--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Well, it was actually - I brought the…" description: "\"Well, it was actually - I brought the idea of doing a documentary to HBO back in 2000, when there were some press reports sort of were bandied about th..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/monica-lewinsky-9034_hbo_well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea_1185555.jpg" --- # Well, it was actually - I brought the idea of doing a… ![“Well, it was actually - I brought the idea of doing a documentary to HBO back in 2000, when there were some press reports sort of were bandied about that there were going to TV movies based on some of the books that were out.” quote by Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/monica-lewinsky-9034_hbo_well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea_1185555.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/monica-lewinsky-9034_hbo_well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea_1185555.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/monica-lewinsky-9034_hbo_well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea_1185555.jpg) > “Well, it was actually - I brought the idea of doing a documentary to HBO back in 2000, when there were some press reports sort of were bandied about that there were going to TV movies based on some of the books that were out.” [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. She pitched a documentary concept to HBO, highlighting early interest in adapting literary works for television despite industry skepticism. **In simple terms:** Monica tried to get HBO to make a documentary about books. Key Takeaway Pursue creative ideas despite doubt. Themes media documentary publishing industry innovation Mood reflective determined Type strategic analytical When to use this quote - pitch meetings - network negotiations - creative collaborations - market research Key Concepts media production content development adaptation strategies Questions to Reflect On - How can creators better navigate broadcast skepticism? - What factors convince networks to greenlight documentaries? A Different Perspective Network hesitancy can stall innovative projects. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Documentary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documentary/) [Reports](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/reports/) ## Related quotes > [Ben Affleck exec-produced a documentary for HBO called 'Reporter' about my 2007 win-a-trip journey. I take the trip each year partly to encourage young…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nicholas-kristof/ben-affleck-exec-produced-a-documentary-for-hbo-called-reporter-about/) [Nicholas Kristof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nicholas-kristof/) > [My lady, Deborah McNaughton is doing a documentary on me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/noel-redding/my-lady-deborah-mcnaughton-is-doing-a-documentary-on-me/) [Noel Redding](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/noel-redding/) > [I've always been interested in Vietnam, feel it's a seminal event in our nation's history, and have explored it over the years - but…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rory-kennedy/i-ve-always-been-interested-in-vietnam-feel-it-s-a-seminal-event-in/) [Rory Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rory-kennedy/) > [We were approached by Alison Ellwood about the idea of doing a documentary. At first, we were a bit nervous because we didn't want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/charlotte-caffey/we-were-approached-by-alison-ellwood-about-the-idea-of-doing-a/) [Charlotte Caffey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/charlotte-caffey/) > [There's nothing attractive about doing a documentary. Nothing. It's hard, hard work, and I find having all the attention of the day on me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elaine-stritch/there-s-nothing-attractive-about-doing-a-documentary-nothing-it-s/) [Elaine Stritch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elaine-stritch/) > [I had long been resistant to doing a documentary about my mother for personal reasons. And I thought there was no way she'd want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rory-kennedy/i-had-long-been-resistant-to-doing-a-documentary-about-my-mother-for/) [Rory Kennedy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rory-kennedy/) > [Everybody is doing you a favor when you're doing a documentary. You can't pressure them into it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ice-t/everybody-is-doing-you-a-favor-when-you-re-doing-a-documentary-you/) [Ice T](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ice-t/) > [I want to venture into film more, and I think that a nice way to transition into doing that would be a documentary. I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ryan-mcginley/i-want-to-venture-into-film-more-and-i-think-that-a-nice-way-to/) [Ryan McGinley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ryan-mcginley/) > [I was brought up with the idea that God is watching at all times.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fallon-fox/i-was-brought-up-with-the-idea-that-god-is-watching-at-all-times/) [Fallon Fox](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fallon-fox/) > [When Kellogg's brought up the idea of the tiger, they sent me a caricature of Tony to see if I could create something for…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/thurl-ravenscroft/when-kellogg-s-brought-up-the-idea-of-the-tiger-they-sent-me-a/) [Thurl Ravenscroft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/thurl-ravenscroft/) > [I wasn't interested at all in doing a documentary. I was not a public figure.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/iris-apfel/i-wasn-t-interested-at-all-in-doing-a-documentary-i-was-not-a-public/) [Iris Apfel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/iris-apfel/) > [Doing a documentary is about discovering, being open, learning, and following curiosity.