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The TalksInterviewsFilmChristopher Nolan

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CHRISTOPHER NOLAN: “I DID NOT INTEND ANY MESSAGE”

July 26, 2023Patrick HeidmannThe Talks

Short Profile

Name: Christopher Edward Nolan
DOB: 30 July 1970
Place of birth: Westminster, London, United Kingdom
Occupation: Film director, screenwriter

Christopher Nolan's new film, Oppenheimer, is in theaters now.
Emerging Masters
Rolex is proud to support The Talks’ interview series about the cultural leaders
of the future.


Mr. Nolan, from Interstellar to The Prestige, Tenet, and now Oppenheimer, many
of your films have an element of science to them. Why is that?

I think my initial interest in physics, in science and the universe and so
forth, is from when I grew up. I grew up in the late seventies and when I was a
young child, George Lucas’ first Star Wars came out, and science-fiction was
something that really fired up the imagination. And because of that, a lot of
the presentation of science — in particular, programs like Carl Sagan’s Cosmos —
very much tried to tap into our interest in science fiction. It was something
that stuck with me, and it was something I applied very much to films like
Interstellar, where I worked with Kip Thorne, the Nobel Prize winning scientist.
It showed us the dramatic possibilities, that looking at the universe from a
scientific perspective could be very, very engaging.

Kip Thorne also worked with you on Tenet, right?

Kip once again helped me with that, yes, in terms of where that needed to tie
into the laws of physics and so forth. With Tenet, I think I had moved on to
much more of a science-fiction mindset than with Interstellar, and then in
Oppenheimer, we are looking at scientists working in the 1920s, who are
reappraising the very fabric of our world, they are visualizing it in completely
revolutionary terms. And so you see science in that moment as analogous to the
most dramatic revolutionary thought, almost to magic, they are visualizing the
world in ways that nobody else can really understand. And to this day, quantum
physics has not been fully reconciled with classical physics.

> “Structure is an inseparable element. I don’t start writing a script until I
> am firmly in control of the structure of the piece, it is not imposed after
> the fact.”

It is still very much a mystery.

One of the great mysteries, exactly. And so when you think of it in storytelling
terms, Oppenheimer is very explicit about the idea that young Oppenheimer trying
to visualize quantum theory, trying to build on Einstein’s discoveries, he’s
really looking into the dull matter, everything around us. And he’s seeing
energy in energy waves so there is a sort of almost mystical, magical component
to that. And that’s very dramatic, that’s very inherently I think relatable to
an audience in terms of genre. They don’t have to understand it, they just have
to feel this sense of revolutionary excitement, almost like a wizard or a
magician or whatever, that he was feeling at the time. And so I think for me
really where science has come into my work, it’s really about the dramatic
possibilities.

How do those dramatic possibilities work in tandem with the storytelling
techniques you know and love, like your non-linear approach?

I would say that I use the structure that is appropriate for the story I want to
tell. In the case of Oppenheimer, you are trying to give the audience the
experience of an entire life, a concentrated experience of the myriad aspects of
this person’s existence. And the only way to do that effectively, in my opinion,
rather than adhering to the conventional structure of a biopic, is to really
view things in a more prismatic way; where you are seeing different aspects of
his life at different times and you are contrasting them against each other to
give the audience a feeling about who this character is and how they have
developed over time.

So the structure of the film is an essential part of the narrative?

It is an inseparable element. I don’t start writing a script until I am firmly
in control of the structure of the piece, it is not imposed after the fact. I
think of all of the forms of storytelling, cinema is the one perhaps with the
most conservative outlook and structure! No one really tends to question a
novelist’s approach to structure or a playwright’s in the same way, and I think
that’s because of the influence of television over the years, I think there’s
been a push towards linear storytelling because it suited the television format
very well. But those of us working in a post-home video age, where audiences
have access to films in a different way, they could watch DVDs and so forth, you
could stop and start the film, we have been able to use more sophisticated
chronological structures depending on what’s best for the story we are telling.

