Melissa Rosenberg Quotes

It's not just about acting. I love film, I'm a director now, I love writing, I love producing, I love having a company that makes films and to be prolific and have a place to put all the ideas that are constantly bubbling up inside of me and that don't let me sleep at night.

I love working with actors. I love visual things. I always intended to be a writer who directs and a director who writes.

I want to be host of 'SNL.' I want to work with Steven Spielberg, Leonardo DiCaprio, J.J. Abrams, Emma Stone and Tim Burton, Sean Penn, Cameron Crowe. I want to work with Adam Sandler - he is so funny - and Tina Fey and Amy Poehler.

I made movies with some very nice people, experienced actors.

For me, being a complete artist means not necessarily just being in front of the camera, but being behind the camera or being the originator or creator of something.

I'd never thought of directing as an option for me. I don't know why, because I'm incredibly bossy. I was surprised how collaborative it is. As the producer, you have to get the money and schedule on time, and that's not what I do best.

I've always been interested in directing, writing, and producing, so when I went behind the scenes, it was like a whole new world that I got to experience.

To be an actor, you have to be self-obsessed, but when you are a filmmaker, you get a macro view. Every aspect of making the film is under your purview. And for me, that is a bigger turn-on than just being an actress.

You can say something that can really help and actor and you can say something that can really get in the way of an actor's performance, kind of cut them off from their instincts and really get into their heads. And every actor's different. Every actor requires something different. Being an actor, for me, was the greatest training to be a writer and director.

I like every part [of the film process ] except the business and admin stuff. The initial idea. Writing. Re-writing. Casting. Directing, Editing. If I had to chose I'd say writing, followed by putting music on the picture. That is magical.

If I'm directing actors, I learn about acting that way. If I'm acting, I learn about directing that way. Producing is just something that's come about because there's projects I find interesting that I would like to help get done.

I come from Nova Scotia, and I'd never seen a theater or been inside of a theater. When I was 17, my dad asked me what I wanted to do, and I said I thought I would like to be an actor. I didn't have any idea what it was to be an actor. None. I'd wanted to be either an actor or a sculptor, which are both essentially the same thing. That's how it all started for me.

James Franco, acting, teaching, directing, writing, producing, photography, soundtracks, editing - is there anything you can do?

When I direct my own scripts, it's much easier as it's been in my head for a year already... What I love about this is having an idea and seeing it come to fruition on screen. I would like to direct someone else's script one day, but I might not get round to it before I die - you can't legislate for being hit by a bus!

In making movies, time is so short-because it is so expensive-that we tend to neglect the place from which the best ideas come, namely that part of ourselves that dreams. The unconscious is our best collaborator.

I just think I love the process of making films. It's not tortuous for me at all. I love being with my crew. I love actors. There's a joy to the process.

We were looking to collaborate with someone on both those fronts [ writing and directing] and it ended up just being me [in Brief Interviews with Hideous Men]. So, at this point, it's the epitome of a passion project and I just hope people like it.

I love working with actors. If you cast the right person in the right part at the right time, they make you look like a better writer and director than you really are.

Usually, those people don't even like actors and they can't wait until they get in the cutting room. They kind of break down in categories: directors who like to be surprised and some of them abhor being surprised. As far as directing, we all direct when we're acting in movies... every single one of us.

A film is the director's medium. The theater is an actor's.

I believe that improvisation is really just a directorial tool. It's a writing tool. It's not so much that the actors get to say whatever they want, whatever pops into their head. It's an opportunity to write the last draft of the screenplay as you're working on it.

The part that I felt most comfortable with going in was just working with actors and trying to make them feel comfortable and safe so they could find the performance. That part felt organic to me.

When you're actually making a film, it's just people on your back all the time wanting stuff and you're constantly having to it deal with them. It's probably the most time consuming of all the arts, but I do love it because it is a great mix of visual art and music and writing.

I've learned so much from just being in film industry. I definitely want to stay in front of the camera and learn more from as many people as I can. Somewhere down the line, writing, directing and producing would be fantastic.

I'm focusing on my efforts behind the camera. I'm doing some producing and directing so that I can make projects for all of the amazing, talented actors and crew that I know.