---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I don't think film is the writer's…"
description: "\"I don't think film is the writer's medium, and so I was interested to see what a director would do with it.\" — Daniel Handler"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/daniel-handler-1043_cinema_i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-mediu_2080486.jpg"
---

#  I don't think film is the writer's medium, and so I was…

![“I don't think film is the writer's medium, and so I was interested to see what a director would do with it.” quote by Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/daniel-handler-1043_cinema_i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-mediu_2080486.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/daniel-handler-1043_cinema_i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-mediu_2080486.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/daniel-handler-1043_cinema_i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-mediu_2080486.jpg)

> “I don't think film is the writer's medium, and so I was interested to see what a director would do with it.”

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Film is not the writer's primary medium; directors shape the story differently.

**In simple terms:** Film belongs to directors, not writers.

Key Takeaway

Explore storytelling across mediums.

Themes

creativity medium collaboration

Mood

reflective inquisitive

Type

literary analytical

When to use this quote

- screenwriting
- directing
- film criticism

Key Concepts

narrative theory visual storytelling authorial intent

Questions to Reflect On

- What does a director add to a writer's vision?
- How does medium affect narrative impact?

A Different Perspective

Writers may feel marginalized in visual adaptations.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Cinema](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/) [Directors](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/directors/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/)

## Related quotes

> [I don't want to infantilize the actor; I want to empower the actor. Actors can be many things, but all of the really good…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/paul-bettany/i-don-t-want-to-infantilize-the-actor-i-want-to-empower-the-actor/)

[Paul Bettany](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/paul-bettany/)

> [I personally have no need to make a strict definition of the medium. I am more interested in what can be done with comics…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-lutes/i-personally-have-no-need-to-make-a-strict-definition-of-the-medium-i/)

[Jason Lutes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-lutes/)

> [The directors that I end up having a really good time with are the ones that understand the fluidity of the medium and are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/oliver-platt/the-directors-that-i-end-up-having-a-really-good-time-with-are-the/)

[Oliver Platt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/oliver-platt/)

> [As an actor, I give 60 days to act in a film, but the writer takes nearly two to three years to create a story.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/vijay-antony/as-an-actor-i-give-60-days-to-act-in-a-film-but-the-writer-takes/)

[Vijay Antony](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/vijay-antony/)

> [When you're a big enough part of the process that the Writers Guild gives you a lot of credit, that's a good thing. It…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harold-ramis/when-you-re-a-big-enough-part-of-the-process-that-the-writers-guild/)

[Harold Ramis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harold-ramis/)

> [I have always felt validated and it shouldn't take film to do that for writer, but I'm glad it has. My plan has always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-r-lansdale/i-have-always-felt-validated-and-it-shouldn-t-take-film-to-do-that/)

[Joe R. Lansdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-r-lansdale/)

> [A film writer is very much like a party girl. While you're good-looking and still unlined, the possibilities seem endless. But your appeal doesn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-salter/a-film-writer-is-very-much-like-a-party-girl-while-you-re-good/)

[James Salter](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-salter/)

> [I think the wonderful thing about doing theater is that it's more of an actor's medium. I think that film is more of a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kim-cattrall/i-think-the-wonderful-thing-about-doing-theater-is-that-it-s-more-of/)

[Kim Cattrall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kim-cattrall/)

> [I think I've always wanted to direct, but I didn't go to film school. I was lucky enough to work in movies, and I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/greta-gerwig/i-think-i-ve-always-wanted-to-direct-but-i-didn-t-go-to-film-school-i/)

[Greta Gerwig](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/greta-gerwig/)

> [The truth is that filmmaking is not really an actor's medium; it's really a director's medium, so all I can really control is the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-c-reilly/the-truth-is-that-filmmaking-is-not-really-an-actor-s-medium-it-s/)

[John C. Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-c-reilly/)

> [I'm a person of the arts. I love the arts very, very, very much. And ah, I'm a musician, I'm a director, I'm a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-jackson/i-m-a-person-of-the-arts-i-love-the-arts-very-very-very-much-and-ah-i/)

