Theres something unique about the United States, a sense of individual rights and freedoms, and a sense of social and civic responsibility that we contributed to so much of the world. We lost that mission in the 1980s and 1990s, when we entered a gilded age, and the culture of individualism became a culture of avarice.
— George Hickenlooper
The most blissful George Hickenlooper quotes that are guaranted to improve your brain
The promise of celebrity is a transcendental human state of existence.
It's not real. We do know the fact that celebrities as mortal beings exist and if you are looking for love by being famous or being around the famous - ultimately that goes away.
Im very strongly in favor of the auteur theory.
I think that narrative, fiction filmmaking is the culmination of several art forms: theater, art history, architecture. Whereas doc filmmaking is more pure cinema, like cinema verite is film in its purest form.
Im fascinated by failure, and Im fascinated by finality.
Shakespeares historical plays are more universal than his comedies because they relate to the finality of life. Without finality, life would not be beautiful.
Docs are more exhausting because of the physical labor that's required.
Feature filmmaking is more exhausting because of politics and the bullshit. You get to the point of rolling film and until you lock picture it's one political game after another. They're both struggles for survival. They are two different worlds.
Most people, 95% of people, are good people. Its the 5% who get seduced by power.
The arc of the celebrity phenomenon ultimately is: everything turns to dust and everything does go away.
I love the grandiosity of Hollywood movies, and even in independents, I love the canvas you can tell your story on. I love fiction filmmaking, you really feel like you're creating something.
Generally in my films like Hearts of Darkness or Picture This, I try not to make myself a presence in the film.
At times doc filmmaking feels more rewarding creatively.
Because you are creating something out of pure cinema - instead of narrative cinema, where you've got a script and a cast and you build from your foundation, whereas in documentary, you're building out of chaos.
Obviously you have a responsibility - one would like to think there is such a thing as ethics in filmmaking.