Karyn Kusama Quotes

Even other movies I wasn't involved with, I'd watch them edit 'cause I really enjoy watching them go through their process. It's a very economical, educational process.

Films are not mathematics - that's the first thing you need to understand. At least, that's how I feel. They are not words on paper. Films are made with people, with teams and with individual bundles of creativity coming together to fulfill the vision of an individual who is the director of the film.

When you make a movie, you can only make the movie that you would want to see.

I look at the film as an opportunity to see some bountifully creative minds do something that I could not do - tell the story with images. I can't wait to see what they do.

And later I thought, I can't think how anyone can become a director without learning the craft of cinematography.

Movie directing is a perfect refuge for the mediocre.

I wanted to do a film for a while, but I never found a script that I felt I was going to be the right person for; because if you've never made a film, you're not taught how to make a film, and you feel like you lack skills.

I learned first of all not to be intimidated by any visual effects that I don't understand. It can all be learned. You can then use them as tools to tell your story. I also learned that you have to be really vigilant, the more complex the movie, to not lose yourself and to not lose sight of the priority.

Directing has completely changed the way I write and watch films.

A great movie evolves when everybody has the same vision in their heads.

I want to make movies that I want to see, and what I miss and I'm not seeing.

I make more movies than I see.

When I sign on for a project, I'm there to give the director all the material he or she might need to tell their story, and that's the number one priority.

In movies, you shoot out of sequence, so the issue of reality is really taken out of it.

Right before 'American Dreams,' I started to pursue these avenues, like short films and getting into a couple night courses to really study photography and cinematography, and the language of visual storytelling.

TV and film taught me to think cinematically. Teaching others to edit, for example, provides a great deal of insight into the millions of ways in which given elements can be put together to tell a story.

I am interested in seeing if you can create on film pieces that feel contemporary and urgent.

Ron Howard is a great filmmaker and also a great storyteller in 60- and 30-minute shows, so why isn't he going to be a great storyteller in 10-minute pieces?

I realized, because I've been doing these very small, character-driven movies, that this is entertainment. This is so much fun.

To really have craft, you must be able to repeat something as one has to do in films.

Between the ages of 18 and 20, I made three hour-long films. One was a superhero film called 'Carbolic Soap.' One was a cop film called 'Dead Right.' And the other was called 'A Fistful Of Fingers.'

When I was making short films for the TV show 'Naalaya Iyakunar,' I wasn't just competing but making films that I could potentially show at international festivals.

I've admired Lawrence master from his choreographer days. I love how he experiments and makes it work. I like his attention to detail and the intrigue in his movies.

I have the soul of a director.

We always set out to just make a great movie.