It seems like that might impact the way you shoot your films, but apparently
Oppenheimer  was shot in only 57 days.

I think the pace was certainly fast, but it had the right energy for the piece.
We are always constrained by budget and the marshaling of resources and we had a
lot of very large scale things to pull off in this film, we had to build the
town of Los Alamos from scratch, things like that. So the schedule to some
extent is dictated by circumstance. But I actually found that working fast, more
the way I had on my earlier, smaller films, created a sense of energy; actors
could come to set with great preparation and real authority because they
researched their characters. These are real life people so they know everything
about these people, and come to set as experts. And so we would allow the drama,
the excitement of these individuals coming together to dictate the shooting. And
that felt absolutely right for this project and that works best at speed.

Is that at odds with your other films?

I mean, of course there are some films where you are breaking things down into
very small parts and so the actors are having to work within those constraints.
This felt like a film that had to be led first and foremost by the energy of the
people involved and so you wanted them to be able to really run into a scene and
really be able to go through the entire thing and lead the camera to where it
needed to be.

> “When I am writing scripts, I try to be very disciplined and not think about
> actors. If you are writing to an actor, you are imagining things they have
> already done. It is very important to write the character in a pure way.”

I guess you had to choose your cast wisely — not every actor would or could be
up for that kind of challenge.

When I am writing scripts, I try to be very disciplined and not think about
actors. If you are writing to an actor, you are imagining things they have
already done. So I think a script stage is very important to write the character
in a more pure way, particularly in the case of a real life figure like
Oppenheimer, you are able to write with the real historical person in mind and
not think at all about how this is going to come to life and who you are going
to get to play the part. But then once I finish the script, I sort of knew who
can do this role. My friend Cillian [Murphy] who I have worked with for 20
years, I’d known since I very first worked with him, I screen tested him for
Batman on Batman Begins. It was very clear to me that he was one of the great
talents, one of the greatest actors. And so this made complete sense to me.

In what way?

Well, what I am looking for in the performance, which is what I tried to put in
the script, is intense subjectivity. I really want the audience to experience
the events of the film through Oppenheimer’s eyes, I want them to be in his
head, rather than creating a judgment of him. And so for me, the end of the film
is about having developed an understanding of who he is, perhaps why he did some
of the things he did, finishing that story and then the resonance of the story
is finished, I think it should leave you with some troubling questions. There
are some things that you perhaps reassess about what you have seen and what you
have experienced.

So there’s no message you’re trying to send out with this particular work?

I think to be too specific about a message, or feeling that we had the answers
to these difficult questions, I don’t think that’s what dramatic features and
cinema thrives on. I think they thrive on ambiguity and complexity and I want to
view his story as a Rorschach test, as something that people will interpret in
their own way. That’s what attracted me to this story in the first place was the
complexity of it, the difficult questions that it asks. So, no, I did not intend
any specific message. We are not making a documentary or advocacy. I think that
cinema does not work well when it’s didactic, when it’s telling people what to
think — I think audiences are naturally resistant to that.

Short Profile

Name: Christopher Edward Nolan
DOB: 30 July 1970
Place of birth: Westminster, London, United Kingdom
Occupation: Film director, screenwriter

Emerging Masters
Rolex is proud to support The Talks’ interview series about the cultural leaders
of the future.

