Civilization is like a thin layer of ice upon a deep ocean of chaos and darkness.

You should bear in mind that almost all my documentaries are feature films in disguise.

Spirit of immersion and curiosity and awe and participation is something which Timothy Treadwell and I have in common.

You must live life in its very elementary forms. The Mexicans have a very nice word for it: pura vida. It doesn't mean just purity of life, but the raw, stark-naked quality of life. And that's what makes young people more into a filmmaker than academia.

My crew [on "Fitzcarraldo" filming] actually said, "We have filmed it from outside on the rocks of the shore. We should be on board [the ship]," and I said it's dangerous, I only do it if you cinematographer Thomas Mauch and you actor [Klaus] Kinski decide on your own.

I do not believe in the Cinema verite. Sometimes a really good lie is better than any truth.

If you do not understand how finances are functioning, you are in a very precarious situation, at least concerning long-term survival.