Jim Jarmusch Quotes

Generally what I produce is new. Of course, they are often variations on the same subject.

Those who do not want to imitate anything, produce nothing.

No bird has ever uttered note That was not in some first bird's throat; Since Eden's freshness and man's fall No rose has been original.

I got everything from someone. Nobody can be original.

If you look at any 15 pieces of mine, nobody does a piece like them. Totally new techniques. All the jugglers are stealing from me and claiming that they've done it.

It's no fun for me to cover a song and produce it the exact same way as it already exists. When I hear that happening, I have to say, 'What's the point?'

The most original minds borrowed from one another.

Who wants to see the same play again? I certainly don't want to write the same play again and again.

I fear becoming formulaic. Some of my books are.

I wouldn't want to go see a comedian if he was using the same jokes. So I'm not going out there trying to do the same thing that and my body's changed, my life's changed and really if people have already seen me do something a 1,000 times, 1,001 is not going to impress anybody.

I hate anything that seems like something that has been done.

I am always searching for something different or something fresh, something hasn't been done. But the truth is, at the end of the day, we're all sort of retelling something. We're doing a version of something that's already been done.

Where's the glory in repeating what others have done?

Originality houses many rooms, and the views from the windows are all different.

No one is original. Everyone is derivative.

We all get caught up in the process, especially when you have a wave of success. But to me, being creative is not about rehashing everything you've done over and over. It's to continue to grow, continue to get better.

The diplomatic thing for me to say is that if publishers are dressing up other authors as Terry Pratchett clones then they are doing a disservice to those authors. If they didn't dress them as clones but did something different, then those authors could be pioneering in a different sense.

Definitely that's the worst, to discover that something you're doing has already been done.

The one lesson I've learned from technology and food is the only time you know you're doing the wrong thing is when you're doing what everyone else is doing.

It's better if a singer disconnects from the original and brings something new to the version.

If it feels like you're aiming for something too familiar, and you're not having a primary new experience, then what's the point of making that movie? It's been done before, so try to find something new out of it.

If anyone thinks they have set a formula for success, that's not true. Because if that were to happen then people would only be copying that formula and every following film would be a copy alone.

You got to be able to reinvent yourself and come up with new ideas because everybody is going to try to copy, which is what you want. You want people to start saying what you say.

For me, novelty matters; uniqueness matters.

I don't like the idea of seeing a movie and it feels comfortable because you've heard it before.