Christopher Nolan's new film, Oppenheimer, is in theaters now.
Life
 * “I really lacked confidence at the very beginning. At first I was quite
   intimidated! I wasn’t accepted in the kitchen initially, I wasn’t part of the
   system; the other chefs didn’t welcome me. But in the end, those experiences
   made all the difference. It freed me.”
   Anne-Sophie Pic
   France, Chef
 * “Even though I wanted to be minimal, for the first 20 years in my career all
   I did was add things; more courses, more ingredients. Only three years ago I
   was confident to start focusing on removing, and this is when I finally
   created a dish where I felt like I achieved what I tried to do for 23 years.”
   Daniel Humm
   Switzerland, Chef
 * “The recognition of luck is extraordinarily important — as well as making the
   best of it and creating to the best of your capabilities on that one
   opportunity you’re given so that it doesn’t end up in the museum of errors.”
   Robert Richardson
   US, Cinematographer
 * “You don’t have to please everybody. As long as you and the people whose
   opinions you respect are comfortable and happy with it, then… keep going!
   Keep making that weird stuff.”
   Craig Green
   UK, Fashion Designer
 * “I am tireless, I’m relatively fearless. It’s hard to hear “no” all the time.
   It can be tough; you have to have the stomach for it.”
   Christine Vachon
   US, Film Producer
 * “I’m doing things more personally than ever before because that’s what my
   project is based on, that’s who I am and I have never been this happy my
   whole life — but it was a long road to get here.”
   Umit Benan
   Turkey, Fashion Designer
 * “I wouldn’t ever compromise on the essential, on the essence of a project,
   the ideas or the themes.”
   Kazuo Ishiguro
   UK, Author
 * “It’s important to say no – especially earlier in your career – because life
   is short and you want to be proud of things that you have done, not ashamed
   of them.”
   Peter Dinklage
   US, Actor
 * “One day I realized that it didn’t matter whether people loved me or not. I
   was released of all that insecurity when I released myself from that fantasy
   and came to the conclusion that I could be happy making music regardless of
   whether I was successful or not.”
   Shirley Manson
   UK, Musician
 * “I think you get more confident as you get older. You realize what your
   strengths and weaknesses are and you’re more okay with your weaknesses and
   you value your strengths more. I look forward to being 50 and I’m hoping that
   I’m as confident as some of the people that I look up to.”
   Elisabeth Moss
   US, Actress
 * “I don’t think I’m ever going to stop wanting to see and experience things. I
   think the day that you don’t long for that anymore is the day you have kind
   of given up.”
   Sienna Miller
   UK, Actor
 * “I would say that a strong work ethic is a vital ingredient for success.
   That’s something I was born with, I’m convinced of it; it was nothing that I
   acquired. If you take on anything, you try to do it your best.”
   Clive Davis
   US, Record Producer
 * “I think my love of pushing the boundaries in film comes from my desire as a
   kid to do something artistic that would amaze people. I wanted to do nothing
   less than that. Those are the projects that I love: figuring out what might
   just be possible but hasn't been done yet.”
   James Cameron
   Canada, Film Director
 * “Art is something about everyday life. Art is about finding creativity in the
   normal gutter next to you. To see the potential in something where there is
   no potential is often where art or creativity is a great tool. It’s about
   making the impossible possible.”
   Olafur Eliasson
   Denmark, Artist
 * “Making something or creating something is about looking and exploring the
   potential, and I want to do that right up until the day of the performance.
   And then when we’re performing, I want to do it a bit more. There’s no reason
   we can’t.”
   Wayne McGregor
   UK, Choreographer
 * “I think the key to having a successful career is to find the thing you do
   well and do it again and again for the rest of your life. But I’m interested
   in expanding my language as an artist and as a composer. And I try to expand
   it with every project.”
   Jóhann Jóhannsson
   Iceland, Composer
 * “It’s hard to watch the misses, it’s hard to be criticized. But you’re always
   trying to hit it into the rafters, and damn the consequences if you don’t
   make it.”
   Chiwetel Ejiofor
   UK, Actor
 * “Wherever any of us have been wounded, if we dive into what those wounds are,
   if we go down into and do the hard work within those wounds, we’ll actually
   find ourselves, we’ll find our real giftedness, a sincere, true giftedness.”
   Andrew Garfield
   UK, Actor
 * “I’ve been very lucky — I took the risk to do the things that interested me,
   so I could have no possible complaints. There’s nothing else I could ask for,
   really, and if I drop dead tomorrow, I would have had a terrific time.”
   Robert Harris
   UK, Author
 * “Failure is just something you have to go through on your own. Nothing can
   prepare you for it, just like a broken heart. I thought about folding, but
   I’m not a quitter. I’m not going to quit.”
   Spike Lee
   US, Film Director
 * “One of the reasons why I have this much success is because I’m hard on
   myself. Until now, I never really saw myself as a talented chef! I don’t take
   the easy way. I put in the time. From the age of 17 until 23, I didn’t take
   any vacations, I had almost no days off.”
   Tim Raue
   Germany, Chef
 * “The truth. The whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God. And
