The fear of old age is something that one feels when they're younger. Once you get to being old, you're already there, so you don't even think about it anymore.

There are contemporary artists that I hate with all my heart. These are provocateurs that are without feeling. Where is the real emotion?

Wasting time is something that people do or feel all over the world, not just in Italy.

I think cinema has this beautiful component. It's a universal language.

I usually don't say anything to the actors. It works better for me because when they come to the set, they are at the same time scared and excited because they are not well aware of what will happen.

The way I work with my cinematographer is not based on general principles, but the ideas are triggered by the locations where we shoot.

There's one thing that I like about Rome that was stated by Napoleon: that from sublime to pathetic is only one step away. And in Rome there's a constant shifting between sublime and pathetic.