I wanted to keep exploring... I'm not about to choose a series of movies in which I can use the same bag of tricks and style that I used in the first film.
Interpretation
The quote expresses a desire for creativity and innovation rather than repeating past successes.
Sam Mendes emphasizes the importance of exploration and creativity in his work, indicating that he wishes to avoid stagnation by relying on the same techniques and styles used in previous films. This perspective encourages continuous growth and the pursuit of new artistic directions instead of settling into a comfortable routine.
In practice
This quote can be used in a film production meeting to encourage the team to think outside the box.
There's one thing better than having a great actor, and that's having a great actor who's never done this kind of role before and is hungry to do it. They're testing themselves every day. They want to get out of their trailer and get to work.
Learn to say, “I don’t know the answer.” It could be the beginning of a very good day’s rehearsal.
Truly great actors carry their characters in silence with them. They communicate without words the relationships that predate the movie.
The writer can choose what he writes about but he cannot choose what he is able to make live.
Artists are the antennae of the race, but the bullet-headed many will never learn to trust the great artists.
Fairy tales have always got to have something a bit scary for children - as long as you make them laugh as well.
American pictures usually have no subject, only a story. A pretty woman is not a subject. Julia Roberts doing this and that is not a subject.
A good actor always sets you straight. If you've written a false moment and thought it was probably pretty great, the actor's gonna show you when he gets to that moment. They're the great test of the validity of the material.
The essential thing is to spring forth, to express the bolt of lightning one senses upon contact with a thing. The function of the artist is not to translate an observation but to express the shock of the object on his nature; the shock, with the original reaction.
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