The very meaninglessness of life forces man to create his own meaning. If it can be written or thought, it can be filmed.

Know what it is the emotional statement to convey, and use taste and judgement to help the actors give their best possible performance.

Be suspicious of people who have, or crave, power. Never, ever go near power. Don't become friends with anyone who has real power. It's dangerous.

There's something in the human personality which resents things that are clear, and conversely, something which is attracted to puzzles, enigmas, and allegories.

You're free to speculate as you wish about the philosophical and allegorical meaning of the film—and such speculation is one indication that it has succeeded in gripping the audience at a deep level—but I don't want to spell out a verbal road map for 2001 that every viewer will feel obligated to pursue or else fear he's missed the point.

Never say no to an idea - you never know how that idea will ignite another idea.

Don't do anything. Just tolerate me and let me suffer, knowing how you feel.