I don't believe in an afterlife, but I'm taking an extra pair of underwear just in case.
Woody AllenRead
As an artist, you are always striving toward an ultimate achievement but never seem to reach it. You shoot a film, and the result could have always been better. You try again, and fail once more. In some ways I find it enjoyable. You never lose sight of your goal. I don’t do my job to make money or to break box office records, I simply try things out. What would happen if I were to achieve perfection at some point? What would I do then?
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote expresses the endless pursuit of artistic perfection and the joy found in the journey, rather than the end result.
Woody Allen reflects on the nature of being an artist, where the pursuit of perfection is a continuous journey filled with experimentation and learning from failures. He emphasizes that the joy of creating art lies not in achieving flawless results but in the process itself. For him, the goal is not monetary success but rather the exploration of ideas, leaving him with a sense of purpose and motivation.
Themes
ArtistPerfectionJourneyFailureCreativityArtProcess
In practice
Example use cases
A filmmaker discussing their latest project might quote Allen to highlight the creative process over the final product.
More from Woody Allen
All quotes →He adored New York City. He idolized it all out of proportion... no, make that: he - he romanticized it all out of proportion. Yes. To him, no matter what the season was, this was still a town that existed in black and white and pulsated to the great tunes of George Gershwin.
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There are three rings involved with marriage. The engagement ring, the wedding ring, and the suffering.
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I'm astounded by people who want to 'know' the universe when it's hard enough to find your way around Chinatown.
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I was in analysis. I was suicidal. As a matter of fact, I would have killed myself, but I was in analysis with a strict Freudian and if you kill yourself they make you pay for the sessions you miss.
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Sex without love is an empty experience, but as empty experiences go, it's one of the best.
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