--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: My work is distinct and definitive and…" description: "\"My work is distinct and definitive and specific, and hopefully it is so that every single character is different, and they are - but there's probably a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00b/michael-keaton-3191_character_my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-s_2417083.jpg" --- # My work is distinct and definitive and specific, and… ![“My work is distinct and definitive and specific, and hopefully it is so that every single character is different, and they are - but there's probably an underlying element that's me.” quote by Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00b/michael-keaton-3191_character_my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-s_2417083.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00b/michael-keaton-3191_character_my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-s_2417083.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00b/michael-keaton-3191_character_my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-s_2417083.jpg) > “My work is distinct and definitive and specific, and hopefully it is so that every single character is different, and they are - but there's probably an underlying element that's me.” [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Distinctive, purposeful character work reflects personal identity and artistic intention. **In simple terms:** Characters reveal the actor. Key Takeaway Craft unique characters. Themes characterization identity craft Mood introspective professional Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - film roles - theatre performances - character workshops Key Concepts method acting personal imprint Questions to Reflect On - How do you balance personal imprint with role demands? - When does uniqueness become a constraint? A Different Perspective Overemphasis on self may limit versatility. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Character](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) [Definitive](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/definitive/) [Work](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/work/) ## Related quotes > [The Text is not a definitive object.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/roland-barthes/the-text-is-not-a-definitive-object/) [Roland Barthes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/roland-barthes/) > [When Rumsfeld gets up on television and says we have definitive intelligence that al Qaeda is working with Iraq, how is an ordinary citizen…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noam-chomsky/when-rumsfeld-gets-up-on-television-and-says-we-have-definitive/) [Noam Chomsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noam-chomsky/) > [It's the swirling river of time that makes our identities, not the monochromatic simplicity of skin colour or the definitive lines of international borders.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/giles-foden/it-s-the-swirling-river-of-time-that-makes-our-identities-not-the/) [Giles Foden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/giles-foden/) > [Amazon is now the definitive source for data about whole sets of products - fungible consumer products. EBay is the authoritative source for the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tim-o-reilly/amazon-is-now-the-definitive-source-for-data-about-whole-sets-of/) [Tim O'Reilly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tim-o-reilly/) > [Odd that we think definitions are definitive.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/larry-wall/odd-that-we-think-definitions-are-definitive/) [Larry Wall](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/larry-wall/) > [“...give a great deal of attention to keeping his managers and his technical people as interchangeable as their talents allow. The barriers are sociological...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-p-brooks-jr/give-a-great-deal-of-attention-to-keeping-his-managers-and-his/) [Frederick P. Brooks Jr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-p-brooks-jr/) > [I don't want to be definitive or the last word on anything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lucy-worsley/i-don-t-want-to-be-definitive-or-the-last-word-on-anything/) [Lucy Worsley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lucy-worsley/) > [Never having a definitive style, there is genius in that](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/melody-minagar/never-having-a-definitive-style-there-is-genius-in-that/) [Melody Minagar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/melody-minagar/) > [No wishes are silly, no dreams remain dreams, for those committed to clear and definitive goals.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maximillian-degenerez/no-wishes-are-silly-no-dreams-remain-dreams-for-those-committed-to/) [Maximillian Degenerez](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maximillian-degenerez/) > [A writer's definitive death is when no one reads his books anymore. That's the final death.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jos-saramago/a-writer-s-definitive-death-is-when-no-one-reads-his-books-anymore/) [Jose Saramago](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jos-saramago/) > [I'm not mad about movies, there are too many people involved in the making of them, and they lack a definitive creative focus.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-bailey/i-m-not-mad-about-movies-there-are-too-many-people-involved-in-the/) [David Bailey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-bailey/) > [I don't know that I can give a definitive answer to that, I can only say that if we create the right climate those…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-anderson/i-don-t-know-that-i-can-give-a-definitive-answer-to-that-i-can-only/) [John Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-anderson/) > [Many young people now end a discussion with the supposedly definitive and unanswerable statement that such is their opinion, and their opinion is just…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-dalrymple/many-young-people-now-end-a-discussion-with-the-supposedly-definitive/) [Theodore Dalrymple](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-dalrymple/) > [I like shoes that are definitive, and they know exactly what they are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/p-j-tucker/i-like-shoes-that-are-definitive-and-they-know-exactly-what-they-are/) [P. J. Tucker](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/p-j-tucker/) > [A film seeking to create change on a difficult issue should not try to provide a definitive historical overview, nor present an op-ed style…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/julia-bacha/a-film-seeking-to-create-change-on-a-difficult-issue-should-not-try/) [Julia Bacha](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/julia-bacha/) ## More by Michael Keaton > [I took my play very seriously, and I got way, way lost in my play world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/i-took-my-play-very-seriously-and-i-got-way-way-lost-in-my-play-world/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [I was so gullible as a kid.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/i-was-so-gullible-as-a-kid/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [Work hard. Don’t quit. Be appreciative, be thankful, be grateful, be respectful. Also, never whine, never complain. And always, for crying out loud, keep…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/work-hard-don-t-quit-be-appreciative-be-thankful-be-grateful-be/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [I read that John Hughes script for 'Mr. Mom,' and I thought, 'This guy is a funny writer.' I went: 'You ought to stick…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/i-read-that-john-hughes-script-for-mr-mom-and-i-thought-this-guy-is-a/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [Yeah, I had to change my name because there were two other actors registered at Equity with that name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/yeah-i-had-to-change-my-name-because-there-were-two-other-actors/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [There comes a point in your life when you realize how quickly time goes by, and how quickly it has gone. Then it really…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/there-comes-a-point-in-your-life-when-you-realize-how-quickly-time/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [It's great to be young and insane.