--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I think that directing is the ultimate…" description: "\"I think that directing is the ultimate martyred task of filmmaking, that it has nobility to it. It takes three years to make a film, for the most part...." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/141/diane-lane-3573_attentiveness_i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-m_1632074.jpg" --- # I think that directing is the ultimate martyred task of… ![“I think that directing is the ultimate martyred task of filmmaking, that it has nobility to it. It takes three years to make a film, for the most part. I think it requires the attentiveness of a mother hen.” quote by Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/141/diane-lane-3573_attentiveness_i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-m_1632074.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/141/diane-lane-3573_attentiveness_i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-m_1632074.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/141/diane-lane-3573_attentiveness_i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-m_1632074.jpg) > “I think that directing is the ultimate martyred task of filmmaking, that it has nobility to it. It takes three years to make a film, for the most part. I think it requires the attentiveness of a mother hen.” [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Directing demands deep, sustained care and moral commitment, akin to a mother hen's vigilance over a long, arduous process. **In simple terms:** Directing is a noble, demanding task requiring constant attention. Key Takeaway Treat directing as a long‑term, caring responsibility. Themes leadership creativity commitment Mood reflective determined Type inspirational philosophical When to use this quote - film production - career development - creative leadership - team management Key Concepts filmmaking artistic integrity maternal metaphor Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance artistic dedication with personal well‑being? - What support systems help sustain long projects? A Different Perspective Directing can be isolating and may strain personal life. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attentiveness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attentiveness/) [Cinema](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Filmmaking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/filmmaking/) [Mother](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mother/) [Nobility](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/nobility/) [Thinking](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/thinking/) ## Related quotes > [I think that directing is the ultimate martyred task of filmmaking, that it has nobility to it. It takes three years to make a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-martyred-task-of-filmmaking-2/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [Directing is the ultimate way to bring together all the art forms I've been involved with over the years.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xander-berkeley/directing-is-the-ultimate-way-to-bring-together-all-the-art-forms-i/) [Xander Berkeley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/xander-berkeley/) > [You need to see yourself in what you direct, I think - directing is quite self-indulgent from that point of view.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-elliott/you-need-to-see-yourself-in-what-you-direct-i-think-directing-is/) [Marianne Elliott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-elliott/) > [I think directing yourself is a monumental task. Just to self edit as an actor, you work for some directors who don't give you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ashton-kutcher/i-think-directing-yourself-is-a-monumental-task-just-to-self-edit-as/) [Ashton Kutcher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ashton-kutcher/) > [When I think about directing a film, the thing that stops me short is wondering if I'm a natural at it the way I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-norton/when-i-think-about-directing-a-film-the-thing-that-stops-me-short-is/) [Edward Norton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-norton/) > [When I made my first film, I didn't think of it as directing, so it wasn't like I set out to become a director.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kathryn-bigelow/when-i-made-my-first-film-i-didn-t-think-of-it-as-directing-so-it/) [Kathryn Bigelow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kathryn-bigelow/) > [My dad had a big influence on me, and although I was never very bright at school, I used to love philosophising with him…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marianne-elliott/my-dad-had-a-big-influence-on-me-and-although-i-was-never-very-bright/) [Marianne Elliott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marianne-elliott/) > [People ask me about that all the time. They say, "Did you ever think of directing?" And I say, "It's completely out of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mickey-rourke/people-ask-me-about-that-all-the-time-they-say-did-you-ever-think-of/) [Mickey Rourke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mickey-rourke/) > [I thought of myself as part of the general filmmaking effort. And as my scope broadened, I began to think about directing. I wanted…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-nicholson/i-thought-of-myself-as-part-of-the-general-filmmaking-effort-and-as/) [Jack Nicholson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-nicholson/) > [I think directing is part play, part work, not just all work, because I think you always have to play. I think that's ultimately…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marc-forster/i-think-directing-is-part-play-part-work-not-just-all-work-because-i/) [Marc Forster](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marc-forster/) > [I think the only directing I'd be any good at is theatre directing. It's the only thing I can see myself doing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-freeman/i-think-the-only-directing-i-d-be-any-good-at-is-theatre-directing-it/) [Martin