The one-word cinema wasn't possible for me anymore. I'd hit a wall, a dead end. Therefore I thought I'd turn back. Abbas Kiarostami More Quotes by Abbas Kiarostami More Quotes From Abbas Kiarostami I don't generally derive my stories from novels. I try to turn into film things I have felt or experienced. Abbas Kiarostami film stories trying It is a very important film, Life And Nothing More, in that what was filmed was inspired by a journey I had made just three days after an earthquake. And I speak not only of the film itself but also of the experience of being in that place, where only three days before 50,000 people had died. Abbas Kiarostami journey earthquakes people I'm still very grateful to digital cameras in general, but I didn't have this feeling with the RED one. Abbas Kiarostami cameras grateful feelings I really haven't seen The Report in a long time. I don't have a copy, but I'll have to see it again. I think it would be good to put both these men next to each other. Abbas Kiarostami men long thinking I saw this French woman, this English man in Italy. It was a film [Certified Copy] I knew well, but I had already seen it, and I was familiar with it, and I had no feeling of anxiety or responsibility toward it. Abbas Kiarostami anxiety responsibility men The film [Close Up] made itself, to a large extent. The characters involved were very real, I wasn't directing the actors so much as being directed by them. So it was a very particular film. Abbas Kiarostami actors real character I am still very surprised that I managed to make that film [Close Up]. When I actually look back on that film, I really feel that I was not the director but instead just a member of the audience. Abbas Kiarostami film directors looks The [Iranian] government grapples with more important issues and we can maybe say that these films don't really exist for them. It's not about whether they like it or don't; it's just not very important to them. Abbas Kiarostami issues government important My car is my best friend. My office. My home. My location. I have a very intimate sense when I am in a car with someone next to me. We're in the most comfortable seats because we're not facing each other, but sitting side by side. Abbas Kiarostami car office home When we start shooting I don't have rehearsals with characters at all. So, rather than pulling them towards myself, I travel closer to them; it's very much closer to the real person than anything I try to create. So I give them something but I also take from them. Abbas Kiarostami real giving character We don't look at each other [in the car], but instead do so only when we want to. We're allowed to look around without appearing rude. We have a big screen in front of us and side views. Silence doesn't seem heavy or difficult. Abbas Kiarostami car silence views Unfortunately, cinema critics are very few in America, 400-500 people, but there are more critics of Iran. Abbas Kiarostami iran america people As film-makers, it is very important for us to find common ground between cultures, and maybe that's less the case for politicians who benefit more from finding the conflicts and differences between us. Abbas Kiarostami differences important culture The Iranian government as a whole has no relationship with my films. They're not particularly interested, perhaps this kind of cinema is not very interesting to them. Abbas Kiarostami cinema government interesting I'm not sure that my films show the reality of life in Iran; we show different aspects of life. Iran is a very extensive and expansive place, and sometimes, even for us who live there, some of the realities are very hard to comprehend. Abbas Kiarostami iran different reality In order to be able to cooperate with a child, you have to come down to below their level in order to communicate with them. Actors are also like children. Abbas Kiarostami actors order children When I met Akira Kurosawa in Japan, one question he asked me was, "How did you actually make the children act the way they do? I do have children in my films but I find that I reduce and reduce their presence until I have to get rid of them because there's no way that I can direct them." My own thought is that one is very grand, like an emperor on a horse, and it's very hard for a child to relate to that. In order to be able to cooperate with a child, you have to come down to below their level in order to communicate with them. Abbas Kiarostami japan children way I don't like reverse-angle shots - I find them very fake and very untruthful to the viewer. Abbas Kiarostami shots angle fake Having an international voice is not really about whether we speak Persian or any other language. Abbas Kiarostami voice language speak I don't have very complete scripts for my films. I have a general outline and a character in my mind, and I make no notes until I find the character who's in my mind in reality. Abbas Kiarostami mind character reality
