D. A. Pennebaker Quotes

It's pretty hard to make out what's going to be a commercial success and what's not.

The many many imponderables come together when a film opens and for all sorts of reasons it may or may not succeed.

It's very weird about movies: you never know which ones are going to stay alive and which one are going to be meaningless. When you're there, you couldn't possibly predict it. Some things slowly die, and others slowly stay a while.

There are plenty of examples of really well-executed shows you could look at and say, 'Well, clearly this show will have an audience; why wouldn't it?' And for whatever reason, it just doesn't catch on. So you never know going in.

I can promote until I am blue in the face, but ultimately nobody knows what makes a hit.

It's much easier to be successful than it is to be relevant. The tricks won't keep you relevant. Tricks might keep you popular for a while, but in all honesty, I don't know how U2 will stay relevant. I know we've got a future. I know we can fill stadiums. And yet with every record, I think, 'Is this it? Are we still relevant?'

You never know what the public is going to respond to or relate to.

In the entertainment business, the biggest gift you could ever get is not an Oscar, it's not a Grammy, it's longevity.

It's certainly a lot more difficult to get a project made if you're talking about something progressive. That's just the nature of the industry.

Ultimately, only audiences decide what's a franchise.

What's great is that I keep hearing from people who are discovering 'Friday Night Lights' because of streaming and Netflix and Hulu and all of these things. Somehow... things don't get old as fast as they used to. They stay vibrant.

Some people want fame, popularity and huge sales. I've always hoped to have a really long career. So I've tried to make each of my creative decisions and business decisions to allow for longevity. As a side effect I got really famous and really big. I didn't realize the two could go together.

You can write the best book you can, and that might still not be enough. Appeal isn't something that most writers can't strive for or identify. It's something even the best agents and editors can't always identify.

Any trend that is developed too fast and is disposed right away is not going to have a lasting impression on the culture, you know?

Some of the most interesting questions needing to be asked today can best be asked on television, or on stage, and they can be wonderful, great dramas, but they won't necessarily be blockbusters.

Pop culture's gotten much more disposable.

I am a cynical optimist. Big opening weekends are like cotton candy. The films you will remember over time are the films that stick in the consciousness of the audience in a good way.

What prudent merchant will hazard his fortunes in any new branch of commerce when he knows not that his plans may be rendered unlawful before they can be executed?

I think 'Twilight' was such a phenomenon that it will be awhile before anything like that will happen again. Cause it really influenced pop culture, and the stars of it - well, the people who became stars out of it - their lives were completely changed.

I think it's very important that whatever you're trying to make or sell, or teach has to be basically good. A bad product and you know what? You won't be here in ten years.

Considering the amount of information we're bombarded by, it's amazing if a song can transcend time.

Publishing is a very mysterious business. It is hard to predict what kind of sale or reception a book will have, and advertising seems to do very little good.

Elvis is great and so is anybody who lasts like he does.

We've ignored audiences all these years. We've just amused ourselves and hoped enough people would want to eavesdrop to make it all viable.

Any artist who sticks around in the public awareness for more than 20 years usually has something unique to say.