Joan Severance Quotes

I want to be an artist artist, a real artist. I don't just want to do this for temporary money.

Being on a low-budget film is difficult enough, and you may as well be working on something that you really believe in and you really love, and for me, that's to play different characters, to play different roles, and challenge myself.

My first love is acting, but the reality is that I just don't get too many opportunities to stretch, and grow, and inspire myself as an actor, certainly not in terms of where I make money. Yeah, I can go off and do a play, but the reality is as a profession, directing is exponentially more satisfying.

As an actor, you just want to continue to work on things that you like. You can be in this business a long time and consistently working and just be totally artistically unfulfilled.

I like the feeling of making things. It's very very rewarding. And filmmaking is that type of experience, where you're forced to collaborate with so many people. You're involved in the beginning to end, you're involved with so many elements, and when it's done, you're like, 'I made this movie.'

I can't think of a more pathetic situation for an actor than to do a film and not connect to it. And I pray to God that I never face that situation.

With TV, you get on a show and you're there for 11 years playing the same character. I would pull my hair out. Yes, the money is good. But I'm really not in this business to chase dollars.

What part of people is resistant to an artist doing more than one thing? Is it somehow perceived as greedy? Anyone who has that weird volition to become an actor probably has a weird volition to do lots of other creative things - to write, to play music, to paint, to cook.

At some point, you're just happy to be a working actor, but to be able to do it with people you really love and enjoy spending time with, it's just such a rare thing. You hear so many horror stories.

You can never tell when an artist really will take up someone's work and work with it happily.

It's one thing in this business to actually work. 5 percent of the Screen Actors' Guild works. It's another thing to do work that's satisfying and that people are loving.

I love making money, but you can't live your life waiting to get rich in a job that no longer feeds you artistically.

Directing 'When You Find Me' was one of the most creatively rewarding endeavors of my career.

For the last 20 years of my life, I've had the mantra to do amazing parts with amazing people in amazing projects, so I'm attracted to good story, writing and character and good people. That's what I'm always searching for and I don't think that's ever going to change.

There is less pressure as a character actor. It generally means that you will be acting for all of your life, which is my intention. It is not my intention to just be a rich and famous person, that would be pretty boring.

I just want the opportunity to continue to do great films, play great characters and work with great people.

I do love doing action, but if I can balance the scale by doing other kinds of films that satisfy my creative ambitions, that feels really important.

When I did 'E.T.,' it sort of solidified the only family I know are these film crews. These gypsies. These filmmakers. That was the solidification and the clicking revelations of 'This is what I want to do with my life and this is where I'm going to survive.'

As you get older and ease your way into being a character actor you have to be comfortable with where you are in life and career, and I'm very comfortable with what I'm doing - working on projects I'm proud of.

I've had so much success. I had something to say, I got to say it, people heard it, and they agreed. That's every artist's dream. That's the brass ring.

I'm a choreographer and a director, and I have no ambition beyond that.

Once it's out there in the universe, it's serving its purpose, and I'm proud to have other folks hear the music that I was a part of making.

I've been lucky in my career. I've worked with some of the greatest filmmakers and actors around. I'm so proud of some of my work.

I would say 'Looking' and 'Spring Awakening' are the most important and personal projects I've ever been apart of.

I really admire people that do more than one thing. That's sort of the goal, right - to be an artist that can work in any medium. That's what I hope for my career.