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/spike-jonze/doing-a-documentary-is-about-discovering-being-open-learning-and/) [Spike Jonze](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/spike-jonze/) > [I'm myself - knowing I'm doing a documentary and speaking with the people, telling them I have a bed, that I can eat every…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/agnes-varda/i-m-myself-knowing-i-m-doing-a-documentary-and-speaking-with-the/) [Agnes Varda](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/agnes-varda/) > [There is so much investment in it of people's labor time that it will never make money. But there are other documentaries that you…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/liz-garbus/there-is-so-much-investment-in-it-of-people-s-labor-time-that-it-will/) [Liz Garbus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/liz-garbus/) > [I didn't realize that, in doing a documentary, there is this process of discovery. It's not like a film or a play with a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-shatner/i-didn-t-realize-that-in-doing-a-documentary-there-is-this-process-of/) [William Shatner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-shatner/) ## More by Monica Lewinsky > [So it was sort of an odd time because I had been hired, but my paperwork hadn't gone through. So I worked as an…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/so-it-was-sort-of-an-odd-time-because-i-had-been-hired-but-my/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [I think probably the qualities that I look for in a man are somewhat different than they were before I became a public person,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/i-think-probably-the-qualities-that-i-look-for-in-a-man-are-somewhat/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [I've always really been a romantic at heart, and I have always wanted kids, and I think the idea of sharing your life with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/i-ve-always-really-been-a-romantic-at-heart-and-i-have-always-wanted/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [Public shaming is a blood sport that has to stop.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/public-shaming-is-a-blood-sport-that-has-to-stop/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [When I think of the person that I thought was Bill Clinton, I think he had genuine remorse. When I think of the person…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/when-i-think-of-the-person-that-i-thought-was-bill-clinton-i-think-he/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [I was worried about my mom more than I was worried about the president. And then I was worried about the president, and then…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/i-was-worried-about-my-mom-more-than-i-was-worried-about-the/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [So I think it's - what was important to me is that I found that I can't change the fact that people already have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/so-i-think-it-s-what-was-important-to-me-is-that-i-found-that-i-can-t/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [To mock at a soul in pain is a dreadful thing.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/to-mock-at-a-soul-in-pain-is-a-dreadful-thing/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [I have spent the past several years working so hard to just move on, and to try and build a life for myself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/i-have-spent-the-past-several-years-working-so-hard-to-just-move-on/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [Sure, my boss took advantage of me, but I will always remain firm on this point: it was a consensual relationship. Any 'abuse' came…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/sure-my-boss-took-advantage-of-me-but-i-will-always-remain-firm-on/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [Women need to support other women, not cut them down. And that goes for recognizable women too.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/women-need-to-support-other-women-not-cut-them-down-and-that-goes-for/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [I think anybody who really knows me knows I'm not a media hound and knows that I'm really sort of trying to do the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/i-think-anybody-who-really-knows-me-knows-i-m-not-a-media-hound-and/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [Be mindful of clickbait - sensational stories designed to humiliate. Click with compassion.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/be-mindful-of-clickbait-sensational-stories-designed-to-humiliate/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [When you see anyone being targeted, support her or him with a positive comment or emoji.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/when-you-see-anyone-being-targeted-support-her-or-him-with-a-positive/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) > [People who know Clinton knew the guy has a real problem keeping his hands off women.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/people-who-know-clinton-knew-the-guy-has-a-real-problem-keeping-his/) [Monica Lewinsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) [Explore all 75 Monica Lewinsky quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/) ## More Documentary quotes > [When I speak a serious subject in an informal and humorous way, it has bigger impact. So much so, when BBC made a small…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arunachalam-muruganantham/when-i-speak-a-serious-subject-in-an-informal-and-humorous-way-it-has/) [Arunachalam Muruganantham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arunachalam-muruganantham/) > [The documentary style is an incredibly flexible and useful one. It's a wonderful tool for establishing the credibility of the version of things that's…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frank-gohlke/the-documentary-style-is-an-incredibly-flexible-and-useful-one-it-s-a/) [Frank Gohlke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frank-gohlke/) > [In the spring of 1984, I went to the northwest of France, to Normandy, to prepare an NBC documentary on the 40th anniversary of D-Day.