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The interesting thing about movies, it’s not always – y’know, you have to have structure etc and all those things, but an audience responds, in many ways, we walk away and certain things stay in our heads that are memorable.

Barry Levinson

I don’t know that you can do an absurdist film and just have everybody embrace it in terms of filling out cards. I just don’t think it happens. So you have to prepare an audience.
BARRY LEVINSON

Embrace Film Thinking
I’m fascinated by documentaries, to begin with. Because of the nature of television, as opposed to theatrical, documentaries can be in this long form and take you on a journey.
BARRY LEVINSON

Documentary Fascinate Journey Long
I would give the cameras to the kids in the swimming pools and they would play with them, and then I would collect them and we would upload it. If you’re in the process, you’re there.
BARRY LEVINSON

Kids Playing Swimming
You don’t always have to have the ending, but you want to have a satisfactory conclusion.
BARRY LEVINSON

Conclusion Satisfactory Want
I don’t know that you can do it as a satire. I mean, the business is crazy enough as it is. It’s like doing Wag The Dog – we took a thing that was almost completely absurd on one level, and then ultimately those things came about.
BARRY LEVINSON

Crazy Dog Mean
They’re intimidating the networks and levying these fines, so the networks are not sure of what they can or can’t do.
BARRY LEVINSON

Fine Intimidation Network Sure
When I began to think about the head of the family, the storyteller, the rise of television which became the new storyteller, the break-up of the American family as an idea and then Avalon came.
BARRY LEVINSON

Break Idea Thinking Up
I do know when you look at some ballplayer and all of a sudden he is the size of a truck something is wrong.
BARRY LEVINSON

Looks Size Truck Wrong
Studios just sometimes make decisions on their own that you’re always flabbergasted by. It just happens that way for whatever reason – not even pointing fingers, it just is.
BARRY LEVINSON

Decision Happen Reason Sometimes
No one really has the power, and everybody’s trying to get through the day, and everybody’s nervous and desperate.
BARRY LEVINSON

Desperate Nervous Trying
I got a chance to work with Mel Brooks on two of his films: Silent Movie and High Anxiety.
BARRY LEVINSON

Anxiety Chance Country Film Person Two
There’s no downside to having too much experience.
BARRY LEVINSON

Downside Experience Much Too
I always think that there is the good and the bad of it all.
BARRY LEVINSON

All Always Bad Good Thinking
I worked at a local television station and I got a chance to direct and do all those things – worked kiddie shows, Ranger House show with the hand puppets and things like that.
BARRY LEVINSON

Hands House Television
I think certain movies work and that is part of the magic of it all. We can’t truly define why something succeeds.
BARRY LEVINSON

Magic Succeed Thinking
You have a movie and it proves itself and then certain things happen.
BARRY LEVINSON

Certain Happens Proven
I think it’s a promising time which will show a lot of diversification that we’ve seen in the past.
BARRY LEVINSON

Past Shows Thinking
Even back in the ’90s, I shot certain things on something that wasn’t digital then, but it was on VHS with a smaller camera and we would up it to film.
BARRY LEVINSON

Camera Digital Film
Craig Nelson who is an actor and is in a show called Coach in the United States. We began to do some improvisational stuff and we used to get laughs and things.
BARRY LEVINSON

Actors Country Laughing United States
I think when Sarah Palin opened her mouth and started talking, the more she talked, the less appealing she became.
BARRY LEVINSON

Appeal Palin Start Talk Thinking
All I try to do is create an atmosphere that seems comfortable enough, that it removes tension and everyone feels free. If they feel free then behaviour happens, small moments happen and that’s what ultimately works the best for me.
BARRY LEVINSON

Atmosphere Behavior Trying
I got involved with an acting school and studied for a couple years. They used to have improv exercises that you would work on and you would do improvs.
BARRY LEVINSON

Couple Exercise School
I thought a great line in the What Just Happened movie said, “We’re just the mayonnaise.”
BARRY LEVINSON

Happened Line Mayonnaise Movie Thought
There was a time when I said, “I’m going to go do a television thing,” after doing all these theatrical films, and heard, “Television? Why are you going to go back to television?” It’s an interesting place.
BARRY LEVINSON

Film Interesting Television
I think we are seeing a radical shift in the business in general. The studios are making much more of the real big extravaganzas and there are other kinds of films that are coming out. I think you are going to begin to see more diversification that we’ve seen in the past.
BARRY LEVINSON

Past Real Thinking
You do understand that you can’t force the situation, but in terms of how you edit, you can define that to take the audience along, whether it be a storyline or a character moment that we can play out. The more experience you’ve had, the more beneficial it is, period.
BARRY LEVINSON

Character Moments Play
Some actors are supposed to be very difficult, but I’ve not found that to be the situation.
BARRY LEVINSON

Actors Found Difficult

The interesting thing about movies, it’s not always – y’know, you have to have structure etc and all those things, but an audience responds, in many ways, we walk away and certain things stay in our heads that are memorable.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

The interesting thing about movies, it’s not always – y’know, you have to have structure etc and all those things, but an audience responds, in many ways, we walk away and certain things stay in our heads that are memorable.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Barry Levinson Quotes