"I'm first and foremost interested in the story, the characters"
- David Lean
About this Quote
David Lean's quote speaks to the value of storytelling in his work. He was a renowned British film director, producer, and film writer, and his movies frequently included intricate characters and detailed plots. He was known for his attention to detail and his ability to bring stories to life on the big screen. By saying he was "primarily thinking about the story, the characters," Lean was emphasizing the importance of character advancement and narrative structure in his films. He believed that the characters and the story were the most important elements of a movie, and he worked hard to guarantee that his characters were credible which the story was engaging. Lean's quote is a pointer that storytelling is the foundation of any successful film, and that the characters and the story should be the focus of any filmmaker.
"From beginning to end it's about keeping the energy and the intensity of the story and not doing too much and not doing too little, but just enough so people stay interested and stay involved in the characters"
"They weren't impatient for the boys to turn into cartoons again. They awarded sympathy, gave compassion. Because deep down they had found parts of themselves in the characters. You said it George"
"And I have to credit David Jacobs with the opportunities he gave me. He was totally into sharing the creation of characters. David put together a show that told the story of people over many years' time and that was greatly enjoyable. Though nowadays that is frowned upon"
"I plot the first 5 or 6 chapters quite minutely, and also the end. So I know where I am going but not how I'm going to get there, which gives characters the chance to develop organically, as happens in real life as you get to know a person"
"I think for anybody reading the book they're going to get an idea in their heads of all those characters, and I think that once that gets fixed, it's quite hard to shake"
"Because they feel that without them telling you to do this, you wouldn't have had the characters that you have, you wouldn't have the book that you have"
"I don't understand labels. I don't need anybody to tell me I'm Latina or black or anything else. I've played characters that were written for Caucasian females, I just want to be given the same consideration as everybody else, and so far that has been happening"
