“There are photos of Kim Jong-un right up atop the volcano. I actually wrote a letter to him asking if I could speak on camera. I never got an answer. But what was interesting was the people who were responsible for us, our "guards," it took them two days to figure out how I should address him. "President? No, you can't because there's a president for eternity." And it was a time when his status was still in flux. Only a few months later there was this party congress which assigned an official title to him, but that was after we did our film.” PeopleIfsShouldStillsTwoFilmSpeakPresidentAnswersInterestingPartyFiguresMonthsLettersEternityAskingResponsibleCamerasCongressTitlesOfficialsIf I CouldAddressesTwo DaysKimFluxVolcanoes Author:Werner Herzog
“I do not recall to [Kim Jong-un], but it was complex. "Dear young leader of the people and chairman of the joint military commission" or something like that.” PeopleYoungLeaderMilitaryComplexesDearRecallsJointsChairmanKimYoung Leaders Author:Werner Herzog
“I was able to persuade them to let me shoot in areas that were beyond the volcano itself. Beyond the joint scientific program between Cambridge University and North Korean scientists. I was able to film in a kindergarten, subway, other things you would not normally be allowed to do.” AbleFilmAreasProgramScientistLet MeUniversityJointsNorth KoreaKoreanSubwayKindergartenVolcanoesCambridgeNorth KoreanCambridge University Author:Werner Herzog
“The deal was we had to have people accompanying us and they would ask us not to film something [in North Korea]. For example, we wanted to film at a certain place and there happened to be a building under construction and it didn't look as fancy as the other buildings, so they wanted us to shoot where everything looked finished and made a good impression of the cityscape.” PeopleLooksMadeWantedFilmCertainAsksDealsHappenedExampleBuildingFinishedImpressionFancyConstructionKoreaNorth KoreaUnder ConstructionCityscapes Author:Werner Herzog
“I couldn't roam wildly and speak secretly with villagers [in North Korea]. No way you could do that. And honestly, I didn't even try. I was realistic of what I could do and yet persuaded them into accepting numerous things that I shouldn't have filmed.” WayTryingSpeakAcceptingHonestlyRealisticKoreaNorth Korea Author:Werner Herzog
“Clive [Oppenheimer] and I figured out that I'm the only one probably in the film industry who is clinically sane. I say that as a joke, but there's a grain of truth to it. I'm not a stupid daredevil who jumps into the crater of the volcano to get the closest close-up, I'm not one of those. And you have to be aware that you have a crew with you and you are responsible.” FilmStupidIndustryJokesResponsibleSaneGrainClosestCrewFilm IndustryVolcanoesDaredevilCraters Author:Werner Herzog
“The daredevil aspect to what I did there is moving a monstrously big ship over a mountain in the jungle of Peru with 800 or 900 or so native people from the area. So that idea was wild but the way it was executed was prudent. Nobody was ever hurt and when it became clear that we had to be more secure with the posts that would hold the ship, I spent 12 days having a post built that would have withstood the force of 10 times the weight of my ship.” PeopleWayIdeasBigsMovingForceHurtClearMountainBuiltAreasAspectWeightShipsSecurePostsNativeJunglePrudentPeruDaredevil Author:Werner Herzog
“I have made 70 or so films. In all my films not a single actor, a single extra, was hurt. Not one. So statistics are on my side when I say I'm clinically sane.” MadeFilmActorsSidesHurtExtrasStatisticsSane Author:Werner Herzog
“My crew [on "Fitzcarraldo" filming] actually said, "We have filmed it from outside on the rocks of the shore. We should be on board [the ship]," and I said it's dangerous, I only do it if you cinematographer Thomas Mauch and you actor [Klaus] Kinski decide on your own.” IfsShouldSaidActorsRocksDangerousShipsBoardsShoreCrewCinematographers Author:Werner Herzog