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Daily Inspiration Quote by Alex Cox

"So I had the worst experience at the very beginning, and things have been getting better since"

About this Quote

Disaster as an origin story is a director's most useful myth, and Alex Cox frames it with the offhand economy of someone who has learned to metabolize chaos. "The worst experience at the very beginning" isn't just hardship; it's a scene-setting move. By locating the nadir at the start, he quietly claims a narrative arc that every filmmaker craves: progress, momentum, the sense that the camera is finally finding focus. It's the anti-genius pose. Instead of announcing talent, he announces bruises.

The line also signals a working-class realism about the industry. Film culture loves the overnight success; Cox points to the overnight fiasco. The subtext is practical: you survive your first catastrophe, you learn the rules you were never taught, and you build a tolerance for humiliation. Saying things "have been getting better" is a modest flex, too. It's not triumphal. It implies incremental wins: a steadier crew, a producer who answers emails, a cut that actually resembles the script you sold.

Context matters: Cox came up in an era that rewarded mavericks but punished them with erratic financing, shifting tastes, and gatekeepers who could turn one bad experience into a career label. The quote reads like a small act of self-protection against that labeling. If the worst is already behind you, the future can't weaponize it. That's not optimism; it's strategy.

Quote Details

TopicNew Beginnings
SourceHelp us find the source
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Citation Formats

APA Style (7th ed.)
Cox, Alex. (2026, January 18). So I had the worst experience at the very beginning, and things have been getting better since. FixQuotes. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/so-i-had-the-worst-experience-at-the-very-21985/

Chicago Style
Cox, Alex. "So I had the worst experience at the very beginning, and things have been getting better since." FixQuotes. January 18, 2026. https://fixquotes.com/quotes/so-i-had-the-worst-experience-at-the-very-21985/.

MLA Style (9th ed.)
"So I had the worst experience at the very beginning, and things have been getting better since." FixQuotes, 18 Jan. 2026, https://fixquotes.com/quotes/so-i-had-the-worst-experience-at-the-very-21985/. Accessed 13 Feb. 2026.

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About the Author

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Alex Cox (born December 15, 1954) is a Director from United Kingdom.

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