Quotes About Storytelling

Like a lot of people my age, I grew up on Amblin movies. They're a part of who I am as a filmmaker and, arguably, as a person.

The filmmakers have a story they want to tell, and they go get the material they need for it. The film either exceeds or fails to meet up to their expectations or it's different.

Do I feel that white directors have to tell only white stories? No. Do I feel that black filmmakers should only tell stories about black people? No. If we say that, then that means Asian people cannot write about anybody but Asians. I don't think a woman should only write about women.

I'm a filmmaker to my bones.

It's our responsibility as filmmakers to tell a story that's a human drama.

When dealing with HBO, you actually are dealing with real filmmakers.

All too often, white documentary filmmakers are the ones telling the stories of people of color.

I want to work with amazing filmmakers and tell important stories, and if I have to audition to do that, I will.

I'm a documentary filmmaker, I know what it means to craft a story, especially when you've shot a lot of material.

For me, the filmmaking has to be about the dramaturgy.

If you think about it, episodic filmmaking has not been something that people have really done.

It's amazing what you can do without in terms of filmmaking when a story is really important.

Feature filmmaking is a very powerful medium. It has a hold on me now.

Filmmaking was the way I could write characters and not have to give them up to anybody.

I love the process of filmmaking. I understood that you have to be a writer in order to be a director.

Filmmaking is a language where you empathise with human situations. Unless you have empathy for characters, you shouldn't be a filmmaker.

At the end of the day, filmmaking is all about telling stories, and I'm just doing my part.

The way films establish the order of scenes is very artificial.

I'm an emotional person. I chose films based on emotions.

To chase an athlete that really doesn't want to speak with you and when you finally get him, gives you three words and you have to write a story based on three words of information he gave you, that's pretty tough.

I think everyone who makes movies should be forced to do television. Because you have to finish. You have to get it done, and there are a lot of decisions made just for the sake of making decisions. You do something because it's efficient and because it gets the story told and it connects to the audience.

The first story I finished was when I was six years old.

I write until the first draft is finished, and then I feel that I can get out. But, during the time of the writing of the first draft, I don't go out. I'm just locked away, writing. It's a time of meditation, of going into the story.

With Sugarland, it never felt like we were finished telling our story.