It gets dangerous when you start allowing people to validate your work.

I respect the audience's intelligence a lot, and that's why I don't try to go for the lowest common denominator.

You gotta make your own way. You gotta find a way. You gotta get it done. It's hard. It's tough. That's what I tell my students every day in class. I've been very fortunate. Some people might call me a hardhead, but I'm not going to let other people dictate to me who I should be or the stories I should tell. That doesn't register with me.

I've always tried to - when I've been able to - support young artists, no matter what medium.

America doesn't have the moral right to tell other people what to do. To say the whole world has to fall into line is you-know-what. I hope more people will rise up.

'She's Gotta Have It' was shot in twelve days and two six-day weeks.

I don't see any negativity with what Brad Pitt is doing with his Make It Right Foundation, or what Sean Penn is trying to do in Haiti.