Peter Greenaway Quotes

The quality of mainstream cinema has changed. A lot of independent voices feel they can leave everything behind and make independent films.

I didn't have a lot of independent film connections. It really took until the digital film revolution came along that I realized that I could do it myself.

The dean of the American Film Institute has written that I'm one of the very few auteurs in America. I've had freedom for 40 years to create art that is totally personal and is what I believe in.

I read an interview where someone said, 'It's a shame that anyone can make a movie now,' and I feel the exact opposite.

In the early '90s when the American independent movie started, it held personal vision as a premium. That was brilliant timing.

But if I really want to produce my own work and tell stories, then I will.

More personal films, you could make them, but your budgets would be cut down.

When I started out in independent films in the early '70s, we did everything for the love of art. It wasn't about money and stardom. That was what we were reacting against. You'd die before you'd be bought.

Anyone can put anything out at any point and make anything by themselves.

The thing I love the most about low budget films is the creative freedom.

It's an exciting time, when you can make your movie on a cellphone. If it's good, it WILL get noticed.

When I write a movie, I write it for me.

No one's telling Tarantino what to do. You might like it or you might not like it, but the reality is he's getting his own vision out there.

I had elements that were much more than what Steve Jobs or Mark Zuckerberg or Bill Gates had. If I work according to their methods, what will I create? All of this was in my head when I was young.

You graduate from film school and move to Hollywood. Hollywood tells you, 'We're not the place for you to make films,' so you decide you have to make a film yourself.

When I get to make a movie, I really try to make it on my own terms.

'The Lobster,' at some point, was my most accessible film. Then I made 'The Killing of a Sacred Deer,' which turned out to be not as accessible as 'The Lobster.' It was the film I wanted to make and the story I wanted to tell.

I always say that I'm a filmmaker, not a factory. I don't have to churn out films every six months.

I have my own ideas when it comes to making cinema. My films should be of my liking and suit my convictions.

I haven't been a director-for-hire for any project. I work with people who appreciate that, understand that, and want to work that way.

I'm always making movies for my audiences, but I'm not trying to meet their expectations.

As a filmmaker whose first film was made with the DIY tools of digital cinema, I love how the democratization of the filmmaking process and platforms like YouTube enables people to tell stories that in previous generations simply could not be told.

The rule I stand by as an artist is definitely be yourself, and don't make music just for other people: make it for you first.

Maybe many directors are trying to create their own style of filmmaking, or to respond to audiences that come expect a certain style from them. But I don't care about that - I don't intend to have a 'Miike' style. I just pour myself into each film, enjoy it, and then what comes out just seems to have a 'Miike' style.

I think the real exciting part about becoming a solo artist is that you get to really decide on what your new sound and what your new message will be.