--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I love to direct! I get really jazzed by…" description: "\"I love to direct! I get really jazzed by directing, but directing is not the same kind of personal expression, the same kind of personal intimate expre..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9a9/alan-ball-7404_astray_i-love-to-direct-i-get-really-jazzed-by_1769650.jpg" --- # I love to direct! I get really jazzed by directing, but… ![“I love to direct! I get really jazzed by directing, but directing is not the same kind of personal expression, the same kind of personal intimate expression that writing is. Because when you're directing, you're basically managing, basically getting out of people doing their job, except when you…” quote by Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9a9/alan-ball-7404_astray_i-love-to-direct-i-get-really-jazzed-by_1769650.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9a9/alan-ball-7404_astray_i-love-to-direct-i-get-really-jazzed-by_1769650.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/9a9/alan-ball-7404_astray_i-love-to-direct-i-get-really-jazzed-by_1769650.jpg) > “I love to direct! I get really jazzed by directing, but directing is not the same kind of personal expression, the same kind of personal intimate expression that writing is. Because when you're directing, you're basically managing, basically getting out of people doing their job, except when you see them going astray.” [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Directing is a collaborative, managerial role, distinct from the personal intimacy of writing, which is a solitary, expressive act. **In simple terms:** Directing manages others; writing expresses self. Key Takeaway Recognize the different rewards of each role. Themes collaboration leadership creativity expression intimacy Mood reflective analytical Type professional creative When to use this quote - film set - theatre production - creative workshops - team meetings Key Concepts Management personal expression artistic process Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance personal vision with team input? - When does collaboration enhance your creative output? A Different Perspective Directing can limit personal voice, making it feel less authentic. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Astray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astray/) [Basically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basically/) [Because](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/because/) [Direct](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/direct/) [Directing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directing/) [Directing Basically](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directing-basically-1767389/) [Directing Directing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directing-directing-284614/) [Directing Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directing-kind-467954/) [Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing/) [Except](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/except/) [Expression](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/expression/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Get](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/get/) [Getting](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/getting/) [Going](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/going/) [I love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/i-love/) [Intimate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/intimate/) [Job](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/job/) [Kind](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/kind/) [Love](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/love/) [Managing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/managing/) [Out](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/out/) [People](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/people/) [Personal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/personal/) [Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really/) [Same](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/same/) [See](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/see/) [Them](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/them/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) [Writing Directing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing-directing/) [You](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/you/) ## Related quotes > [Directing is kind of like acting through other people. You see moments and you see things and if you don't see the actors hit…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/malik-yoba/directing-is-kind-of-like-acting-through-other-people-you-see-moments/) [Malik Yoba](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/malik-yoba/) > [Once you're directing, you're kind of in a certain mode, where you're taking whatever is on the page and forming it into the film…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gus-van-sant/once-you-re-directing-you-re-kind-of-in-a-certain-mode-where-you-re/) [Gus Van Sant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gus-van-sant/) > [Once I went to film school, I realized that film directing was actually much better than theater directing, because you kind of get to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-waters/once-i-went-to-film-school-i-realized-that-film-directing-was/) [Mark Waters](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-waters/) > [I don't direct so that I can have an identity and so I can go on to CGI movies. I had a big identity…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-don-t-direct-so-that-i-can-have-an-identity-and-so-i-can-go-on-to/) [Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/) > [The thing that's very close in the process is writing and acting, not directing. Directing's very different.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sean-penn/the-thing-that-s-very-close-in-the-process-is-writing-and-acting-not/) [Sean Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sean-penn/) > [My approach to directing is to not do very much directing. I'm mainly interested in what the creative group individually and together are thinking.