Peter Watkins

“I think that the main impact on my work, on the making of this film, came from the intensity of the similarity I felt to Edvard Munch as a man, as an artist, as someone who struggled throughout his life.”

Terence Davies

“Martin Scorsese is a huge name! I'm not a huge name. I go into a room full of people and I'm the only person I've not heard of.”

David Cronenberg

“Anybody who comes to the cinema is bringing their whole sexual history, their literary history, their movie literacy, their culture, their language, their religion, whatever they've got. I can't possibly manipulate all of that, nor do I want to.”

Tsai Ming-liang

“The body always plays an important role in my films. You could say the body is the most beautiful thing we have or you could say it’s the ugliest thing we have. We can sell bodies, we can adore or worship bodies.”

Nagisa Ôshima

“My hatred for Japanese cinema includes absolutely all of it.”

Gus Van Sant

“I have my ideas of what a good documentary is, but drama is a different animal because you're arranging everything.”

Manoel de Oliveira

“Standing still is to die; that is the point. The worst thing would be to do nothing, to be scared of acting. It would be a mistake to stand still, to not try something.”

Léos Carax

“I perceive 'Pierre' (Pola X) in the same way that I perceive my own life: I understand both 'poorly' but I’m obliged to explore them. That’s what a project is: a heavy question mark. You’re the dot under that mark and you mustn’t let it crush you.”

Raúl Ruiz

“If you can make it complicated, why make it simple?”

Jack Smith

“I was knocking myself out to make this stuff. And I always assumed that people would see this and have pity and give me a little support. [shouts] They didn’t!”

Jia Zhangke

“I believe that it doesn't really matter how large an audience my film gets; as long as my films can be shown in China, and there can be any kind of real market for them here, that would be hugely significant for me personally.”

Kazuo Hara

“I make bitter films. I hate mainstream society.”

Gabriel Abrantes

Radu Jude

Apichatpong Weerasethakul

“I, as a filmmaker, treat my works as I do my own sons or daughters. I don't care if people are fond of them or despise them, as long as I created them with my best intentions and efforts.”

Vittorio De Sica

“I've lost all my money on these films. They are not commercial. But I'm glad to lose it this way. To have for a souvenir of my life pictures like Umberto D. and The Bicycle Thief.”

Nanni Moretti

“Who doesn't speak well doesn't think well and doesn't live well! It's necessary to find the right words: words are important! ”

Robert Altman

“Filmmaking is a chance to live many lifetimes.”

Stan Brakhage

“There are a lot of movies made for nobody.”

Ron Rice