Nicolas Winding Refn Quotes

For me, the director is the most important thing. He is steering the boat. If you don't trust him, you won't be able to give him your all.

All you can really do as director is sort of set a tone.

Directing, I get all kinds of inspiration. It's working with people. It's a lot more fun.

As we produce work that becomes pure poetry, we impact and influence our teammates, we wow our suppliers, we inspire customers and strangers. And we lead our industry.

As a leader, you have to have a vision that inspires people around you.

I like working with people who are passionate about what I'm doing. I'm super passionate about music, so I want to make sure my colleagues and people on my team are the same, as well. I'm a very hands-on artist, so I don't give my work to my team.

Yeah as the director I consider myself to be the coach, and my actors are my players. So I have to show them how committed I am, but I also want to lead by example. I think whenever you make a film, you start out alone, and then slowly start - you have to be a magnet. You have to attract people to you, to the project.

It is not the genius at the top giving directions that makes people great. It is great people that make the guy at the top look like a genius.

At best, I think of a director as a magnet. You get all the metal fillings in all the individual actors and crew, and get those filings moving toward your magnetic direction.

I enjoy directing more when I don't have to direct myself. I like when I can just be the director.

I'm happiest when I can just be a director and watch.

There's no way a director can communicate with every single person on the set and yet they need to motivate and instill an ambition to want to do their best work.

I direct with energy. I believe in energy. I think energy is an electric thing in actors. I try to inspire, encourage, and make choices with lots of energy. And truth. I'm big fan of truth and being funny. I like leading 50 people into battle every day.

I've never directed, but it must be humbling.

Leadership is not about a title or a designation. It's about impact, influence and inspiration. Impact involves getting results, influence is about spreading the passion you have for your work, and you have to inspire team-mates and customers.

Leadership comes in small acts as well as bold strokes.

The great leaders are like the best conductors - they reach beyond the notes to reach the magic in the players.

A great director or leader knows his people, creates a great team, and then makes a great movie that can influence millions more than the readers of his column.

No, I wouldn't direct a movie, no. I couldn't. I don't have the patience for it, I don't have the people skills. You have to be clever. I'm not really clever in that kind of way. And you have to be able to manipulate people, but at the same time allow them to feel like they are manipulating you, to get the kind of movie that you want.

When you work with a great director, you realise you are far from being a director.

Being on a set where the director has lost control is just sickening. No one goes the extra mile, there's a lot of eye-rolling... it just breeds inertia. If a director is in control, the crew follow their leader. But the second anyone senses the directors are not sure, people just swoop in.

Leadership - mobilization toward a common goal.

Directing is really exciting. In the end, it's more fun to be the painter than the paint.

Managers will tell people what to do, whereas leaders will inspire them to do it, and there are a few things that go into the ability to inspire.

Leadership doesn't amount to much unless you have followers.