The whole thing of this business is to retain your enthusiasm and, in a sense, retain your innocence and try to practice as much humility as possible.

Casting is 65 percent of directing.

There are two things I will never do in my life. I will never climb Mount Everest, and I will never work with Val Kilmer again. There isn't enough money in the world.

The accolades usually come when you're dead or too old to get a job

I have gotten to a point in my life where I don't want to have dinner with someone I don't like.

And in Hollywood, you know, everyone is an expert. Most of them are expert editors. They can't direct, they can't write, they can't act, but, by God, they all think they can edit.

I've found that the more experts you have on a movie, the less control the director has.

The importance of the assistant director cannot be overemphasized.

I look at actors very closely. It's not an accident when the actors excel.

First, speaking for myself, I don't want to ever be in a position where I'm telling other directors how to make movies, because I don't think it's any of my business.

The first assistant director is just so important that the choice of that person is critical to the movie.

You have to be a friend to have them.

Confidence

One with God is always a majority. But many have been burned at the stake while the boats were being counted. Thomas Reed

The single biggest advantage a value investor has is not IQ. It's patience and waiting. Waiting for the right pitch, and waiting for many years for the right pitch.

I used to joke that if acting didn't work out, poetry was my commonsense fallback.

Your ability to face setbacks and disappointments without giving up will be the measure of your ability to succeed.

Ulcerative colitis can be cured by the operation, but you cannot cure Crohn's disease.

Can liberty be destroyed by the truth?

If it's painful, you become willing not just to endure it but also to let it awaken your heart and soften you. You learn to embrace it.

It's so good for your health to take those naps. I don't know why people brag that they sleep five hours. I'd be ashamed. I'm proud that I sleep nine hours.