   that’s it! May it be ugly, may it be beautiful, may it be perverse, may it be
   all of those things. That’s it, I can’t lie; it is what it is, unabashed,
   naked. I expect that of myself, that’s for sure.”
   Steve McQueen
   UK, Film Director
 * “Of course we all do stupid things when we're young, but that's your way to
   find boundaries, you know. Have I done stupid things I regret? Yeah. But I
   can learn from those mistakes and grow. That's what it’s all about.”
   LeBron James
   US, Basketball Player
 * “Failure is more interesting. Success only comes in one form. It doesn’t
   teach you anything. Failure kind of comes in all sorts of ways, and teaches
   you all sorts of things. You learn by failing.”
   Irvine Welsh
   UK, Author
 * “At what point do you feel you’ve achieved it and you can move on? I think
   you usually have to start thinking, ‘So what’s next?’”
   Stuart Vevers
   UK, Fashion Designer
 * “I never thought of art as a career. I thought it was more like a monastic
   practice. It is something that you do – you can't not do it. If I made money
   doing it, I would do it; if I didn't make any money, I would do it. Obviously
   I’m not perfect but the thing I am best at is painting.”
   Julian Schnabel
   US, Artist
 * “It’s easy to have inspiration and have a vision and an aesthetic, but if you
   don’t have the execution and you don’t get it out there properly and on time,
   it doesn’t matter. It’ll sink.”
   Rick Owens
   US, Fashion Designer
 * “It’s a huge peace to allow yourself to be vulnerable. You gain a sense of
   freedom and understanding and forgiveness for being human. Instead of trying
   to control things and make it the way you want them, you have to be more
   open.”
   Brie Larson
   US, Actress
 * “I think you know when you’re playing it safe, when you’re stagnating, and
   when you’re growing. It’s probably an ongoing thing for all of us — and a
   tricky balance. I try to learn at least one thing on every album, to reach
   out. I become my own teacher.”
   Björk
   Iceland, Musician
 * “My whole purpose in life is to communicate what I’m doing. I see myself as a
   modern nomad and a soldier at the same time. Being mainstream won’t change me
   because once I have something to perform, a task, then I’m a soldier. And
   I’ve always been a soldier.”
   Marina Abramović
   Serbia, Artist
 * “In life it’s about opening yourself up. It’s about tapping into your
   instincts and your energies. I think I got very good at that. I have to be
   open and I have to be open to the possibilities.”
   Mick Rock
   UK, Photographer
 * “I think it’s so good to try new things and open the window and let some
   fresh air in and try to eliminate any regrets.”
   Diane Lane
   US, Actress
 * “One of the things that I’m striving for is an authenticity, to do things
   which feel natural and make choices which feel authentic and real. I think in
   a way you sort of can’t help sounding like yourself. You can’t help but put
   yourself into your work.”
   Max Richter
   UK, Composer
 * “It all comes down to realizing how good you are and really consciously
   working with that. I think as an artist we always try to hide the
   imperfections. But the imperfections are there because we’re all humans, and
   this is what makes us interesting.”
   Nils Frahm
   Germany, Composer
 * “I have to free myself from my creation, I have to send it off, I have to
   give it up. And that is also the beauty, that you pass on something, that you
   let something live, that you allow it to confront. To get in contact with
   others.”
   Thomas Hirschhorn
   Switzerland, Artist
 * “I have the freedom to express myself. And it doesn’t matter if somebody’s
   going to pay me or pat me on the back for it. I chose to do things that I
   embrace, that I feel passionate about for whatever reason and I create my
   freedom around that.”
   Joel Edgerton
   Australia, Actor and Film Director
 * “I am less anxious to have a successful career. There were times when I was
   anxious — even in the past, people said, ‘You make successful films.’ But my
   films were never successful. Even The Godfather got a terrible review. My
   films did better over time.”
   Francis Ford Coppola
   US, Film Director
 * “I don’t want to be good. I want to be the best. Even in failing that, you’ll
   hit a higher mark than if you never tried.”
   Grimes
   Canada, Musician
 * “I follow the beat of my own drum. I think I’ve gotten more confident and
   self-trustful in my ability and my natural appetite for play, and not
   over-adorning it with anything. I’ve always been disciplined and I’m still
   nothing if not conscientious.”
   Jeff Goldblum
   US, Actor
 * “If you’re doing one thing, you can burn yourself out. But for me, if ever
   one of those things burnt out, I would have moved to another one. So it makes
   it difficult but it makes it possible to keep going.”
   Peter Blake
   UK, Artist
 * “I really lacked confidence at the very beginning. At first I was quite
   intimidated! I wasn’t accepted in the kitchen initially, I wasn’t part of the
   system; the other chefs didn’t welcome me. But in the end, those experiences
   made all the difference. It freed me.”
   Anne-Sophie Pic
   France, Chef
 * “Even though I wanted to be minimal, for the first 20 years in my career all
   I did was add things; more courses, more ingredients. Only three years ago I
   was confident to start focusing on removing, and this is when I finally
   created a dish where I felt like I achieved what I tried to do for 23 years.”
   Daniel Humm
   Switzerland, Chef

