The movies I did before were movies with a lot of characters, a lot of locations, and low budgets, which meant that I was running all over the place and never had the chance to build a relationship with an actor. I was always having big, strong relationships with the cinematographers or editors or production designers, but not with the actors.

Denis Villeneuve

Categorized in : Character Running Strong

When I was a kid, I was always going to bed creating a story and that was the birth of filmmaking for me. I would like going to the dream-state by telling the story to someone else in my mind. That was my imaginary friend; it was an imaginary audience listening to my story.

Denis Villeneuve

listening mind kids

Sometimes you have compulsions that you can't control coming from the subconscious they are the dictator inside ourselves.

Denis Villeneuve

subconscious dictator sometimes

I think a good director is a good listener.

Denis Villeneuve

good-listener thinking

You cannot make promises because you never know what your next project will be.

Denis Villeneuve

promise

I think they built Hollywood on the West Coast because they were always dreaming of a New World. When they arrived here, the only way to keep dreaming was to make movies. Film was the fourth dimension.

Denis Villeneuve

In contradiction and paradox, you can find truth.

Denis Villeneuve

There's a sense in American cinema: you want to portray an ideal world. You want to portray a Utopia. That's good- dreams for a better world, to advocate for something better, yes. But if you look at my movies, they are exploring today's shadows.

Denis Villeneuve

If you don't deal with your shadows, you are condemned to repeat the same mistake over and over, as a human being or as a society.

Denis Villeneuve

shadows you society mistake

For me, masculinity is about control, and femininity is more of an embrace, the art of listening. It's very inspiring to explore the shadows of masculinity and femininity, and the tensions between both, and the place of women in the world right now.

Denis Villeneuve

me women world art

The idea, as a director, is to be able to bring everybody on board and to inspire and give energy to everybody and to explain specific color, specific ambience. I need to be very precise, but I think I'm a better director when I'm more a channeler than a dictator.

Denis Villeneuve

better think color energy

When there's no technical problems, if you did the right casting, and the scene is well written, the actor will give you a strong performance with his intuition right from the start.

Denis Villeneuve

problems performance you strong

I was at the premiere of 'Prisoners,' and I heard two thousand people scream at the same time. I turned to my wife and said, 'I love cinema!' It's the sharing of emotions together, and it's collective. It's one of the last communions we have.

Denis Villeneuve

wife time love people

On a film crew, you can see very quickly that some people who are working with you are stronger than you. Then you have to have the humility to listen to them. And because very often they have better ideas than yours, it can be tough on the evil ego. But it makes a better film.

Denis Villeneuve

you ego evil people

As a director, you're a bit of a dictator. But I feel that you're a better director if you're open to other people's ideas. It means that it's tougher: you have to be in a choosing process; you have to put the ego aside. As long as everybody's aiming in the same direction... I'm open to my main partners in the film crew.

Denis Villeneuve

you ego long people

I think I'm attracted to subjects that I'm afraid of. It's a way to approach things I am afraid of, things that bring fear in my heart, and try to understand them, try to deal with them. It's like demons. I try to approach it and understand it... I'm just visiting fears.

Denis Villeneuve

demons i-am fear heart

Film is pop art. It's not whether it's auteur cinema or not; that's a false distinction. Cinema is cinema.

Denis Villeneuve

false cinema film art

The problem in cinema is that you can never predict what will happen.

Denis Villeneuve

never you cinema problem

When I think of the 1980s, the only color that comes to mind is a brown, yellowish color. I guess it's coming from my life experience, and it's melancholia and sadness and a bit of joy.

Denis Villeneuve

my-life experience mind life

When I use violence in a movie, it's just to express the power, the impact of it.

Denis Villeneuve

just impact violence power

In Quebec, as women were getting more power, there were the men who agreed with that and the men who were afraid. I think most men are willing to share power with women, but there's fear. Every time you change something, there's a friction.

Denis Villeneuve

women change fear time