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/it-s-great-to-be-young-and-insane/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [There are times when I consciously give the character something physical - a walk, the way he sits, how he talks, or his lack…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/there-are-times-when-i-consciously-give-the-character-something/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [I'm envious of writers and musicians. I think it must be so difficult. Not just the frustration, but the discipline.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/i-m-envious-of-writers-and-musicians-i-think-it-must-be-so-difficult/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [I worked at a PBS station called WQED in Pittsburgh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/i-worked-at-a-pbs-station-called-wqed-in-pittsburgh/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [Westerns were always my favorite things when I was little. And it always bothered me when cowboys were too clean in movies, or when…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/westerns-were-always-my-favorite-things-when-i-was-little-and-it/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [If you get a good comedy once a year, man, that's pretty good. I may be pickier than some, but still, there aren't that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/if-you-get-a-good-comedy-once-a-year-man-that-s-pretty-good-i-may-be/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [I liked 'Robocop' because of the director, and it was an intelligent, big-action studio movie.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/i-liked-robocop-because-of-the-director-and-it-was-an-intelligent-big/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [I probably could've done this earlier, if I was more ambitious.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/i-probably-could-ve-done-this-earlier-if-i-was-more-ambitious/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) > [“Dogberry: Thou wilt be condemned into everlasting redemption for this. ”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/dogberry-thou-wilt-be-condemned-into-everlasting-redemption-for-this/) [Michael Keaton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) [Explore all 136 Michael Keaton quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/) ## More Character quotes > [This may sound strange, but although I feel like I know everything about my characters, the brand of shampoo they use, how many cavities…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gail-honeyman/this-may-sound-strange-but-although-i-feel-like-i-know-everything/) [Gail Honeyman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gail-honeyman/) > [I always like a character who makes me laugh.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachael-stirling/i-always-like-a-character-who-makes-me-laugh/) [Rachael Stirling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachael-stirling/) > [Social responsibility above the level of family, or at most of tribe, requires imagination-- devotion, loyalty, all the higher virtues -- which a man…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-heinlein/social-responsibility-above-the-level-of-family-or-at-most-of-tribe/) [Robert A. Heinlein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robert-a-heinlein/) > [Reader, if you are gifted with nerves like mine, aspire to any character but that of a wit.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charles-lamb/reader-if-you-are-gifted-with-nerves-like-mine-aspire-to-any/) [Charles Lamb](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charles-lamb/) > [I'm often moved by the circumstances around some of my characters, but I don't think I've actually cried watching myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-winslet/i-m-often-moved-by-the-circumstances-around-some-of-my-characters-but/) [Kate Winslet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-winslet/) > [When you're on a daytime drama you get one page, you better damn well know your character. You better know what she would do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-hudgins/when-you-re-on-a-daytime-drama-you-get-one-page-you-better-damn-well/) David Hudgins > [It can sometimes make people fold into themselves and kind of run away, but I think in this case these characters are being forced…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/emily-deschanel/it-can-sometimes-make-people-fold-into-themselves-and-kind-of-run/) [Emily Deschanel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/emily-deschanel/) > [If you are well-mannered towards those whose views are similar to yours, you may be said to exhibit a fairly good character. But, if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-well-mannered-towards-those-whose-views-are-similar-to/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Democracy is based on the conviction that man has the moral and intellectual capacity, as well as the inalienable right, to govern himself with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harry-s-truman/democracy-is-based-on-the-conviction-that-man-has-the-moral-and/) [Harry S. Truman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harry-s-truman/) > [In the fight between biology and morality, biology has commonly won in the end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/semir-zeki/in-the-fight-between-biology-and-morality-biology-has-commonly-won-in/) [Semir Zeki](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/semir-zeki/) > [Your looks don't make you pretty, it's the person inside who makes you pretty!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-chan/your-looks-don-t-make-you-pretty-it-s-the-person-inside-who-makes-you/) [Aaron Chan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-chan/) > [I'm not a huge social media kind of guy, so I don't really know, I don't really ever get... at least in real life,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/freddie-stroma/i-m-not-a-huge-social-media-kind-of-guy-so-i-don-t-really-know-i-don/) [Freddie Stroma](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/freddie-stroma/) > [If you stood me in a costume next to a computer graphic of the same-looking character, I think there would be a difference. And…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/warwick-davis/if-you-stood-me-in-a-costume-next-to-a-computer-graphic-of-the-same/) [Warwick Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/warwick-davis/) > [Courage: the most important of all the virtues because without courage, you can't practice any other virtue consistently](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maya-angelou/courage-the-most-important-of-all-the-virtues-because-without-courage/) [Maya Angelou](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maya-angelou/) > [I'm a character actor - always have been, always will be - and historically, character actors don't come into their own until later in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/annie-potts/i-m-a-character-actor-always-have-been-always-will-be-and/) [Annie Potts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/annie-potts/) [Browse all 32,707 Character quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/character/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "My work is distinct and definitive and specific, and hopefully it is so that every single character is different, and they are - but there's probably an underlying element that's me.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Michael Keaton" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-specific-and-hopefully-it-is/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Character" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-specific-and-hopefully-it-is/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00b/michael-keaton-3191_character_my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-s_2417083.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00b/michael-keaton-3191_character_my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-s_2417083.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/00b/michael-keaton-3191_character_my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-s_2417083.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“My work is distinct and definitive and specific, and hopefully it is so that every single character is…” — Michael Keaton", "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": "Michael Keaton", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-keaton/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "My work is distinct and definitive...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-specific-and-hopefully-it-is/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-keaton/my-work-is-distinct-and-definitive-and-specific-and-hopefully-it-is/#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 } } ] } ```