Henry Selick Quotes

I went into architecture a little as 'Peck's Bad Boy.' It allowed me to be a critic in a socially condoned way.

I wanted to go so I could learn the rules and conventions in order to break them later on.

Being an artist is in part an act of rupture.

I like art. It's another way to rebel.

An artist must be a reactionary. He has to stand out against the tenor of the age and not go flopping along.

All art is based on non-conformity.

If you are creative, you must be dissident.

A true artist is always out of his time.

Create your own method. Don't depend slavishly on mine. Make up something that will work for you! But keep breaking traditions, I beg you.

For slaves to fashion, the rules are made to be broken.

I think a lot of the best ideas come from the grassroots; I'm someone who does not like a bunker mentality and does not like groupthink.

The compulsion to do the opposite of what you are told does not lend itself to many occupations outside the entertainment industry. Within the industry, it is unlikely that you will be very successful without it.

I don't like to be labeled, to be anything. I've made the mistake before myself of labeling my music, but it's counter-productive.

To be able to create fully, it's maybe fine that you learn the rules, but you have to forget and to rebel against those rules.

I found out that total creativity involves a certain intellectual rebellion - not to become a criminal, but somehow. to be totally creating, you have to do things that are a little bit forbidden. You have to feel free, and we know freedom is a hard thing to get.

To me, unconventional thinking is approaching a problem and asking, 'Why not? Why can't something be done?' If someone can't give me a good reason why you can't do something, I find a way to do it.

I just try to get away with as much as I can. I don't think that's very radical in the art world.

I don't care about the rules. In fact, if I don't break the rules at least 10 times in every song then I'm not doing my job properly.

Shakespeare showed me that once I understand the rules, I can break them.

I've sort of made a reputation by high-stepping my way out of genre. As soon as somebody says, 'He does this,' I'm not standing there anymore.

I don't like playing standards. I like to do my own cutting edge work.

I like the idea of, not shocking people, but just throwing people off. Doing something that makes people go, 'Whoa, whoa, she did that next? Wow, didn't think she was gonna do something like that next.'

I'm a complete deviant. All creative work breaks new ground.

I'm interested in the kind of anti-establishment ethos that goes with making an independent movie. I like to bring that to studio films - usually to the consternation of the studios.

I think young writers ought to be heretical.