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Spike Jonze

Spike Jonze Quotes

Director

Spike Jonze, born Adam Spiegel, is an American director, screenwriter, producer, and music video director. He is known for his unique film style and profound insights into social issues. Jonze's career began in the music video domain, and he later transitioned to film, gaining international recognition with his works such as 'Being John Malkovich' and 'Her'.

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All Thinking People Want Emotion Feels Ifs Kids Wild Things Character Trying

Famous Spike Jonze Quotes

“What the world is like from a nine-year-old's point of view? My memory is that nothing is explained to you, you've got to try to figure it out, pick up clues from the people around you, try to figure it out from their reactions.”

People World Trying Years Memories Views Figures Picks Point Of View Nine Reactions Clue Nine Years

Author:Spike Jonze

“The things that are really out of control, and scary, are emotions - of people around you, that are unpredictable, or those in yourself which are unpredictable.”

People Emotion Scary Unpredictable

Author:Spike Jonze

“Music is thousands and thousands of years old and I don't think that basic, primitive connection to the language of music ever changes.”

Thinking Years Language Music Is Connections Primitive

Author:Spike Jonze

“I think at the beginning of a project, you decide if you're in love with the idea and what it's about, or what you think it's about at that time at least. Then you commit to it, and once you've commit to it no matter what, no matter how many self doubts you have, you're in it. The ship's sailed, you can't turn around.”

Ifs Thinking Ideas Self Matter Turns Doubt Projects No Matter What Commit Ships Self-doubt

Author:Spike Jonze

“You make a movie that is about what you want it to be about and let people have their reaction to it.”

People Want What You Want Reactions

Author:Spike Jonze

“I always aspire to that, where it feels like the film was made by the characters as opposed to the filmmakers. I try to be invisible.”

Feels Trying Made Character Film Invisible Filmmaker Aspire

Author:Spike Jonze

“Big emotions that are unexplained are really scary. At least to me.”

Bigs Emotion Scary Really Scary Unexplained

Author:Spike Jonze

“I feel like everything I make is personal to me.”

Author:Spike Jonze

“Chris Cooper I got to work with many times.”

Author:Spike Jonze

“I am better at math than spelling.”

Author:Spike Jonze

“If I leave my phone in the car and go to dinner or something for a few hours, I'm very proud of myself.”

Ifs Hours Car Proud Phones Dinner Proud Of Myself

Author:Spike Jonze

“Don't differentiate between 'This is a job' and 'This is what I'm doing for fun.' It's all simultaneous.”

Jobs Fun Differentiate Simultaneous

Author:Spike Jonze

“I definitely enjoy getting to know people I find inspiring.”

People Knows Enjoy

Author:Spike Jonze

“I was lucky enough to know Maurice Sendak, and talked to him about doing the movie. For a while, I was really apprehensive of it, because Where The Wild Things Are is a book I love so much, and I didn't want to add something to it just to be able to make a movie, or put my stamp on it, or something like that.”

Book Enough Lucky Wild Things

Author:Spike Jonze

“Finding a kid that could be introspective and internal and thoughtful, and then also be wild and free and guileless and physical, it was hard. So at the end we started getting down to panic time, and we still hadn't found our Max. And we decided to go about it a different way. We said, "Let's just find friends of ours that live in interesting cities in the country that maybe aren't as big, and people that don't do casting." And thinking maybe you find a place that has an artistic community, maybe we'll find some interesting kids from there.”

People Thinking Different Country Kids Community Interesting Artistic Thoughtful Introspective Some Interesting

Author:Spike Jonze

“When I first moved up to San Francisco to write Where The Wild Things Are, I had a couple moments where I talked to somebody, and they're like, "Oh, I love that book. I love this part of it," or, "This is what it means to me." And it's like, "Well, I don't know. I guess that's not what I'm making the movie about." But very early on, I don't know, we sort of let go of that fear.”

Writing Mean Book Moments Couple Letting Go Moved Wild Things

Author:Spike Jonze

“Where The Wild Things Are we were asking a lot of a 9-year-old kid. We were asking a lot of any actor.”

