Martin Donovan Quotes

The acting is something that will always be a part of my life, but the writing gives me a lot more creative freedom. You're a pawn in somebody else's chess game, whereas as a writer and as a director, you get to call the shots. And that's very thrilling.

I love writing. Given a choice, after directing for all these years, and if given an army of talented directors, I would not direct at all.

The filmmakers always have a great level of control.

Writing and directing your own film, for me, has been the best experience of my life.

I don't like directing that much to want a career as a director for hire. I like to have as much creative control as possible.

Directing is a unique endeavor where you are in charge of so many people. As a writer, it is sort of the opposite.

I honestly never wanted to direct. It was only when I started to work on 'Alexander the Great' that I realized I had to direct. I saw something so specifically in my mind, I could not leave it to someone else.

You make a movie that is about what you want it to be about and let people have their reaction to it.

'Frances Ha' is the closest final product to what I had in my head of any movie I've made. I'm not entirely even sure why that is.

I've had some success at writing and directing, and I like it. It's infinitely more creative than just acting, and I have things I want to say and do.

I learned what I really love is making films, not the film business. I want to be on the set, meeting with writers, I want that freedom. I love it now.

People ask, like, 'How are you going to incorporate what you do onstage into everything else?' I'm not too worried about that. Whether it's theater or a TV show idea, or an animated thing or, I don't know, an animated screensaver. I really just want to keep creating things. And I've always been able to do that.

if I'd thought that nobody would like it as I was writing it, I would have written it even more. But I never think of the audience. I never think of people reading. I never think of people, period.

I love the freedom of writing and then I love the realization of directing. I can't favor one or the other. I enjoy both parts of the process.

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

Of course it's super special to create your own records; it really is a part of my self.

I like directing. It takes a lot out of you, but I'd like to do it again - I just have to find a story I want to tell.

Every show I've ever, you know, produced, essentially it's the show I want to watch myself.

I don't want to be a director. I want to direct. There's a difference.

All the films I do, I write the scripts, I direct.

When you direct a movie, you're basically looking at a story, the way you want to look at it. You bring that director's vision, and I'm totally open for that.

I think the key to making records generally is to make 'em for yourself, regardless of the climate in the business.

I love being creative. I love acting, but I also love directing because you get to have a vision for the whole and bring that vision to fruition.

I've gotten to a point where I wouldn't direct someone else's material. It would only be something totally original.

The writing is really hard. You're alone. It really pulls it out of you. You pull it out of your head. But when you're a director, you're shopping - you're picking this actor, you're picking this scene. It's like the most intense kinetic high-speed shopping of all time. You sit in a chair and it will all come rushing at you like a wind tunnel.