--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Documentary has been a way for me to…" description: "\"Documentary has been a way for me to establish myself as a filmmaker. It's my way of proving that I have a language, that I can say something through f..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/mano-khalil-34508_cinema_documentary-has-been-a-way-for-me-to-est_664952.jpg" --- # Documentary has been a way for me to establish myself as a… ![“Documentary has been a way for me to establish myself as a filmmaker. It's my way of proving that I have a language, that I can say something through film.” quote by Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/mano-khalil-34508_cinema_documentary-has-been-a-way-for-me-to-est_664952.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/mano-khalil-34508_cinema_documentary-has-been-a-way-for-me-to-est_664952.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/267/mano-khalil-34508_cinema_documentary-has-been-a-way-for-me-to-est_664952.jpg) > “Documentary has been a way for me to establish myself as a filmmaker. It's my way of proving that I have a language, that I can say something through film.” [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Filmmaking is his medium for self‑expression and establishing his voice. **In simple terms:** Film is his language of expression. Key Takeaway Use creative media to define yourself. Themes creativity identity expression Mood passionate introspective Type artistic personal When to use this quote - documentary project - personal branding - advocacy Key Concepts narrative visual storytelling Questions to Reflect On - What story do you need to tell? - How does film shape your identity? A Different Perspective Audience reception may limit impact. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cinema](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/) [Documentary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documentary/) [Documentary Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documentary-way-734650/) [Establish Filmmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/establish-filmmaker-5291538/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Filmmaker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/filmmaker/) [Filmmaker Way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/filmmaker-way-1264915/) [Language](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/language/) [My way](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/my-way/) [Prove](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/prove/) ## Related quotes > [I've had frustrated storytelling juices that have been lying dormant for a long time, and I guess the documentary was a way of me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/eric-bana/i-ve-had-frustrated-storytelling-juices-that-have-been-lying-dormant/) [Eric Bana](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/eric-bana/) > [The power and appeal of Documentary is the way it alters and plays with the way the viewer relates to and understands the subject.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-edwards/the-power-and-appeal-of-documentary-is-the-way-it-alters-and-plays/) [Ben Edwards](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-edwards/) > [Music is, for me, a great tool of a filmmaker, the same way cinematography, the acting, editing, post-production, the costumes are. You know, to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spike-lee/music-is-for-me-a-great-tool-of-a-filmmaker-the-same-way/) [Spike Lee](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spike-lee/) > [Cinema is an art form that is designed to go across borders. And as a filmmaker, the only way I can direct a movie…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/denis-villeneuve/cinema-is-an-art-form-that-is-designed-to-go-across-borders-and-as-a/) [Denis Villeneuve](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/denis-villeneuve/) > [I just don't think I'm an ideological filmmaker in any way. I don't know how anyone could see anything I've done and see that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-harron/i-just-don-t-think-i-m-an-ideological-filmmaker-in-any-way-i-don-t/) [Mary Harron](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-harron/) > [I think every filmmaker has his way of working, and I respect that.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ali-fazal/i-think-every-filmmaker-has-his-way-of-working-and-i-respect-that/) [Ali Fazal](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ali-fazal/) > [As a documentary filmmaker, I'm very respectful, and my interview style is not intrusive. I don't really have an agenda. I just go in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tony-kaye/as-a-documentary-filmmaker-i-m-very-respectful-and-my-interview-style/) [Tony Kaye](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tony-kaye/) > [I have wondered if I might be placed on a watch list of some sort by the government, though. I know that the documentary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marshall-curry/i-have-wondered-if-i-might-be-placed-on-a-watch-list-of-some-sort-by/) [Marshall Curry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marshall-curry/) > [I never intended to be a documentary filmmaker. I think I became a documentary filmmaker because I had trouble writing, and I had trouble…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/errol-morris/i-never-intended-to-be-a-documentary-filmmaker-i-think-i-became-a/) [Errol Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/errol-morris/) > [I'm a documentary filmmaker, I know what it means to craft a story, especially when you've shot a lot of material.