 * 
 * 


Emerging Masters
The Talks’ Emerging Masters is a series in partnership with Rolex featuring the
extraordinary talents shaping the future of creativity.
Life
 * “I have a tattoo that goes around my right wrist that looks like barbed wire,
   but it’s actually ANDAND linked together, which stands for “A New Dawn, A New
   Day.” It’s about waking up every day knowing that you have a chance to start
   again and forgive and be forgiven and to let go of yesterday.”
   Susan Sarandon
   US, Actress
 * “I just want to do everything as good as I possibly can but it is also good
   to act on an idea and fail — and then you get something out of it. I think
   it’s really important to not be afraid of failure and to push yourself to try
   things and jump in the cold water.”
   Juergen Teller
   Germany, Photographer
 * “You better make every moment count. Live your life now; start in the
   morning. You mustn’t sit around waiting to die.”
   Michael Caine
   UK, Actor
 * “I’ve been very lucky — I took the risk to do the things that interested me,
   so I could have no possible complaints. There’s nothing else I could ask for,
   really, and if I drop dead tomorrow, I would have had a terrific time.”
   Robert Harris
   UK, Author
 * “If people don’t like the pictures, I don’t care. To me, there’s only one
   point of view: that’s mine.”
   Harry Benson
   UK, Photographer
 * “I would say that a strong work ethic is a vital ingredient for success.
   That’s something I was born with, I’m convinced of it; it was nothing that I
   acquired. If you take on anything, you try to do it your best.”
   Clive Davis
   US, Record Producer
 * “Each of my projects is kind of a marathon run. A lot of them won't make it
   to the finish line and the only reason they make it is because I go back and
   nurture them and try to figure everything out.”
   Darren Aronofsky
   US, Film Director
 * “Even though I wanted to be minimal, for the first 20 years in my career all
   I did was add things; more courses, more ingredients. Only three years ago I
   was confident to start focusing on removing, and this is when I finally
   created a dish where I felt like I achieved what I tried to do for 23 years.”
   Daniel Humm
   Switzerland, Chef
 * “I always try to concentrate on the process and where the real goal is, which
   is trying to get up every day and be the best possible version of myself and
   do the best work I can do.”
   Charlie Hunnam
   UK, Actor
 * “The truth. The whole truth, and nothing but the truth, so help me God. And
   that’s it! May it be ugly, may it be beautiful, may it be perverse, may it be
   all of those things. That’s it, I can’t lie; it is what it is, unabashed,
   naked. I expect that of myself, that’s for sure.”
   Steve McQueen
   UK, Film Director
 * “I don’t regret anything. I feel that I’ve made what I would call mistakes.
   But everything you do is a part of you. And you get something from it. The
   idea and excitement of being in these situations and places — they are more
   than just memories, they inform your life.”
   Al Pacino
   US, Actor
 * “Failure is more interesting. Success only comes in one form. It doesn’t
   teach you anything. Failure kind of comes in all sorts of ways, and teaches
   you all sorts of things. You learn by failing.”
   Irvine Welsh
   UK, Author
 * “I am tireless, I’m relatively fearless. It’s hard to hear “no” all the time.
   It can be tough; you have to have the stomach for it.”
   Christine Vachon
   US, Film Producer
 * “Wherever any of us have been wounded, if we dive into what those wounds are,
   if we go down into and do the hard work within those wounds, we’ll actually
