“Those are shrines. Some people believe spirits live in them.”

As humans grew stronger, I think that we became quite arrogant, losing the sorrow of ‘we have no other choice.’

I’d rather be a pig than a fascist.

I make films as a business, not as a cultural endeavor.

The characters are born from repetition.

Modern life is so thin and shallow and fake. I look forward to when developers go bankrupt, Japan gets poorer and wild grasses take over.

I’m not going to make movies that tell children, “You should despair and run away”.

Children understand intuitively that the world they have been born into is not a blessed world.

Stop trying. Take long walks. Look at scenery. Doze off at noon. Don’t even think about flying. And then, pretty soon, you’ll be flying again.

Our lives are like the wind or like sounds. We come into being, resonate with each other. Then fade away.

We depict hatred, but it is to depict that there are more important things. We depict a curse, to depict the joy of liberation.

If you release your subconscious it becomes really hard to live a social or family life.

The winds of time eventually turn them into the tools of industrial civillisation. It’s never unscathed.

First: don’t panic! Second: don’t panic! And third: did I mention not to panic?!

There are so many things we can’t do anything about if we think about generalities

I wanted to convey the message to children that this life is worth living.

Yet, even amidst the hatred and carnage, life is still worth living. It is possible for wonderful encounters and beautiful things to exist.

Being tolerant does not mean that I share another one’s belief. But it does mean that I acknowledge another one’s right to believe, and obey, his own conscience.

If you choose bad companions, no one will believe that you are anything but bad yourself.

Confidence is believing in yourself. Arrogance is telling others you ‘re better than they are. Confidence inspires. Arrogance destroys.

The reason my comments always get you into your feelings is because deep down, you know what I am saying is true.

The believer is happy. The doubter is wise.

None believes in his own death. In the unconscious everyone is convinced of his own immortality.

I am willing to be my biggest, bestest, most powerful self.

Everybody has goals, aspirations or whatever, and everybody has been at a point in their life where nobody believed in them.