---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: I'm always trying to make something that…"
description: "\"I'm always trying to make something that is impossible to film. Why would somebody just read a novel when they can see it on TV or in the cinema? I rea..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_always_i-m-always-trying-to-make-something-that_456271.jpg"
---

#  I'm always trying to make something that is impossible to…

![“I'm always trying to make something that is impossible to film. Why would somebody just read a novel when they can see it on TV or in the cinema? I really have to think of the things fiction can do that film can't and play to the strengths of the novel. With a novel, you can get right inside…” quote by Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_always_i-m-always-trying-to-make-something-that_456271.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_always_i-m-always-trying-to-make-something-that_456271.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/034/kazuo-ishiguro-1029_always_i-m-always-trying-to-make-something-that_456271.jpg)

> “I'm always trying to make something that is impossible to film. Why would somebody just read a novel when they can see it on TV or in the cinema? I really have to think of the things fiction can do that film can't and play to the strengths of the novel. With a novel, you can get right inside somebody's head.”

[Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/)

## About This Quote

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

The quote argues that novels can explore inner thoughts and possibilities that visual media cannot, urging creators to leverage the unique strengths of prose.

**In simple terms:** Novels reveal inner minds better than film.

Key Takeaway

Use the novel’s depth to explore inner worlds.

Themes

creativity literature media novel imagination

Mood

reflective inquisitive

Type

analytical inspirational

When to use this quote

- writing a novel
- teaching literature
- adapting stories
- creative brainstorming

Key Concepts

psychology narrative perspective limitations of visual media

Questions to Reflect On

- How can you translate a character’s inner voice into visual storytelling?
- What aspects of a story are best left to prose?

A Different Perspective

Film can convey emotion visually, but may miss nuanced internal monologue.

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## Related quotes

> [Why would somebody just read a novel when they can see it on TV or in the cinema? I really have to think of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/why-would-somebody-just-read-a-novel-when-they-can-see-it-on-tv-or-in/)

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> [I really have to think of the things fiction can do that film can't and play to the strengths of the novel. With a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-really-have-to-think-of-the-things-fiction-can-do-that-film-can-t/)

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> [One of the great things about fiction is you can use an issue and describe it in human terms.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-connelly/one-of-the-great-things-about-fiction-is-you-can-use-an-issue-and/)

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> [I think people are always saying things are 'over.' Fiction has been regularly 'over' since the 19th century.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/claire-tomalin/i-think-people-are-always-saying-things-are-over-fiction-has-been/)

[Claire Tomalin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/claire-tomalin/)

> [But I hate things all fiction... there should always be some foundation of fact for the most airy fabric - and pure invention is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lord-byron/but-i-hate-things-all-fiction-there-should-always-be-some-foundation/)

[Lord Byron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lord-byron/)

> [I've got things I have to do in fiction to sort of register my existence, before I kick the bucket, but it will never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-monahan/i-ve-got-things-i-have-to-do-in-fiction-to-sort-of-register-my/)

[William Monahan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-monahan/)

> [“Poetry is a way of coming to know the realness of things; fiction is a way of coming to know the world of relationships;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelly-cherry/poetry-is-a-way-of-coming-to-know-the-realness-of-things-fiction-is-a/)

[Kelly Cherry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kelly-cherry/)

> [ One of the things \[fiction\] does is lead you to recognize what you did not know before. ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ursula-k-le-guin/one-of-the-things-fiction-does-is-lead-you-to-recognize-what-you-did/)

[Ursula K. Le Guin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ursula-k-le-guin/)

> [I really need to know where I'm going with fiction to write it in a way that at least I'm happy with. And I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dave-barry/i-really-need-to-know-where-i-m-going-with-fiction-to-write-it-in-a/)

[Dave Barry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dave-barry/)

> [I was thinking one of the great things about fiction is we, as a race, only get to look out of our own eyes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-gaiman/i-was-thinking-one-of-the-great-things-about-fiction-is-we-as-a-race/)

[Neil Gaiman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-gaiman/)

> [Even a fiction film is hard to end. You can going on shooting and editing a documentary forever.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leos-carax/even-a-fiction-film-is-hard-to-end-you-can-going-on-shooting-and/)

[Leos Carax](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leos-carax/)

> [With 'Nobody Knows,' I consciously set out to make a fiction film, which is a different approach from 'Distance,' but I still applied a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/hirokazu-kore-eda/with-nobody-knows-i-consciously-set-out-to-make-a-fiction-film-which/)

