'What is the story we're trying to tell here?'

Writing 'when you find me,' it really exposed me to a way of putting together a story I hadn't thought of.

The thing that I like about action sequences is that if they're done well, you get to know more about the character in those few minutes than you do through 10 minutes of exposition.

I'm from the South, so I tend to tell stories. That's how we express ourselves.

It's great to express yourself and tell other people's stories and get into the minds of people who aren't like you.

Once you've established where you are, you go to the character and elaborate on expressions and action.

But I was always comedic and would tell stories and use a lot of expressions.

Sometimes I'm more inspired by stuff that tells a story and less inspired by stuff that's not a natural extension of what I'm already doing.

The eye searches for shapes. It searches for a beginning, a middle, and an end.

Whosoever counts these Lays as fable, may be assured that I am not of his mind.

The problems faced by writers of color are analogous to the problems face by women writers.

To me, length is an artificial and arbitrary factor in a film.

The emotions of the actors are better when they understand the chronological factors that are adding to the story.

I want this book to be facts, to be important, to be history.

The facts are always less than what really happened.

No matter what writers say, most stories are about ourselves. The facts might change a little, but not much.

I don't believe people are interested in dates and facts. I don't think it is interesting to say what it is to be this person or that, but I do believe it is entertaining and perhaps even of value to express how it is to be that person.

I'm very drawn to the way in which a life lived can be an art of sorts or a failed art, and a life-lived-told can be art as well.

There's probably one more story about Bosnia that I'd like to do, because I spent a fair amount of time on the Serb side of the lines, which isn't apparent in the other books.

False stories can be promulgated more easily when the people trying to tell true stories have been discredited - or when they are battered by rubber bullets.

Making fake biography, false history, concocting a half-imaginary existence out of the actual drama of my life is my life.

I am fascinated by storytelling glue. Anytime I see someone who's good at it, I stop and wonder, 'How'd they 'do this? Why can't I tear myself away?

History is history, and it has to be told, and with 'Mudbound,' it's beautiful because you get to sit with both sides - the white and the black - and see where we meet each other at the end of the day and see where we tear each other apart.

And that's why I chose on purpose not to have a death scene. We've seen them in a million movies and it's too much like cranking the tears out. I didn't want that scene.