   find ourselves, we’ll find our real giftedness, a sincere, true giftedness.”
   Andrew Garfield
   UK, Actor
 * “If you are ambitious, you are running in a tunnel that never ends. You will
   always find something new to go after.”
   Curtis ‘50 Cent’ Jackson
   US, Musician
 * “I believe that you’re a result of the choices that you make. Each action has
   a reaction. Somehow it’s just all connected and I wouldn’t change any of it.”
   Lars Ulrich
   Denmark, Musician
 * “Architecture is the oddest profession. In the beginning you're very much
   involved in finding your voice and locating yourself artistically. For 25
   years you're working with small projects, domestic projects. And then you
   mature at 50 and you're given your first projects.”
   Thom Mayne
   US, Architect
 * “I don’t like plan Bs. If you don’t have a plan B, then you can’t take plan
   B. Don’t give yourself an out.”
   Michael Pitt
   US, Actor
 * “Being creative and keeping your brain occupied is very sensible because if
   you don’t you die, slowly. Sometimes I feel tired and think I ought to give
   it up, I don’t want to just retire. I enjoy it all.”
   Anthony Hopkins
   Wales, Actor
 * “Failure is just something you have to go through on your own. Nothing can
   prepare you for it, just like a broken heart. I thought about folding, but
   I’m not a quitter. I’m not going to quit.”
   Spike Lee
   US, Film Director
 * “I’m trying to not play it safe. I learn more when I fail than when I
   succeed, so if I push myself to do something that’s really difficult, I could
   fail and I’ll learn a lot. But if I don’t fail, then I’ll be in a great
   movie. I hope to be the kind of actor that isn’t always great.”
   Jessica Chastain
   US, Actor
 * “I have an irrational fear of boredom. That’s why I now have this tattoo that
   says “Carpe Diem.” That’s what we should live by!”
   Judi Dench
   UK, Actress
 * “I don’t think I’m ever going to stop wanting to see and experience things. I
   think the day that you don’t long for that anymore is the day you have kind
   of given up.”
   Sienna Miller
   UK, Actor
 * “The only thing that you have to be very sure of is that nothing can go
   wrong. You can’t get in the way of the whole thing by messing it up with
   great ideas or smart moves. Absolute trust is, I think, the crucial
   ingredient.”
   Katharina Grosse
   Germany, Artist
 * “I don’t want to only do what I know how to do. I want to be pushed somewhere
   else.”
   Catherine Deneuve
   France, Actress
 * “If you’re doing one thing, you can burn yourself out. But for me, if ever
   one of those things burnt out, I would have moved to another one. So it makes
   it difficult but it makes it possible to keep going.”
   Peter Blake
   UK, Artist
 * “I think the key to having a successful career is to find the thing you do
   well and do it again and again for the rest of your life. But I’m interested
   in expanding my language as an artist and as a composer. And I try to expand
   it with every project.”
   Jóhann Jóhannsson
   Iceland, Composer
 * “I think when you’re an artist who’s been around for a while like I have you
   understand that it’s almost impossible to make work that is unanimously loved
   or understood! You can’t please everyone, and that is a great realization.”
   Shirin Neshat
   Iran, Artist
 * “Life is confounding and who knows what’s around the next corner. But in many
   ways uncertainty can be exhilarating—there’s a lot of freedom in it. It would
   be a shame to waste our snippet of time on this planet being afraid.”
   Deborah Landau
   US, Poet
 * “I am less anxious to have a successful career. There were times when I was
   anxious — even in the past, people said, ‘You make successful films.’ But my