[Hirokazu Kore-eda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/hirokazu-kore-eda/)

> [In a fiction film, we know at some level we've suspended disbelief. In a documentary, we know that we're watching a drama unfold in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-oppenheimer/in-a-fiction-film-we-know-at-some-level-we-ve-suspended-disbelief-in/)

[Joshua Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-oppenheimer/)

> [I'm a big fan of fiction film where you have a story and you have to transform that into a visual language, basically working…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dror-moreh/i-m-a-big-fan-of-fiction-film-where-you-have-a-story-and-you-have-to/)

[Dror Moreh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dror-moreh/)

> [I'd always wanted the show to be more reality based science fiction, something along the lines of The Day the Earth Stood Still, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gil-gerard/i-d-always-wanted-the-show-to-be-more-reality-based-science-fiction/)

[Gil Gerard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gil-gerard/)

## More by Kazuo Ishiguro

> [The evening's the best part of the day. You've done your day's work. Now you can put your feet up and enjoy it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/the-evening-s-the-best-part-of-the-day-you-ve-done-your-day-s-work/)

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> [As a writer, I'm more interested in what people tell themselves happened rather than what actually happened.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/as-a-writer-i-m-more-interested-in-what-people-tell-themselves/)

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> [“About him and his wife voting for different parties. A few years ago that would have been unthinkable.” “No doubt.” “Quite extraordinary the things…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/about-him-and-his-wife-voting-for-different-parties-a-few-years-ago/)

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> [“But what is the sense in forever speculating what might have happened had such and such a moment turned out differently? One could presumably…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/but-what-is-the-sense-in-forever-speculating-what-might-have-happened/)

[Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/)

> [“Silence is just as likely to indicate the most profound ideas forming, the deepest energies being summoned.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/silence-is-just-as-likely-to-indicate-the-most-profound-ideas-forming/)

[Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/)

> [“I don't know why, but it didn't seem an option for more than one of us to storm off, and I wanted to make…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-don-t-know-why-but-it-didn-t-seem-an-option-for-more-than-one-of-us/)

[Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/)

> [Our family arrived in England in 1960. At that time I thought the war was ancient history. But if I think of 15 years…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/our-family-arrived-in-england-in-1960-at-that-time-i-thought-the-war/)

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> [“For however one may come in later years to reassess one’s achievements, it is always a consolation to know that one’s life has contained…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/for-however-one-may-come-in-later-years-to-reassess-one-s/)

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> [I think it's quite difficult to understand what kind of life a writer leads. They might be millionaires, or they might be starving people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/i-think-it-s-quite-difficult-to-understand-what-kind-of-life-a-writer/)

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> [“But this small episode is as good an illustration as any of the hazards of uttering witticisms. By the very nature of a witticism,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/but-this-small-episode-is-as-good-an-illustration-as-any-of-the/)

[Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/)

> [There comes a point when you can more or less count the number of books you're going to write before you die.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kazuo-ishiguro/there-comes-a-point-when-you-can-more-or-less-count-the-number-of/)

[Kazuo Ishiguro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/)

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[Explore all 292 Kazuo Ishiguro quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kazuo-ishiguro/)

## More Always quotes

> [I think performing has pretty much always been a part of me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/isa-briones/i-think-performing-has-pretty-much-always-been-a-part-of-me/)

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> [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/)

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> [It's always great to see old friends, especially those I have not been able to see in 15 months.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-regal/it-s-always-great-to-see-old-friends-especially-those-i-have-not-been/)

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> [When you step out and do a song in a musical, the easier thing to do is make it funny. But when those transitions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kelli-o-hara/when-you-step-out-and-do-a-song-in-a-musical-the-easier-thing-to-do/)

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> [I have really good lateral movement. I've always had quick lateral movement.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/austin-rivers/i-have-really-good-lateral-movement-i-ve-always-had-quick-lateral/)

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> [There is something magical about being able to feel somebody. And that is something that has always moved me with music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-brink/there-is-something-magical-about-being-able-to-feel-somebody-and-that/)

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> [It's not writing in the traditional sense, but I've always said that the writing process continues on the set and even into the editing…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-b-weide/it-s-not-writing-in-the-traditional-sense-but-i-ve-always-said-that/)

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> [I always watch my matches back 100 times afterwards because that's how I improve. This is something I've always done, even in NXT.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-rose/i-always-watch-my-matches-back-100-times-afterwards-because-that-s/)

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