David Lee Quotes

We would write scripts, like for 'Shutterbugs.' Then when we shot it, everyone just came up with new stuff. We've definitely learned how to do it better as we've gotten along. So basically, that's how it went. We just go in with ideas and try to figure out funny stuff while we're there.

I'm strong-willed, but that doesn't mean I can't work with people if we're all in the mission of trying to make a good movie.

I am very happy to be working with so many talented directors and writers, who are penning scripts that are interesting for me.

You get the initial script, and then things sort of change here and there, but the whole thing is this sort of mushy collaboration, which I love.

Stand up to your obstacles and do something about them.

I think the whole thing that Jamie [Hyneman] and I have in working together is that we are constantly simplifying each other's designs, and we both appreciate that the quickest and the dirtiest solution is usually the most elegant, the least expensive, and the fastest.

It's very hard sometimes when you can't crack something or can't solve something and you keep trying and trying and you know it's falling a little bit short. That's very hard, but then when you finally do it, it's very rewarding and the process is good too, I like working with people this way.

I think anytime you set out to start doing something, it's always a difficult thing. It's a theory of a blank sheet of paper, for an artist; It's a challenge to put yourself in that position in life, and even in your mind, to put the two together. But you have to, and so that's what you do. I tend to look at it as less than a problem than a process.

Find a way to get back in to the game, find a way to build a partnership, find a way to catch a ball, find a way to stop it.

With the great people that you work with, it's that they're never giving up and they're never thinking something's finished until they've really, really run out of time. They keep pushing in case there's a better idea around the corner.

I like working with writer-directors because you can solve problems right there.

Really you just gotta keep chugging along and keep a positive attitude and get through all the problems. You gotta face them, otherwise you don't get through.

I'm proud of 'Sinister' because Scott and Cargill did a great job on the movie, and I set up a framework for them to make what they wanted to make. They gave me the idea, and I figured out how to get it out into the world.

There comes a time in a man's life when to get where he has to go - if there are no doors or windows he walks through a wall.

The director in TV and the writer and the creator are working very much hand in hand.

Most development doesn't make it to series. So you want the writer and director to have a really good experience with development because, if it doesn't work out, you want to work with them again. You have to know their work really well, know the drafts really well, and when you give notes, you need to have really thought them through.

It's always a learning experience every time I'm on set.

One of the nice things about the world of filmmaking is that you make friends in the business. Sometimes directors feel a script needs something, but they're not sure what it is, so they show it to a friend; if the friend is a writer, he ends up kicking around with that script for a while.

The best work for creative folks on the team is when the problem is big and the solution escapes everyone.

I love a challenge.

It's much like writing a screenplay with someone else and that's how we view it, I think.

I'm strong-willed. Architects are strong-willed. You get the best results with a strong client and a strong architect working together.

I'm not under too much of an illusion of how smart or un-smart I am because filmmaking ultimately is about teamwork.

When we are in pre-production, this is the best job in the world. Working 10 to 7, sitting around and brainstorming with the other writers, making things funnier and writing and rewriting scenes - that's as fun as it gets.

I believe in collaboration. I think that is the most entertaining and effective way to write for me, personally.