Freeman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-freeman/) > [Even when I was an actor in training, one criticism my teachers had was that I should think about directing instead of acting, because…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jason-alexander/even-when-i-was-an-actor-in-training-one-criticism-my-teachers-had/) [Jason Alexander](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jason-alexander/) > [I think directing and writing are very different jobs. Obviously, directing is a more social and managerial job. The other thing about directing is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlie-kaufman/i-think-directing-and-writing-are-very-different-jobs-obviously/) [Charlie Kaufman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlie-kaufman/) > [As a screenwriter, you are so used to things going in directions that you wouldn't have taken, so to be able to say, 'This…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-watkins/as-a-screenwriter-you-are-so-used-to-things-going-in-directions-that/) [James Watkins](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-watkins/) > [I think directing is a huge responsibility and it's not something where you can just be like, "Yeah, sure, I'll give it a go!"…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/josh-hutcherson/i-think-directing-is-a-huge-responsibility-and-it-s-not-something/) [Josh Hutcherson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/josh-hutcherson/) ## More by Diane Lane > [I never wished that I was a superstar. Hell, I never even wished that I was an actress.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-never-wished-that-i-was-a-superstar-hell-i-never-even-wished-that-i/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [Love is saying you're sorry. It's the opposite of those cherub posters that say, 'Love is never having to say you're sorry.' Wrong! Love…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/love-is-saying-you-re-sorry-it-s-the-opposite-of-those-cherub-posters/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [Independent films have a very different cachet than success films.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/independent-films-have-a-very-different-cachet-than-success-films/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [The largest room in the world is room for improvement. You know, some mornings my thighs are fat. Some days my hair looks great.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/the-largest-room-in-the-world-is-room-for-improvement-you-know-some/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [I was the only kid in Manhattan I knew whose parents had a car.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-was-the-only-kid-in-manhattan-i-knew-whose-parents-had-a-car/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [That's why they call it work, because it's not what you'd prefer to do with your free time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/that-s-why-they-call-it-work-because-it-s-not-what-you-d-prefer-to-do/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [I'm not a bad parent and partner, even if I make a thousand mistakes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-m-not-a-bad-parent-and-partner-even-if-i-make-a-thousand-mistakes/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [We live our whole lives, and in our dying moment, we have to ask ourselves, 'What did we really care about? What impact did…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/we-live-our-whole-lives-and-in-our-dying-moment-we-have-to-ask/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [When I was about seven, I started touring the globe as part of New York's La MaMa theater company - without my parents!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/when-i-was-about-seven-i-started-touring-the-globe-as-part-of-new/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [I had a hard time calling Laurence Oliver 'Larry.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-had-a-hard-time-calling-laurence-oliver-larry/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [I'm done saying 'I'm sorry I wasn't who you needed or wanted me to be' to everybody in my life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-m-done-saying-i-m-sorry-i-wasn-t-who-you-needed-or-wanted-me-to-be/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [A grandparent will tell you, "Have fun!" and a parent will tell you, "Be safe, do a good job, make me proud." You know…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/a-grandparent-will-tell-you-have-fun-and-a-parent-will-tell-you-be/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [I take comfort that aging happens to everybody. It's part of life. Aging offers great lessons in dignity, since the indignity wins in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-take-comfort-that-aging-happens-to-everybody-it-s-part-of-life/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [I grew up loving horses. I was relatively obsessed, starting with my rocking horse at age 2, all the way through my painting and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-grew-up-loving-horses-i-was-relatively-obsessed-starting-with-my/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) > [I've got a lot of mileage, and I love my mileage. I wouldn't trade a mile of that for a minute of being younger.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-ve-got-a-lot-of-mileage-and-i-love-my-mileage-i-wouldn-t-trade-a/) [Diane Lane](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) [Explore all 127 Diane Lane quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/) ## More Attentiveness quotes > [Most songs come from being attentive. Attentive to life, attentive to scripture, attentive to your heart. Pay attention!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matt-redman/most-songs-come-from-being-attentive-attentive-to-life-attentive-to/) [Matt Redman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matt-redman/) > [Study the public behavior of top stars and you can detect a keen attentiveness to brand value.