I think they built Hollywood on the West Coast because they were always dreaming of a New World. When they arrived here, the only way to keep dreaming was to make movies. Film was the fourth dimension. – Denis Villeneuve
Each movie I make has its own heroes, and the two heroes for me in ‘Arrival’ are Amy Adams and Joe Walker, the editor. We worked very, very hard, and it was, by far, the longest editing process. – Denis Villeneuve
The thing I realized about final cut is it’s the power of the best cut. I didn’t have final cut on ‘Prisoners,’ but what you saw is the best cut. ‘Sicario’ is a directors’ cut. ‘Arrival’ is a directors’ cut. – Denis Villeneuve
I must say, I am a 10,000-times better director because I am in therapy. I’m serious. I can understand more the actors. I can manipulate them more easily. – Denis Villeneuve
I’d love to be able to do a comedy like ‘Dr. Strangelove.’ I’m not a very serious person. Really, I’m very silly. – Denis Villeneuve
I didn’t think I’d do movies in Los Angeles. I never thought it would happen. In fact, it was not a fantasy. For me, I said, ‘If ever I go there, they will ask me to do ‘Legally Blonde 5.’ – Denis Villeneuve
‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind.’ Big, big, big smash for me. My birth of the love of cinema was born with ‘Close Encounters’ and ‘2001.’ Those sci-fi movies I saw when I was a little kid. – Denis Villeneuve
Very early on, I was writing stories, and I was amazed at Spielberg’s movies when I was young. Coming from the countryside, I was so impressed with the way he was able to tell stories and the way he was able to deal with le merveilleux – the wonders. Very quickly, he became for me a massive hero, and he introduced me to the world of a director. – Denis Villeneuve
I’m learning more and more to share creativity with the crew and actors. A film crew is more powerful if you listen to them, but it does make my job more tough because I have to listen. – Denis Villeneuve
For me, masculinity is about control, and femininity is more of an embrace, the art of listening. It’s very inspiring to explore the shadows of masculinity and femininity, and the tensions between both, and the place of women in the world right now. – Denis Villeneuve
I’ve always been in love with language. My favorite book is a dictionary. I have always loved words. – Denis Villeneuve
When I was a kid, I was always going to bed creating a story, and that was the birth of filmmaking for me. I would like going to the dream-state by telling the story to someone else in my mind. That was my imaginary friend; it was an imaginary audience listening to my story. – Denis Villeneuve
If you don’t deal with your shadows, you are condemned to repeat the same mistake over and over, as a human being or as a society. – Denis Villeneuve
Film is pop art. It’s not whether it’s auteur cinema or not; that’s a false distinction. Cinema is cinema. – Denis Villeneuve
Cinema is an art form that is designed to go across borders. And as a filmmaker, the only way I can direct a movie is when I feel close to my culture. – Denis Villeneuve
When I work in English, I’d say I don’t see a big difference in my rapport with my team or the actors. When I work in English or French, the music of the language is different, but beyond that music, in the depths, it’s the same. – Denis Villeneuve
‘Sicario’ is about how the Western world reacts toward problems outside of its borders. Should we become monsters in order to fight the monsters? It’s not about the cartels. The movie could have been set in Africa or the Middle East. – Denis Villeneuve
‘2001: A Space Odyssey’ is a movie that really impressed me as a teenager. And also ‘Blade Runner.’ And ‘Close Encounters of the Third Kind’ is also one of my favorites. I’m always looking for sci-fi material, and it’s difficult to find original and strong material that’s not just about weaponry. – Denis Villeneuve
‘Arrival’ talks very little about language and how to precisely dissect a foreign language. It’s more a film on intuition and communication by intuition, the language of intuition. – Denis Villeneuve
