Sydney Pollack

I didn't grow up thinking of movies as film, or art, but as movies, something to do on a Saturday afternoon.

— Sydney Pollack

It's my job to motivate the audience to believe. I have to get them to suspend their judgment in favor of involvement.

— Sydney Pollack

The marketing of anything is full of exploitation and lies and hype.

— Sydney Pollack

Burt Lancaster was largely responsible for me becoming a director.

— Sydney Pollack

People sense when you're pretending, when you're worried about your own ego.

— Sydney Pollack

I personally have never made a movie in Hollywood, because I don't want to get up in my own bed and then…

— Sydney Pollack

Every film I've made has a kind of frustrated love story in the center of it. They were people who saw life…

— Sydney Pollack

You mustn't regret decisions that you make. Because the decisions are made out of your gut in a way and you have…

— Sydney Pollack

When you're shooting a feature that costs $200,000 a day with a crew of 250, you don't want accidents; you want to…

— Sydney Pollack

What makes architecture extraordinary is that you're looking at the building, but your peripheral vision is also seeing how it fits within…

— Sydney Pollack

I don't get nervous talking about my films, but if I'm the subject, it's hard.

— Sydney Pollack

You are not an active creator of the film.

— Sydney Pollack

All films are political, whether they mean to be or not. Star Wars is political. As soon as you have conflict, which…

— Sydney Pollack

There will be people who are sensitive about seeing the American point of view presented as less than sympathetic.

— Sydney Pollack

I don't consider myself a teacher of moral and political positions. I don't want to be that. I can't help but have…

— Sydney Pollack

And I taught acting for years, and without knowing it that was the real thing that started bending me toward directing.

— Sydney Pollack

My films ought to be judged on whether they're entertaining or good as films, but not on the political view necessarily. I'm…

— Sydney Pollack

I'm not trying to push my political agenda on anybody. I'll do that like any other citizen by giving money to a…

— Sydney Pollack

Reading a novel of a private experience, very, very different, the nature of it is very different.

— Sydney Pollack

You don't normally do another presentation of All About Eve. You do one All About Eve, and that's it.

— Sydney Pollack

My strength is with actors. I think I'm good at working with them to get the best performances, at seeing what it…

— Sydney Pollack

I see my job as trying to entertain you, to be balanced in some way, and morally responsible. I don't want to…

— Sydney Pollack

The essence to me of all good drama is argument.

— Sydney Pollack

There's no money in documentaries.

— Sydney Pollack

What I really want to do is produce. There isn’t much patience with a slow developing story line anymore.

— Sydney Pollack