[Michael Jackson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-jackson/)

> [I'm trying to interpret the film through the director's head, but it all comes out through me. So, a composer is kind of like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/danny-elfman/i-m-trying-to-interpret-the-film-through-the-director-s-head-but-it/)

[Danny Elfman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/danny-elfman/)

> [ I wrote a comedy, which hopefully \[Rick director\] Curtiss Clayton will bring to the screen, that I thought was the antithesis of all my… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-wrote-a-comedy-which-hopefully-rick-director-curtiss-clayton-will/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [I think every film is like a team game, especially for me. I have always got films which have a strong cast.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ayushmann-khurrana/i-think-every-film-is-like-a-team-game-especially-for-me-i-have/)

[Ayushmann Khurrana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ayushmann-khurrana/)

> [I think you get out of film school what you put into it. If you don't care about making movies, film school will do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-king/i-think-you-get-out-of-film-school-what-you-put-into-it-if-you-don-t/)

[Richard King](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-king/)

## More by Daniel Handler

> [We laughed the rest of the way, because the point of this story is, it is not the cookies. It is the love.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/we-laughed-the-rest-of-the-way-because-the-point-of-this-story-is-it/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [I started making plans, thinking we would get that far.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-started-making-plans-thinking-we-would-get-that-far/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [I can't imagine why you would want to take your child to see what the career of a writer is like, because it mostly…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-can-t-imagine-why-you-would-want-to-take-your-child-to-see-what-the/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [“All the deaths are dead for nothing but you're not dead at all.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/all-the-deaths-are-dead-for-nothing-but-you-re-not-dead-at-all/)

[daniel handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [“I love you so soundly and I will do anything to drag you forward.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-love-you-so-soundly-and-i-will-do-anything-to-drag-you-forward/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [I’d ruin any day, all my days, for those long nights with you, and I did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-d-ruin-any-day-all-my-days-for-those-long-nights-with-you-and-i-did/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [Chestnuts in stuffing tastes like someone chewed up a tree branch and then French-kissed it into your mouth.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/chestnuts-in-stuffing-tastes-like-someone-chewed-up-a-tree-branch-and/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [Lemony Snicket. Now, I'm told - the books, of course, starting from the very first one, became hugely popular, selling millions and millions. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/lemony-snicket-now-i-m-told-the-books-of-course-starting-from-the/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [“The matches were a little 'he loves me, he loves me not,' but then I saw right on the box that I had twenty-four,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-matches-were-a-little-he-loves-me-he-loves-me-not-but-then-i-saw/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [I didn't like books where people played on a sports team and won a bunch of games, or went to summer camp and had…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-didn-t-like-books-where-people-played-on-a-sports-team-and-won-a/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [I love no one but you, I have discovered, but you are far away and I am here alone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-love-no-one-but-you-i-have-discovered-but-you-are-far-away-and-i-am/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [The Basic Eight and Watch Your Mouth both have first-person voices, and I ended up investigating those voices and investing so much in them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-basic-eight-and-watch-your-mouth-both-have-first-person-voices/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [The Long Goodbye' is one book I like to read over and over again, and it was an enormous inspiration for 'All The Wrong…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-long-goodbye-is-one-book-i-like-to-read-over-and-over-again-and/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [The whole thing of what I’ve been trying,” you said, “is that you’re different, and you keep asking about the other girls, but what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/the-whole-thing-of-what-i-ve-been-trying-you-said-is-that-you-re/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

> [ I wrote a comedy, which hopefully \[Rick director\] Curtiss Clayton will bring to the screen, that I thought was the antithesis of all my… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-wrote-a-comedy-which-hopefully-rick-director-curtiss-clayton-will/)

[Daniel Handler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

[Explore all 295 Daniel Handler quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/)

## More Cinema quotes

> [I made, like, five movies while I was in college. I think they just weren't memorable movies. I've taken breaks as the years have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jodie-foster/i-made-like-five-movies-while-i-was-in-college-i-think-they-just/)

[Jodie Foster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jodie-foster/)

