“Being in Washington is more fictional than being in Hollywood.”

The secret is not to give up hope. It’s very hard not to because if you’re really doing something worthwhile I think you will be pushed to the brink of hopelessness before you come through the other side.

Teachers are the most important individuals in our society – nothing is as powerful as the human touch in education.

You must let go of your past and embrace your future and figure out what path you’re going to go down

Making a film is like putting out a fire with sieve. There are so many elements, and it gets so complicated.

It’s very important not to do what your peers think you should do, not do what your parents think,your teachers or even your culture. Do what’s inside of you.

Part of the issue of achievement is to be able to set realistic goals, but that’s one of the hardest things to do because you don’t always know exactly where you’re going, and you shouldn’t.

I’ve always tried to be aware of what I say in my films, because all of us who make motion pictures are teachers – teachers with very loud voices.

I’m extremely grateful that I discovered my passion. I love movies. I love to watch them, I love to make them.

Working hard is very important. You’re not going to get anywhere without working extremely hard.

We were always dreaming of how it was going to be.

We are all living in cages with the door wide open.

You need peers; you need people who are at the same level you are. You never know in life when you’re going to need help, and you never know who you’re going to need it from.

All democracies turn into dictatorships – but not by coup. The people give their democracy to a dictator, whether it’s Julius Caesar or Napoleon or Adolf Hitler. Ultimately, the general population goes along with the idea.

If America is the pursuit of happiness, the best way to pursue happiness is to help other people.

Success is when you try to achieve your inward vision externally and have it come off the way you see it. Then YOU feel successful about it; that’s how success is measured.

Train yourself to let go of the things you fear to lose.

I was a shy ugly kid who led a big fantasy life. I thought I was an angel sent from heaven, to cure polio. When Dr. Salk did that I was really pissed off.

Travel through the stars with me in my nostalgic dream of summer nights, white wine, and sleeping under nature’s canopy.

In the recession people are going to be looking even more at what movie stars are wearing, as it provides a fantasy outlet.

My kitchen looks like the one from my childhood – very homey, with a little bit of Alice in Wonderland!

I like to maintain a certain sense of fantasy. At home, do I have the full hair and makeup? No. But I might have the nice dress on.

I am probably in the sky, flying with the fish, or maybe in the ocean, swimming with the pigeons. See, my world is different.

She was a siren, mythical and mystical but somehow still real.

I like to maintain a certain sense of fantasy in my life.