"I think one day I want to be on the other side of the camera-maybe directing"
About this Quote
The line's hedging matters. "I think one day" and "maybe" read as self-protection from an industry that punishes ambition in young women as quickly as it consumes their youth. It also reflects a performer who understands timing: you don't announce a power grab; you float it, test the air, keep your options open. That caution is its own kind of literacy, learned by anyone raised on sets where adults call the shots while you hit your marks.
The subtext is also about optics in the most literal sense. Acting is exposure; directing is control of exposure. For someone whose image was mass-replicated before she had much say in it, the "other side of the camera" is a boundary line - a place where privacy and influence can finally coexist.
Culturally, the quote sits in a familiar arc: former child actors looking for careers that don't require perpetual self-display. It's not a rejection of acting so much as an attempt to renegotiate the terms of visibility, turning fame from something done to you into something you can shape.
Quote Details
| Topic | Movie |
|---|---|
| Source | Help us find the source |
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Citation Formats
APA Style (7th ed.)
Olsen, Mary-Kate. (2026, January 16). I think one day I want to be on the other side of the camera-maybe directing. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-think-one-day-i-want-to-be-on-the-other-side-of-93315/
Chicago Style
Olsen, Mary-Kate. "I think one day I want to be on the other side of the camera-maybe directing." FixQuotes. January 16, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-think-one-day-i-want-to-be-on-the-other-side-of-93315/.
MLA Style (9th ed.)
"I think one day I want to be on the other side of the camera-maybe directing." FixQuotes, 16 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/i-think-one-day-i-want-to-be-on-the-other-side-of-93315/. Accessed 11 Feb. 2026.