Kids Wild Things

Author:Spike Jonze

“The fact that Maurice Sendak said, "This is something that I made at your age, this was something that was personal to me, and now you need to take it and make something that's personal to you." I don't know, but we made the Where The Wild Things Are movie that we set out to make, and Maurice loves it. If Maurice was anxious about it, then I would be petrified.”

Age Anxious Wild Things

Author:Spike Jonze

“The past is just a story we tell ourselves.”

Author:Spike Jonze

“Felt is not the easiest thing to animate. It's very flimsy.”

Author:Spike Jonze

“I'm not one to intellectualize why I did something.”

Author:Spike Jonze

“I don't understand the whole testing-numbers thing. It is not how I want to make movies.”

Want Whole Numbers Testing

Author:Spike Jonze

“You have to be involved and relate to the characters in order to make a film that is true emotionally.”

Character Film Order Involved Relate

Author:Spike Jonze

“The invention of the iPod changes how you use music. Suddenly you have music everywhere.”

Use Invention Ipods

Author:Spike Jonze

“As a parent, your perspective of childhood is through the eyes of this person that you care so much about and you just want the world to be great for them. You want their life to be easy and happy.”

World Want Persons Eye Care Easy Parent Childhood Perspective Through The Eyes

Author:Spike Jonze

“Doing a documentary is about discovering, being open, learning, and following curiosity.”

Curiosity Following Discovering Documentaries

Author:Spike Jonze

“It's fun when you start a movie, because it's kind of like you get to go Christmas shopping... you get to make your wish list and you start thinking about what each character needs.”

Thinking Needs Kind Character Fun Wish Like You Lists Christmas Shopping Christmas Shopping

Author:Spike Jonze

“Be willing to get fired for a good idea.”

Ideas Design Willing Good Ideas

Author:Spike Jonze

“If you compromise what you're trying to do just a little bit, you'll end up compromising a little more the next day or the next week, and when you lift your head you're suddenly really far away from where you're trying to go.”

Ifs Trying Littles Ends Next Bits Week Little Bit Compromise Lifts Far Away Next Day Next Week

Author:Spike Jonze

“Even in this world where you’re getting everything you need and having this nice life, there’s still loneliness and longing and disconnection.”

World Needs Stills Nice Loneliness This World Longing Disconnection Nice Life

Author:Spike Jonze

“I just want to make whatever is exciting.”

Author:Spike Jonze

“On everything I do I'm always taking someone's money, whether it's a movie studio or a record label. Somebody's paying for it, and I'm always respectful of that. But I'm never going to compromise.”

Records Studios Compromise Labels Respectful Record Labels

Author:Spike Jonze

“I like naps. I don't drink coffee.”

Drink Coffee Naps

Author:Spike Jonze

“I like hiring people based on a feeling - this person gets it - rather than what they've done in the past.”

People Persons Done Feelings Past Hiring

Author:Spike Jonze

“I feel like you only have so much time to make stuff. I'm definitely aware of that. I'm also excited about it.”

Feels Stuff Like You Excited

Author:Spike Jonze

“I think because I'm not a parent, my most immediate connection to childhood is my memory of my own childhood.”

Thinking Parent Memories My Own Childhood Connections Immediate Connection

Author:Spike Jonze

“I think the way kids create is so inspiring. They're drawing a picture? They love the picture they drew; they're not tortured about it.”

Thinking Way Kids Drawing

Author:Spike Jonze

“Emotions are messy and hard to figure out.”

Hard Emotion Figures Messy

Author:Spike Jonze

“I think, as you're growing up, your emotions are just as deep as they are when you're an adult. You're ability to feel lonely, longing, confused or angry are just as deep. We don't feel things more as we get older.”

Thinking Feels Ability Emotion Growing Up Growing Adults Lonely Angry Longing Confused Feeling Lonely Growing Older

Author:Spike Jonze

“If I can make one generalised statement, and generalised statements are never entirely true, nobody wants to be talked down to, kids included.”

Ifs Want I Can Kids Statements

Author:Spike Jonze

About the Author

Born: October 22, 1969
Known for: Director
Quotes: 40

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