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-garland/my-approach-to-directing-is-to-not-do-very-much-directing-i-m-mainly/) [Alex Garland](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-garland/) > [I started in the P.A. world and craft service and storyboard artist, with the eye on the prize of directing. When I was directing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alfonso-gomez-rejon/i-started-in-the-p-a-world-and-craft-service-and-storyboard-artist/) [Alfonso Gomez-Rejon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alfonso-gomez-rejon/) > [It would be a great vacation to act in a movie if I weren't directing it. But to do it while you're directing interferes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sydney-pollack/it-would-be-a-great-vacation-to-act-in-a-movie-if-i-weren-t-directing/) [Sydney Pollack](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sydney-pollack/) > [I did a good bit of episodic television directing, but directing a movie is so much more complicated. And there's so much more responsibility…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-bateman/i-did-a-good-bit-of-episodic-television-directing-but-directing-a/) [Jason Bateman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-bateman/) > [I certainly was an actor and then I drifted more towards writing and directing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thomas-haden-church/i-certainly-was-an-actor-and-then-i-drifted-more-towards-writing-and/) [Thomas Haden Church](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thomas-haden-church/) > [The things I want to focus on are music, writing, directing, and developing stuff.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/finn-wolfhard/the-things-i-want-to-focus-on-are-music-writing-directing-and/) [Finn Wolfhard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/finn-wolfhard/) > [Writing and directing just sort of fell into my lap.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-krasinski/writing-and-directing-just-sort-of-fell-into-my-lap/) [John Krasinski](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-krasinski/) > [I was a standup comedian, which is kind of like writing and directing yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-feig/i-was-a-standup-comedian-which-is-kind-of-like-writing-and-directing/) [Paul Feig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-feig/) > [ All these teachers and \[screenwriting\] books mean you see movies that have been worked over by more committees wielding more rules, that all originality… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-schrader/all-these-teachers-and-screenwriting-books-mean-you-see-movies-that/) [Paul Schrader](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-schrader/) > [I went to film school so I have a writing and directing background, and I think a lot of the material I'm interested in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-mcbride/i-went-to-film-school-so-i-have-a-writing-and-directing-background/) [Danny McBride](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-mcbride/) ## More by Alan Ball > [The important thing is that he shook hands with us over the phone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/the-important-thing-is-that-he-shook-hands-with-us-over-the-phone/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [“Well did you call the hypothetical hardware store and buy a theoretical chainsaw?-- Pam to Jessica, True Blood”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/well-did-you-call-the-hypothetical-hardware-store-and-buy-a/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [“Pam: I don't know what it is about me that makes people think I want to hear their problems. Maybe I smile too much.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/pam-i-don-t-know-what-it-is-about-me-that-makes-people-think-i-want/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [Television viewing has become for me a completely different experience, because I don't watch shows on a weekly basis. I wait until the DVD…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/television-viewing-has-become-for-me-a-completely-different/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I don't really know what it is about vampires that makes them such a powerful symbol, metaphor, whatever in people's consciousness. But I do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-don-t-really-know-what-it-is-about-vampires-that-makes-them-such-a/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I am a little suspicious of industry paradigms. I feel like so many movies and TV shows feel so familiar because of over-reliance on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-am-a-little-suspicious-of-industry-paradigms-i-feel-like-so-many/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [“I had always heard your entire life flashes in front of your eyes the second before you die. First of all, that one second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-had-always-heard-your-entire-life-flashes-in-front-of-your-eyes-the/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I'm 53. I don't care about high school students. I find them irritating and uninformed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-m-53-i-don-t-care-about-high-school-students-i-find-them-irritating/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [Beauty is in the strangest places. A piece of garbage floating in the wind. And that beauty exists in America. It exists everywhere. You…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/beauty-is-in-the-strangest-places-a-piece-of-garbage-floating-in-the/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [The difference between film and TV is the pace. You don't have the leisure of time in television.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/the-difference-between-film-and-tv-is-the-pace-you-don-t-have-the/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > ['Six Feet Under' was about repressing our deepest, most primal impulses, and 'True Blood' is about giving full sway to them all the time.