Because my parents had given me tremendous respect, trust, and freedom as a child, I knew how to take responsibility for myself. If you're constantly being told "No, don't do that" or "We don't trust you," you can't develop that responsibility. Julie Taymor More Quotes by Julie Taymor More Quotes From Julie Taymor Americans in particular are myopic. They're not traveling as much. When you were a college student, the next thing you would do on graduation was to take a year off and travel. That's what I did. I went to Indonesia. Julie Taymor graduationinspirationalfunny When you break into song, it's not about dialogue, it's not about how you would speak in a naturalistic sense-it's about expressing your inner torment or your inner joy. Julie Taymor speakjoysong There is incredible power in the arts to inspire and influence. Julie Taymor keep-moving-forwardinspireart When I'm working as a director, I might have an idea of my own but I'm also trying to get great ideas out of my actors. Directing is much more psychological - it's a lot like being a general. And you have to be organized. While you're making a film, you have between 2 and 500 people asking you a billion questions. Julie Taymor tryingpeopleideas I really do believe that if you don't challenge yourself and risk failing, that it's not interesting. Julie Taymor challengesbelieveinteresting An artist is an entertainer, number one - a storyteller who takes people someplace, who gives them what they didn't know they wanted. Julie Taymor artistnumberspeople When I was thinking about The Lion King, I said, we have to do what theater does best. What theater does best is to be abstract and not to do literal reality. Julie Taymor kingsrealitythinking I call myself a playmaker sometimes - but that's just a word. I don't feel like I have to have a title or a job description. Julie Taymor titlessometimesjobs I want to experience a performance on all levels - I want goose bumps and I want to leave the movie or play arguing about something that's unresolved. Julie Taymor levelsplaybumps When we were kids, you picked up a little paper and put it on a stick; and when you waved it back and forth, you understood the power of air underneath the wings. In that way, a child begins to understand abstraction, poetry, metaphor, symbolism. You play with the materials you have and use your imagination to make them into something else. That what's so sad about having everything on a little screen - it's not physical and dimensional, and that seems backward. Julie Taymor airkidschildren I've never been a puppeteer, I conceive and I write and I design and I direct. And not just puppets. I direct actors, I direct dancers, I direct singers, I direct films. I also direct puppeteers. I'm really a theatre maker, but there's not a word for that. Julie Taymor dancerdesignwriting In America, the word art has become like the word adultery. It's this big scarlet letter. When you say you're an artist, people are like, "Ugh." Julie Taymor americapeopleart I received from my experience in Japan an incredible sense of respect for the art of creating, not just the creative product. We're all about the product. To me, the process was also an incredibly important aspect of the total form. Julie Taymor japancreatingart Theater is far superior to film in poetry, in abstract poetry. Julie Taymor abstracttheaterfilm I have directed good actors and have gone through the process which is more detailed in theater in a way. You have to get people to stay for two or three hours in a performance. They need more talk and rehearsal than in films. Julie Taymor threetwopeople Creativity is a gift, but if you don't know how to use it you might not even know it's there. There's a lot of creativity in the air, but it's meaningless if you're not open to receiving it. Julie Taymor receivingcreativityair That's my policy - to be positive, to just hope that something will happen. If you start with all your fears, your receptivity is for the negative. Julie Taymor being-positivepolicynegative Limitations force you to find the essence of what you want to say, which is one of the most important things to know for an artist. Julie Taymor importantartistessence I use cinematic things in a theatrical way on stage, and in film I use theatrical techniques in a cinematic way. Julie Taymor techniqueuseway In a way, artists are shamans, facilitators who take what's there, channel it through themselves, then put it out there for people to appreciate. Julie Taymor appreciateartistpeople