   films were never successful. Even The Godfather got a terrible review. My
   films did better over time.”
   Francis Ford Coppola
   US, Film Director
 * “I think you get more confident as you get older. You realize what your
   strengths and weaknesses are and you’re more okay with your weaknesses and
   you value your strengths more. I look forward to being 50 and I’m hoping that
   I’m as confident as some of the people that I look up to.”
   Elisabeth Moss
   US, Actress
 * “I don’t want to be pigeonholed — it’s important to keep evolving,
   experimenting and reinventing yourself, otherwise it’s like hitting a drum,
   the same note over and over again. I think you should want to change, to try
   different things.”
   Steve McCurry
   US, Photographer
 * “I learned by doing. The rest is doing experiments and testing and not giving
   up. If something is not satisfying start again, turn everything upside down
   and find a new formula for printing. Everything is learning by doing.”
   Gerhard Steidl
   Germany, Publisher
 * “The more experience you have, the more time you’ve spent on this earth, the
   more regrets you accumulate. It’s normal. You can’t do everything right,
   nobody’s perfect. But if you think too much about that, you’re not here. You
   have to make some efforts to stay open-minded.”
   Viggo Mortensen
   US, Actor
 * “I can’t make people happy if I’m not happy myself. That applies to anyone
   who tries to achieve something in their life: if you’re not happy, you can’t
   transfer any happiness to anyone else.”
   Ferran Adrià
   Spain, Chef
 * “You’re always looking for a second chance. You’re always looking to do a
   little bit better than you did the last time. And you hope that the readers
   will stay with you.”
   Stewart O’Nan
   US, Author
 * “I think all actors have to be dreamers. I think every citizen of every kind
   of society has to dream. If you stop dreaming, it’s over.”
   Bruce Dern
   US, Actor
 * “If you work with somebody for a long time, you have to challenge them
   otherwise you jeopardize your relationship. You have to constantly
   reinterpret your work together and provide a new vision of your
   relationship.”
   Willy Vanderperre
   Belgium, Photographer
 * “I work till the breath goes out of me, and that might be at one or two or
   even four or five (in the afternoon). The point is that you must work every
   day if you ever expect to let the vision take hold of you.”
   T.C. Boyle
   US, Author
 * “I give my best performances when I am almost snapping. It is like tuning a
   violin. You want that note from a string so you tune it until it almost
   breaks – but then you get that note. It is dangerous, but it is also
   sublime.”
   Ben Kingsley
   UK, Actor
 * “I have a tattoo that goes around my right wrist that looks like barbed wire,
   but it’s actually ANDAND linked together, which stands for “A New Dawn, A New
   Day.” It’s about waking up every day knowing that you have a chance to start
   again and forgive and be forgiven and to let go of yesterday.”
   Susan Sarandon
   US, Actress
 * “I just want to do everything as good as I possibly can but it is also good
   to act on an idea and fail — and then you get something out of it. I think
   it’s really important to not be afraid of failure and to push yourself to try
   things and jump in the cold water.”
   Juergen Teller
   Germany, Photographer

 * 
 * 

Related Interviews


ARI WEGNER: “IT’S A REALLY CONNECTED EXPERIENCE”




LUDWIG GÖRANSSON: “I’M BUILDING A PUZZLE”




JAMES CAMERON: “ALL MY MOVIES ARE LOVE STORIES”




HANS ZIMMER: “YOU ARE FOREVER IN THAT DREAM WORLD”

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