There's nothing quite like the idea of failing spectacularly to excite a film maker

It's difficult working with very rich actors, because inevitably they become a little spoilt, and the managers and agents tend to control things more than is healthy.

I've spent my life hearing people trying to apologize for music.

When I do the music, I make the musicians listen to what's happening in the film. That way they treat the dialogue as if it was a singer.

I started using film as part of live theatre performance - what used to be called performance art - and I became intrigued by film.

I made my first film on 16mm. Then I began using 35mm.Then I began working in Hollywood. And I began to really understand how films were made by professionals. I have to say I wasn't very impressed.

In a way, the history of jazz's development is a small mirror of classical music's development through the centuries. Now jazz is a living form of original music, while classical music has gotten to the end of its cycle in terms of exploring its form.