David Burtka Quotes

Acting's fine if the script's written by Paddy Chayefsky and Martin Scorsese directs it, but unless you have something like that, I don't really enjoy acting.

Working with and collaborating with and for Peter Jackson was an incredible experience because he is such a phenomenal filmmaker.

I would love to work with Christopher Nolan, 100 percent.

You can start with a great director and great actors and have a great script - and it still just doesn't work. It's kind of a mystery how that happens.

I wonder if Louis Ferreira would be interested in directing.

I had great luck with Tim McGraw twice in 'Friday Night Lights' and 'The Kingdom.' I love finding off-beat casting and finding someone you know in one way and you reinvent them in another way. I like doing that as a director.

I worked for Sam Peckinpah on quite a bit of action in his films, and he got excited once in a while.

He wasn't directing it, of course, so I didn't work with Hitchcock.

He was an amazing - John McTiernan really was an incredible director, probably the best I've worked with because he constantly busted me when he wasn't getting what he wanted.

Films are not mathematics - that's the first thing you need to understand. At least, that's how I feel. They are not words on paper. Films are made with people, with teams and with individual bundles of creativity coming together to fulfill the vision of an individual who is the director of the film.

You have to really work with someone who you think is going to be a collaborator, who you think understands what you want to do with this movie and how you want to do it.

I definitely managed to do different kinds of things. My focus is usually who the director is, because at the end of the day the director is the storyteller, what the movie is all about. I don't want to participate in something that I don't think is constructive storytelling.

All I can say is working with Ridley Scott is a dream come true.

Tim Story is a fantastic director, and I'm so excited to get to work with him.

Most of the great directors I've worked with - De Palma, Spike Lee - like rehearsals.

I depend on good editors and a good director.

There are times when you work with directors on set, and things are a bit rudderless, and those can be good directors.

As far as writing or directing a film, I've worked with enough people who have done that that I know it's just a whole other level of responsibility and chaos and murder that I could not see happening. For now, I'm just going to see what comes. I know what I like and what direction I have.

Any time Chris Nolan wants to call me for advice, he can.

There is no sense in doing a wonderful script with somebody who can't direct because that is a disaster.

With Kubrick and most film directors, they are in complete control, but one can influence them.

All these directors, and I would include the Coen brothers and Quentin, have a very unique vision of what they want. They listen to ideas and make people feel like everyone is making the film.

I've been lucky enough to work with some great directors, and I don't want to throw that away by doing one big horrible big budget film.

I like to just work with great directors.

When Steven Spielberg comes calling, it behooves you to seriously consider it.