--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Cinema is far too rich and capable a…" description: "\"Cinema is far too rich and capable a medium to be merely left to the storytellers.\" — Peter Greenaway" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/843/peter-greenaway-2444_capable_cinema-is-far-too-rich-and-capable-a-med_262467.png" --- # Cinema is far too rich and capable a medium to be merely… ![“Cinema is far too rich and capable a medium to be merely left to the storytellers.” quote by Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/843/peter-greenaway-2444_capable_cinema-is-far-too-rich-and-capable-a-med_262467.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/843/peter-greenaway-2444_capable_cinema-is-far-too-rich-and-capable-a-med_262467.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/843/peter-greenaway-2444_capable_cinema-is-far-too-rich-and-capable-a-med_262467.png) > “Cinema is far too rich and capable a medium to be merely left to the storytellers.” [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Cinema offers profound expressive power beyond simple narrative, demanding artistic responsibility. **In simple terms:** Film can do more than tell stories. Key Takeaway Use cinema to explore ideas, not just plot. Themes art expression responsibility Mood thoughtful inspired Type philosophical artistic When to use this quote - documentary filmmaking - experimental cinema - educational videos Key Concepts aesthetics medium theory visual storytelling Questions to Reflect On - How can filmmakers balance art and audience expectations? - What responsibilities do creators have to their medium? A Different Perspective Films may be limited by commercial pressures. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Cinema](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cinema/) [Film](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/film/) [Storyteller](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storyteller/) [Storytellers](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/storytellers/) ## Related quotes > [When I say that I can write nothing but weird fiction, I am not trying to exalt that medium but am merely confessing my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/h-p-lovecraft/when-i-say-that-i-can-write-nothing-but-weird-fiction-i-am-not-trying/) [H. P. Lovecraft](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/h-p-lovecraft/) > [We were far from rich, but I never remember my parents worrying about money.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jan-schakowsky/we-were-far-from-rich-but-i-never-remember-my-parents-worrying-about/) [Jan Schakowsky](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jan-schakowsky/) > [I believe in building your foundation - if your foundation is not rich, then you are far from rich.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rick-ross/i-believe-in-building-your-foundation-if-your-foundation-is-not-rich/) [Rick Ross](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rick-ross/) > [“History in the storyteller's hand was a potent force indeed,…”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kate-morton/history-in-the-storyteller-s-hand-was-a-potent-force-indeed/) [Kate Morton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kate-morton/) > [I sometimes wonder what those of us who are writers would become in a nonliterary culture - storytellers? Hermits?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rebecca-solnit/i-sometimes-wonder-what-those-of-us-who-are-writers-would-become-in-a/) [Rebecca Solnit](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rebecca-solnit/) > [Not all poetry wants to be storytelling. And not all storytelling wants to be poetry. But great storytellers and great poets share something in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sarah-kay/not-all-poetry-wants-to-be-storytelling-and-not-all-storytelling/) [Sarah Kay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sarah-kay/) > [Before we were born, a whole society of storytellers was already here. The storytellers who were here before us taught us how to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-angel-ruiz/before-we-were-born-a-whole-society-of-storytellers-was-already-here/) [Miguel Angel Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-angel-ruiz/) > [We are basically storytellers, descendants of the old men who sat around the fire and told us legends, fairytales, exploits, or maybe just how…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sol-saks/we-are-basically-storytellers-descendants-of-the-old-men-who-sat/) Sol Saks > [I love creating stories, dreaming up characters and breathing life into them. From several generations of Irish storytellers, I think that's what I was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/linda-conrad/i-love-creating-stories-dreaming-up-characters-and-breathing-life/) [Linda Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/linda-conrad/) > [I believe that all brands will become storytellers, editors and publishers, all stores will become magazines, and all media companies will become stores. There…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/natalie-massenet/i-believe-that-all-brands-will-become-storytellers-editors-and/) [Natalie Massenet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/natalie-massenet/) > [I am not attempting to preserve culture, or record actual events or stories. Instead I bow my head in gratitude to those storytellers who…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/patricia-briggs/i-am-not-attempting-to-preserve-culture-or-record-actual-events-or/) [Patricia Briggs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/patricia-briggs/) > [All humans are storytellers with their own unique point of view. When we understand this, we no longer feel the need to impose our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miguel-angel-ruiz/all-humans-are-storytellers-with-their-own-unique-point-of-view-when/) [Miguel Angel Ruiz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miguel-angel-ruiz/) > [The earliest storytellers were magi, seers, bards, griots, shamans. They were, it would seem, old as time, and as terrifying to gaze upon as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ben-okri/the-earliest-storytellers-were-magi-seers-bards-griots-shamans-they/) [Ben Okri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ben-okri/) > [To be able to make up stories has been a great gift to me from my ancestors and from the storytellers who were so…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leslie-marmon-silko/to-be-able-to-make-up-stories-has-been-a-great-gift-to-me-from-my/) [Leslie Marmon Silko](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leslie-marmon-silko/) > [Well, I think storytellers have always found murder a fascinating device.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/donna-tartt/well-i-think-storytellers-have-always-found-murder-a-fascinating/) [Donna Tartt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/donna-tartt/) ## More by Peter Greenaway > [American actors are coy. We all have pricks and cunts, or are you different from the rest of us?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/american-actors-are-coy-we-all-have-pricks-and-cunts-or-are-you/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [I want to be a prime creator - as every self-regarding artist should do.