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/max-joseph/i-m-a-documentary-filmmaker-i-know-what-it-means-to-craft-a-story/) [Max Joseph](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/max-joseph/) > [Maybe today I would call Fred Leuchter and there would be two or three other documentary filmmakers interested in his story simply because of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/errol-morris/maybe-today-i-would-call-fred-leuchter-and-there-would-be-two-or/) [Errol Morris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/errol-morris/) > [Witnessing is the essence of being a documentary filmmaker. Capturing moments in time; never knowing how history will judge them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/pamela-yates/witnessing-is-the-essence-of-being-a-documentary-filmmaker-capturing/) [Pamela Yates](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/pamela-yates/) > [If we have anything to offer, as filmmakers and as TV makers now, it's this ability to feel as close to a documentary as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-duplass/if-we-have-anything-to-offer-as-filmmakers-and-as-tv-makers-now-it-s/) [Mark Duplass](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-duplass/) > [I've been a documentary photographer for much longer than I have been a filmmaker.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lauren-greenfield/i-ve-been-a-documentary-photographer-for-much-longer-than-i-have-been/) [Lauren Greenfield](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lauren-greenfield/) > [I live in Tuxedo Park, N.Y. and spend time in the West Village, where my wife Elizabeth Cotnoir, a writer-producer and documentary filmmaker, has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/howard-shore/i-live-in-tuxedo-park-n-y-and-spend-time-in-the-west-village-where-my/) [Howard Shore](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/howard-shore/) ## More by Mano Khalil > [After school, I went to Damascus to study law and history, which I didn't really like. I didn't like history, in particular. In Syria,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/after-school-i-went-to-damascus-to-study-law-and-history-which-i-didn/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [When I see that people are touched, and they feel solidarity with him, I say to myself, "I made a little change."](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/when-i-see-that-people-are-touched-and-they-feel-solidarity-with-him/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [If my friends are going to the mountains with guns to fight, I will continue that fight, not with guns but with a camera.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/if-my-friends-are-going-to-the-mountains-with-guns-to-fight-i-will/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [The problem of ISIS is not recent. Ever since the Second World War, people in this region have been, and are today, living under…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/the-problem-of-isis-is-not-recent-ever-since-the-second-world-war/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [Most people look at a feature film and say, "It's just a movie." For me there is no border or wall between fiction and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/most-people-look-at-a-feature-film-and-say-it-s-just-a-movie-for-me/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [Sitting in the darkness of the cinema, I got to see another world. This imaginary world was a refuge for many of us. Of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/sitting-in-the-darkness-of-the-cinema-i-got-to-see-another-world-this/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [With fiction, you are creating an imaginary world. And it can be a very mechanical process. In a fictional film, you create the characters…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/with-fiction-you-are-creating-an-imaginary-world-and-it-can-be-a-very/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [Now the world believes in Kurds, as they have become partners in that region. The West doesn't believe in the Iraqi government - not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/now-the-world-believes-in-kurds-as-they-have-become-partners-in-that/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [Even if you make a movie about a criminal locked up in prison, you may not support him as a criminal, but you have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/even-if-you-make-a-movie-about-a-criminal-locked-up-in-prison-you-may/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [In all my documentaries, I have great respect for the people I work with. Really, I love them. And it's very important for me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/in-all-my-documentaries-i-have-great-respect-for-the-people-i-work/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [It's difficult to make movies. For me it was easier, as a refugee in Switzerland, to make documentary films, because I didn't need a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/it-s-difficult-to-make-movies-for-me-it-was-easier-as-a-refugee-in/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [I dream about going back, but I know that it isn't easy. Thirty years of being in Europe has changed my life. I am…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/i-dream-about-going-back-but-i-know-that-it-isn-t-easy-thirty-years/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) > [I am not saying that the Kurds are angels, but they have suffered too much. These people have a right to live in their…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mano-khalil/i-am-not-saying-that-the-kurds-are-angels-but-they-have-suffered-too/) [Mano Khalil](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) [Explore all 14 Mano Khalil quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mano-khalil/) ## 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](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/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": "Documentary has been a way for me to establish myself as a filmmaker. 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