There’s nowhere like Detroit; it’s a modern necropolis: all these art deco masterpieces crumbling away. – Malik Bendjelloul
I quit my job. I bought myself a real cheap, like, around-the-world flight ticket, and I went to 16 countries for six months just backpacking, living in cheap hostels, looking for stories with a camera and my ex-girlfriend. – Malik Bendjelloul
The kids growing up in the apartheid era were so restricted and angry – if they spoke out against it, they were thrown in jail. – Malik Bendjelloul
The perfect story is one you can retell in three minutes, and every single sentence is interesting. – Malik Bendjelloul
I was working for a Swedish TV show – I’m Swedish – who basically did kind of spectacular stories. It was almost like CBS ’60 Minutes,’ but a Swedish version where we actually did travel quite a lot. After a while, I realized that travel is the most fun part of this, so why not do it for a longer time and just go off and explore? – Malik Bendjelloul
I love music. I think it’s a higher art form, in a way, than movies. You know, a film you see once, maybe twice. A song will follow you forever. It’s a magical thing. – Malik Bendjelloul
I don’t like music docs, usually. There’s nothing to really say. What can you say about music? Normally, you can’t say too much. There are a few really good ones, but the majorities are boring, I think. – Malik Bendjelloul
I don’t think ‘Sugar Man’ is a music doc any more than ‘The Social Network’ is about computers. It just happens to have the best soundtrack ever. – Malik Bendjelloul
There are a few really fantastic stories left, and that kind of gives you some inspiration to find even new ones. – Malik Bendjelloul
Success is not only one thing. It’s not only having a nice house in Beverly Hills and driving a nice Mercedes. – Malik Bendjelloul
You don’t need money to be free. You can just say if you don’t need stuff, you’re always free. – Malik Bendjelloul