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/six-feet-under-was-about-repressing-our-deepest-most-primal-impulses/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I'd seen 'Interview with A Vampire' and saw Dracula movies growing up, but I never thought, 'I love vampires; I have to do a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-d-seen-interview-with-a-vampire-and-saw-dracula-movies-growing-up/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [“The idea of celibate vampires is ridiculous. To me, vampires are sex. I don't get a vampire story about abstinence. I don't care about…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/the-idea-of-celibate-vampires-is-ridiculous-to-me-vampires-are-sex-i/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [As a writer, it's fun to create. And once you get into a long-running show with very established characters and a very established tone…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/as-a-writer-it-s-fun-to-create-and-once-you-get-into-a-long-running/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) > [I'm from the South, so while I personally find it impossible to live there, I still have a fondness for it as a geographical…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alan-ball/i-m-from-the-south-so-while-i-personally-find-it-impossible-to-live/) [Alan Ball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) [Explore all 91 Alan Ball quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alan-ball/) ## More Astray quotes > [“A man who saw has turned blind, A hearer deaf, A leader now leads astray!”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miriam-lichtheim/a-man-who-saw-has-turned-blind-a-hearer-deaf-a-leader-now-leads-astray/) [Miriam Lichtheim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miriam-lichtheim/) > [“There are times when the understanding does not come until later, when it no longer matters. Other times I do what I must do,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/haruki-murakami/there-are-times-when-the-understanding-does-not-come-until-later-when/) [Haruki Murakami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/haruki-murakami/) > [“Magellan's thirst for glory, under cover of religious zeal, led him fatally astray.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laurence-bergreen/magellan-s-thirst-for-glory-under-cover-of-religious-zeal-led-him/) [Laurence Bergreen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laurence-bergreen/) > [Searching for precious goods leads astray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laozi/searching-for-precious-goods-leads-astray/) [Laozi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laozi/) > [“It is the very mind itself that leads the mind astray.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/yagyu-munenori/it-is-the-very-mind-itself-that-leads-the-mind-astray/) [Yagyu Munenori](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/yagyu-munenori/) > [“If you lead me astray, then my wanderings will bring me to my destination.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-bassey-johnson/if-you-lead-me-astray-then-my-wanderings-will-bring-me-to-my/) [Michael Bassey Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-bassey-johnson/) > [Passion without focus can lead you astray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ken-auletta/passion-without-focus-can-lead-you-astray/) [Ken Auletta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ken-auletta/) > [To beguile is to deceive or lead astray, as Lucifer beguiled Eve in the Garden of Eden.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-b-wirthlin/to-beguile-is-to-deceive-or-lead-astray-as-lucifer-beguiled-eve-in/) [Joseph B. Wirthlin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-b-wirthlin/) > [“Lead me!” I told him fervently. “Astray is, like, my favourite place ever.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-l-merrow/lead-me-i-told-him-fervently-astray-is-like-my-favourite-place-ever/) [J.L. Merrow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-l-merrow/) > [“I’ve gone astray. It’s better to cook with a stray than eat your own cat.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jarod-kintz/i-ve-gone-astray-it-s-better-to-cook-with-a-stray-than-eat-your-own/) [Jarod Kintz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jarod-kintz/) > [The advantage of the emotions is that they lead us astray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oscar-wilde/the-advantage-of-the-emotions-is-that-they-lead-us-astray/) [Oscar Wilde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oscar-wilde/) > [Whenever I have tried to do anything For Money it has always led me astray.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nancy-spain/whenever-i-have-tried-to-do-anything-for-money-it-has-always-led-me/) [Nancy Spain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nancy-spain/) > [When I decided that I wanted to go to college, I wanted to be a school teacher for 7th and 8th grade boys because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bill-cosby/when-i-decided-that-i-wanted-to-go-to-college-i-wanted-to-be-a-school/) [Bill Cosby](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bill-cosby/) > [So we are astray. There's nothing else to do. In another place I see a different you.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/koop/so-we-are-astray-there-s-nothing-else-to-do-in-another-place-i-see-a/) [Koop](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/koop/) > [Why will people go astray when they have this blessed Book to guide them?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-faraday/why-will-people-go-astray-when-they-have-this-blessed-book-to-guide/) [Michael Faraday](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-faraday/) [Browse all 64 Astray quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/astray/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I love to direct! I get really jazzed by directing, but directing is not the same kind of personal expression, the same kind of personal intimate expression that writing is. 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