If you're not making epic, archetypal films on some level, I think you're wasting a great potential of cinema. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I don't feel despair because I am able to make the films I want to make, and that gives me hope. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
The worst thing for people to say about your movies is, "Yeah, it was pretty good, but it was too damn long.". — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
If you have your movies so that everyone understands everything, I think that's probably not a very good movie. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
The kindest thing a director can do is look with open eyes at everything. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I like voice-over in films, and most of my films have been voice-over films. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
You begin a film more with questions than with direct intentions. It's more of an exploration and discovery. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
You look at how many years you have left, and you start to think: 'How many more films do I have in… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
'Independent' means one thing to me: It means that regardless of the source of financing, the director's voice is extremely present. It's… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
The novel succeeds on terms exclusive to literature. A good film succeeds on terms exclusive to the cinema. That's why so many… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
Joe E. Lewis said, 'Money doesn't buy happiness but it calms the nerves.' And that is how I feel about a film… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I think a badly crafted, great idea for a new film with a ton of spelling mistakes is just 100 times better… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
Anytime you cast a movie and you need someone famous in the lead part, you're a prisoner of whoever happens to be… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I spend a long time casting, but once I've cast a film there's a reason why I selected those people. So I'm… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
In a sense, 'Schmidt' is the most Omaha of my films. But have I gotten it right? I'm not sure. Did Fellini… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
Hollywood films have become a cesspool of formula and it's up to us to try to change it... I feel like a… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
Whenever I'm asked about independent cinema, I think of what Fidel Castro said during the Cold War about the league of non-aligned… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I think about what movie I would like to see. I don't think of them as a correction or palliative. I certainly… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
Marketing has supplanted story as the primary force behind the worthiness of making a film, and that's a very sad thing. It's… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
A lot of people get stuck, like, "Oh, if it's made by a studio, it can't be independent." Often they link it… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I love comedies. I take comedy very seriously as a form. It's a serious form, involving a certain way of looking at… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
The thing is, right now the films don't need to be overtly political to be about our times. We also need films… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
All three parts of filmmaking [writing, shooting, editing] contribute to rhytm. You want the script to be a tight as possible, you… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
Independent means one thing to me: It means that regardless of the source of financing, the director's voice is extremely present. It's… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I could never be a part of an adaptation of a film where there's pressure to not disappoint the immense fan base.… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I don't think so much about verbal comedy. I always think about visual comedy. I was raised watching silents, and I'm always… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
The actors are the greatest executors of tone in a film. They're the most important cinematic component. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
There is an audience out there for literate films - slower, more observant, more human films, and they deserve to be made. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
This is how good movies get made and always have: from the gut instinct of the financiers, not just by committee and… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
My flag is always flying. My shingle is always out. I'm always looking for movie ideas. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
The hardest part of this whole movie-making endeavor is finding ideas. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
As the years go by and I make more films, I am increasingly interested in capturing place as a vivid backdrop for… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
In the moment of making films, I want to share my observations of life, not of other films. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I like to think of film-making not just as an act of personal self-aggrandisement but rather as an act of public service. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I still have energy and some degree of youth, which is what a filmmaker needs. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I spend a long time casting, but once I've cast a film there's a reason why I selected those people. So I'm hands-on in… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I don't feel despair because I am able to make the films I want to make, and that gives me hope. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
Forgiving yourself may be for many people, at least for myself, extremely difficult. And then in a larger context, I will say that I'm… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
In a general sense, to convert any short story, novel, play, or opera into a movie, you have to re-rig it. Even though they're… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
If you have your movies so that everyone understands everything, I think that's probably not a very good movie. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I like actors who, when you see them on screen, you sense a person, not just an actor. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
If you're trying to recreate life, the life that you best know is the one you grew up with. — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
I think about what movie I would like to see. I don't think of them as a correction or palliative. I certainly am irritated… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
If you were falling in love and you could go back in time and relive a day and see the banal things you did… — Alexander Payne Copy Share Image
![“All three parts of filmmaking [writing, shooting, editing] contribute to rhytm. You want the script to be a tight as possible, you want the acting to be as efficient as possible on the set, and you have enough coverage to manipulate the rhythm in the editing room, and then in the editing room you…” quote by Alexander Payne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/img-quotes/be3/alexander-payne-5223_acting_all-three-parts-of-filmmaking-writing-sh_1546501.jpg)