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-brokaw/in-the-spring-of-1984-i-went-to-the-northwest-of-france-to-normandy/) [Tom Brokaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-brokaw/) > [Most of the photographs people take with their cameraphones are of little value in terms of documentary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-parr/most-of-the-photographs-people-take-with-their-cameraphones-are-of/) [Martin Parr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-parr/) > [My senior thesis was a documentary. By the time I graduated from college, I thought I was going to make films, and my interest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gaby-hoffmann/my-senior-thesis-was-a-documentary-by-the-time-i-graduated-from/) [Gaby Hoffmann](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gaby-hoffmann/) > [Most of my life, I thought that I would end up a novelist. But then, in New York City, after college, I started a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-spaihts/most-of-my-life-i-thought-that-i-would-end-up-a-novelist-but-then-in/) [Jon Spaihts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-spaihts/) > [By calling it a memoir, I meant is as a collection of memories. I thought it was (a more) artful (title) than documentary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-merchant/by-calling-it-a-memoir-i-meant-is-as-a-collection-of-memories-i/) [Natalie Merchant](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-merchant/) > [I'm a documentary photographer. That's what I've always wanted to be; that's where my heart and soul is.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-ellen-mark/i-m-a-documentary-photographer-that-s-what-i-ve-always-wanted-to-be/) [Mary Ellen Mark](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-ellen-mark/) > [Yeah I'm telling real stories, but if you pick up a documentary on strippers, you're going to want to see some stripping, so we…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/method-man/yeah-i-m-telling-real-stories-but-if-you-pick-up-a-documentary-on/) [Method Man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/method-man/) > [The pictures that were coming from Vietnam were showing us what was really happening on the ground level. It was in contradiction to what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-nachtwey/the-pictures-that-were-coming-from-vietnam-were-showing-us-what-was/) [James Nachtwey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-nachtwey/) > [It's supposed to be entertainment. It's not supposed to be a documentary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeri-ryan/it-s-supposed-to-be-entertainment-it-s-not-supposed-to-be-a/) [Jeri Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeri-ryan/) > [If you merely focus on what we already know, then it's not revelatory. You may as well just go and watch a documentary or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-oyelowo/if-you-merely-focus-on-what-we-already-know-then-it-s-not-revelatory/) [David Oyelowo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-oyelowo/) > [Helen Weaver’s book was a revelation to me! Although I was a young woman in the fifties, I was there, but I wasn’t there!…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/carolyn-cassady/helen-weaver-s-book-was-a-revelation-to-me-although-i-was-a-young/) Carolyn Cassady > [If you want to see the real Pablo Escobar, go see a documentary.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wagner-moura/if-you-want-to-see-the-real-pablo-escobar-go-see-a-documentary/) [Wagner Moura](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wagner-moura/) > [There's a tradition of reenactment in documentary which is about sort of illustrating what the past might have been like.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joshua-oppenheimer/there-s-a-tradition-of-reenactment-in-documentary-which-is-about-sort/) [Joshua Oppenheimer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joshua-oppenheimer/) [Browse all 655 Documentary quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/documentary/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "Well, it was actually - I brought the idea of doing a documentary to HBO back in 2000, when there were some press reports sort of were bandied about that there were going to TV movies based on some of the books that were out.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Monica Lewinsky" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea-of-doing-a-documentary-to-hbo/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Documentary" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea-of-doing-a-documentary-to-hbo/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/monica-lewinsky-9034_hbo_well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea_1185555.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/monica-lewinsky-9034_hbo_well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea_1185555.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/7e0/monica-lewinsky-9034_hbo_well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea_1185555.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“Well, it was actually - I brought the idea of doing a documentary to HBO back in 2000, when there were some…” — Monica Lewinsky", "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": "Monica Lewinsky", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/monica-lewinsky/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "Well, it was actually - I...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea-of-doing-a-documentary-to-hbo/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/monica-lewinsky/well-it-was-actually-i-brought-the-idea-of-doing-a-documentary-to-hbo/#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 } } ] } ```