Marianne Elliott Quotes

I think actors do make really, really wonderful directors.

In film, you're painting a canvas. I got really excited about that.

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

I think the worst that can happen in filmmaking is if you're working with a storyboard. That kills all intuition, all fantasy, all creativity.

I have always believed that directing a film is like telling a story. You have to tell it well so that it is appreciated.

I guess, as a director, you sort of take the script, and you find ways to interpret it.

I watch 'Goodfellas,' and suddenly it frees me up entirely; it reminds me of what great film directing is all about.

Technically, maybe I learned most of all from George Stevens, and among his movies I learned the most from 'A Place in the Sun.' It's a lesson in moviemaking.

I have considered the directing, actually. Not so much the writing. That is not really interesting, but the directing is really interesting to me.

I'll continue making films because I love being able to drop into other people's worlds. My goal is to be constantly learning.

Directing was easy for me because I was a writer director and did all my directing when I wrote the screenplay.

Directing film is the hardest thing I have ever done.

My only qualifications to be an actor were that I'm daring, and I'm a quick learner. I've always learnt by watching what other people do. It's the same with my writing. I write what I know. Structurally, I write in a very undisciplined way.

I began to learn about the camera and the actors. That gave me a lot of the skills. At the same time, advertising gives you a lot of vices, for example, an obsession for a superficial look, but at the same time, it gives you the capacity to synthesize the story - tell a story in one minute.

All my film ideas and subjects have come from photography.

I'm developing the stuff all the time. There's a film in my head. I'm imagining a film.

A lot of the films now are more focused on the visuals than on the actors. I think all directors should go to drama school.

Directing is so interesting. You know, it just sort of encompasses everything that you see, that you know, that you've felt, that you have observed.

Fundamentally, whether directing in the theatre or a film, you have to be a good storyteller, regardless of the form. The thing I had to work hardest at was thinking in shots.

I started out my career as a screenwriter and quickly discovered that adhering to a script isn't always the best way to make a film. You have to take into consideration the nuances of the characters and what the actors bring to their roles.

Shooting a film with seven to eight actors together is complicated sometimes because you have to cover everybody.

I've always really respected directors. As much as I was interested in acting, whenever I watched a film, it was always the directing that really stood out to me.

I still want to direct. That's my main love, and that comes from being obsessed with subtleties and people.

As the director of a film, as the story teller, you have to keep your voice alive.

My primary passion is film-making. That's the aspect of my life that defines me, completes me, and completely grounds me. Everything else - from judging a reality TV show to hosting a talk show - is just a result of me being a film-maker. I am the happiest, satisfied and at peace when I am behind the camera.