> [You have to have a great director to make a great movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thelma-schoonmaker/you-have-to-have-a-great-director-to-make-a-great-movie/)

[Thelma Schoonmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thelma-schoonmaker/)

> [I'm trying to write a film with my friend. I'd love to get the thrill of speaking actors making my work even funnier.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-howard/i-m-trying-to-write-a-film-with-my-friend-i-d-love-to-get-the-thrill/)

[Russell Howard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-howard/)

> [I wasn't attracted to American cinema, but I fell in love with Los Angeles the minute I arrived.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-wasn-t-attracted-to-american-cinema-but-i-fell-in-love-with-los/)

[Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/)

> [There was a time in the 1980s when I worked in 22 films a year.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/radha-ravi/there-was-a-time-in-the-1980s-when-i-worked-in-22-films-a-year/)

[Radha Ravi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/radha-ravi/)

> [To an ever greater extent out experience is governed by pictures, pictures in newspapers and magazines, on television and in the cinema. Next to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/douglas-crimp/to-an-ever-greater-extent-out-experience-is-governed-by-pictures/)

[Douglas Crimp](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/douglas-crimp/)

> [In the future, I would like to do more films with contemporary themes. Perhaps comedy, which is something I have done in theater but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/luke-evans/in-the-future-i-would-like-to-do-more-films-with-contemporary-themes/)

[Luke Evans](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/luke-evans/)

> [I am tired of our characters being so incomplete. When do we ever save the day in a film? When does a Latino actor…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/esai-morales/i-am-tired-of-our-characters-being-so-incomplete-when-do-we-ever-save/)

[Esai Morales](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/esai-morales/)

> [I love film people and actors and I am in the right world because I am one of those people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ewan-mcgregor/i-love-film-people-and-actors-and-i-am-in-the-right-world-because-i/)

[Ewan McGregor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ewan-mcgregor/)

> [Personally, I prefer contemporary films, but the market calls for more period choices, especially since China opened up a cinema market in Hong Kong.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donnie-yen/personally-i-prefer-contemporary-films-but-the-market-calls-for-more/)

[Donnie Yen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donnie-yen/)

> [I'd love to work in the States; I'd love to work anywhere where you get a good script and a good part to play.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-carmichael/i-d-love-to-work-in-the-states-i-d-love-to-work-anywhere-where-you/)

[Laura Carmichael](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-carmichael/)

> [I even see the cinema itself as a woman, with its alternation of light and darkness, of appearing and disappearing images](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/federico-fellini/i-even-see-the-cinema-itself-as-a-woman-with-its-alternation-of-light/)

[Federico Fellini](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/federico-fellini/)

> ['Rear Window' isn't really a horror film, but it is a psychological drama, which I love. It is very tense.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diana-silvers/rear-window-isn-t-really-a-horror-film-but-it-is-a-psychological/)

[Diana Silvers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diana-silvers/)

> [What a thrill. You know you've entered new territory when you realise that your outfit cost more than your film.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jessica-yu/what-a-thrill-you-know-you-ve-entered-new-territory-when-you-realise/)

Jessica Yu

> [I am not interested in churning out a certain number of films every year. For me, it's about the quality of work. I think…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepika-padukone/i-am-not-interested-in-churning-out-a-certain-number-of-films-every/)

[Deepika Padukone](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepika-padukone/)

[Browse all 23,940 Cinema quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "I don't think film is the writer's medium, and so I was interested to see what a director would do with it.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "Daniel Handler"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-medium-and-so-i-was-interested-to/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Cinema"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-medium-and-so-i-was-interested-to/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/daniel-handler-1043_cinema_i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-mediu_2080486.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/daniel-handler-1043_cinema_i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-mediu_2080486.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/8bd/daniel-handler-1043_cinema_i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-mediu_2080486.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“I don't think film is the writer's medium, and so I was interested to see what a director would do with it.” — Daniel Handler",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "Daniel Handler",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-handler/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "I don't think film is the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-medium-and-so-i-was-interested-to/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-handler/i-don-t-think-film-is-the-writer-s-medium-and-so-i-was-interested-to/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