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-bart/study-the-public-behavior-of-top-stars-and-you-can-detect-a-keen/) [Peter Bart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-bart/) > [“A key point to bear in mind: The value of attentiveness varies in proportion to its object. You’re better off not giving the small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-aurelius/a-key-point-to-bear-in-mind-the-value-of-attentiveness-varies-in/) [Marcus Aurelius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-aurelius/) > [At home we have lost the capacity to see what is before us. Travel shakes us out of our apathy, and we regain an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-w-gardner/at-home-we-have-lost-the-capacity-to-see-what-is-before-us-travel/) [John W. Gardner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-w-gardner/) > [Ten times a day something happens to me like this - some strengthening throb of amazement - some good sweet empathic ping and swell.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-oliver/ten-times-a-day-something-happens-to-me-like-this-some-strengthening/) [Mary Oliver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-oliver/) > [“Being in the present moment is no easy task, especially when we are interrupted by someone who needs our attention at a crucial time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-canham/being-in-the-present-moment-is-no-easy-task-especially-when-we-are/) Elizabeth Canham > [That nameless and infinitely delicate aroma of inexpressible tenderness and attentiveness which, in every refined and honorable attachment, is contemporary with the courtship, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herman-melville/that-nameless-and-infinitely-delicate-aroma-of-inexpressible/) [Herman Melville](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herman-melville/) > [“Learning how to think' really means learning how to exercise some control over how & what you think. It means being conscious & aware…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-foster-wallace/learning-how-to-think-really-means-learning-how-to-exercise-some-2/) [David Foster Wallace](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-foster-wallace/) > [Celebration... is self restraint, is attentiveness, is questioning, is meditating, is awaiting, is the step over into the more wakeful glimpse of the wonder…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-heidegger/celebration-is-self-restraint-is-attentiveness-is-questioning-is/) [Martin Heidegger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-heidegger/) > [Time, presence and physical attentiveness are our most basic proxies for something ultimately unprovable: that we are understood.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-chatfield/time-presence-and-physical-attentiveness-are-our-most-basic-proxies/) [Tom Chatfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-chatfield/) > [Victory brings obliviousness; defeat, attentiveness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mason-cooley/victory-brings-obliviousness-defeat-attentiveness/) [Mason Cooley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mason-cooley/) > [If you keep the Sabbath, you start to see creation not as somewhere to get away from your ordinary life, but a place to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eugene-h-peterson/if-you-keep-the-sabbath-you-start-to-see-creation-not-as-somewhere-to/) [Eugene H. Peterson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eugene-h-peterson/) > [Being present, whether with children, with friends, or even with oneself, is hard work. But isn't this attentiveness - the feeling that someone is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-grosz/being-present-whether-with-children-with-friends-or-even-with-oneself/) [Stephen Grosz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stephen-grosz/) > [“The only way to eradicate disquieted state of mind in this world is to give serious and heedful attentiveness to those in the darkest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anyaele-sam-chiyson/the-only-way-to-eradicate-disquieted-state-of-mind-in-this-world-is/) Anyaele Sam Chiyson > [I may be a sleeping politician. But one should know that a sleeping politician is always awake about national politics. I am not like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-d-deve-gowda/i-may-be-a-sleeping-politician-but-one-should-know-that-a-sleeping/) H. D. Deve Gowda [Browse all 46 Attentiveness quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attentiveness/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "I think that directing is the ultimate martyred task of filmmaking, that it has nobility to it. It takes three years to make a film, for the most part. I think it requires the attentiveness of a mother hen.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Diane Lane" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-martyred-task-of-filmmaking/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Attentiveness" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-martyred-task-of-filmmaking/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/141/diane-lane-3573_attentiveness_i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-m_1632074.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/141/diane-lane-3573_attentiveness_i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-m_1632074.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/141/diane-lane-3573_attentiveness_i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-m_1632074.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“I think that directing is the ultimate martyred task of filmmaking, that it has nobility to it. It takes…” — Diane Lane", "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": "Diane Lane", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/diane-lane/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "I think that directing is the...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-martyred-task-of-filmmaking/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/diane-lane/i-think-that-directing-is-the-ultimate-martyred-task-of-filmmaking/#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 } } ] } ```