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/i-want-to-be-a-prime-creator-as-every-self-regarding-artist-should-do/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [To be an atheist you have to have ten thousand times more imagination than if you are a religious fundamentalist. You must take the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/to-be-an-atheist-you-have-to-have-ten-thousand-times-more-imagination/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [An American critic wrote that she would rather be forced to read the New York telephone directory three times than watch the film A…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/an-american-critic-wrote-that-she-would-rather-be-forced-to-read-the/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [I like a lot of glasses about - it highers the tone.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/i-like-a-lot-of-glasses-about-it-highers-the-tone/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [There are those who think that Zeffirelli's Hamlet is the way to treat Shakespeare. I think that cinema can handle much more. We somehow…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/there-are-those-who-think-that-zeffirelli-s-hamlet-is-the-way-to/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [A really intelligent man makes an indifferent painter. For painting requires a certain blindness, a partial refusal to be aware of all the options.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/a-really-intelligent-man-makes-an-indifferent-painter-for-painting/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [I have often thought it was very arrogant to suppose you could make a film for anybody but yourself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/i-have-often-thought-it-was-very-arrogant-to-suppose-you-could-make-a/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [I believe that cinema died on the 31 September 1983 when the zapper, or the remote control, was introduced into the living rooms of the world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/i-believe-that-cinema-died-on-the-31-september-1983-when-the-zapper/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [My biggest critical success was 'The Draughtsman's Contract,' but then it wasn't the English who particularly thought so; it was the French, who are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/my-biggest-critical-success-was-the-draughtsman-s-contract-but-then/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [There are basically only two subject matters in all Western culture: sex and death. We do have some ability to manipulate sex nowadays. We…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/there-are-basically-only-two-subject-matters-in-all-western-culture/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [Cinema doesn't connect with the body as artists have in two thousand years of painting, using the nude as the central figure which the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/cinema-doesn-t-connect-with-the-body-as-artists-have-in-two-thousand/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [Jean Renoir once suggested that most true creators have only one idea and spend their lives reworking it, but then very rapidly he added…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/jean-renoir-once-suggested-that-most-true-creators-have-only-one-idea/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [Bill Viola is worth ten Scorseses.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/bill-viola-is-worth-ten-scorseses/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) > [If Good approved of his creature's creation, He breathed the painted clay-model into life by signing His name.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-greenaway/if-good-approved-of-his-creature-s-creation-he-breathed-the-painted/) [Peter Greenaway](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) [Explore all 166 Peter Greenaway quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-greenaway/) ## More Capable quotes > [When we are capable of living in the moment free from the tyranny of "shoulds," free from the nagging sensation that this moment isn't…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joan-z-borysenko/when-we-are-capable-of-living-in-the-moment-free-from-the-tyranny-of/) [Joan Z. 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And women even more than men.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabrielle-zevin/people-are-capable-of-great-great-change-during-the-span-of-one/) [Gabrielle Zevin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabrielle-zevin/) > [When you lived it for years and years and years and seen different characters just get pummeled and squashed because 'I said so,' it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arn-anderson/when-you-lived-it-for-years-and-years-and-years-and-seen-different/) [Arn Anderson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arn-anderson/) > [Each man is capable of doing one thing well. If he attempts several, he will fail to achieve distinction in any.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plato/each-man-is-capable-of-doing-one-thing-well-if-he-attempts-several-he/) [Plato](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plato/) > [But, outside of being a sweet little girl, she was awfully dumb and capable of doing horrible things.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/but-outside-of-being-a-sweet-little-girl-she-was-awfully-dumb-and/) [Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/) > [I was terrible student. I was capable, but I never like being told what to do, so I was always in the bottom class…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chris-lilley/i-was-terrible-student-i-was-capable-but-i-never-like-being-told-what/) [Chris Lilley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chris-lilley/) > [Not everyone is capable of madness; and of those lucky enough to be capable, not many have the courage for it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/august-strindberg/not-everyone-is-capable-of-madness-and-of-those-lucky-enough-to-be/) [August Strindberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/august-strindberg/) > [ \[The Community's\] crosses and trials give me confidence. But I derive my hope above all, and most especially, from our utter incapacity, for it… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/theodore-guerin/the-community-s-crosses-and-trials-give-me-confidence-but-i-derive-my/) [Theodore Guerin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/theodore-guerin/) > [The mathematical facts worthy of being studied are those which, by their analogy with other facts, are capable of leading us to the knowledge…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henri-poincare/the-mathematical-facts-worthy-of-being-studied-are-those-which-by/) [Henri Poincare](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henri-poincare/) > [“If you not yet try How to know you can or not?”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sopharat/if-you-not-yet-try-how-to-know-you-can-or-not/) Sopharat > [I'm attracted to the garden, without a doubt, but I always try and image the wolf that's there, too. And that wolf would be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-light/i-m-attracted-to-the-garden-without-a-doubt-but-i-always-try-and/) [Michael Light](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-light/) > [A man, as a man, could arrive at all the dignity that a man was capable of obtaining or receiving; but it needed a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-taylor/a-man-as-a-man-could-arrive-at-all-the-dignity-that-a-man-was-capable/) [John Taylor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-taylor/) > [Playing is much, much harder than composing in my opinion, becoming a player. 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