Claire Denis

“When I was doing 'Beau Travail,' I listened a lot to Benjamin Britten.”

“I have no relationship to the French bourgeoisie. I don't like connecting with them.”

“The cinema should be human and be part of people's lives; it should focus on ordinary existences in sometimes extraordinary situations and places. That is what really motivates me.”

“I think a film noir demands a beginning and an end.”

“My mother's father was from Brazil - a painter, and not a famous one - and was always broke. But he was a free spirit, a great grandfather.”

“In Kurosawa's films, the tragedy is that this strong man was crushed by corruption or mistrust at the end.”

“You can spend your whole life in France without ever thinking about the Legion.”

“When you have countries that have a lot of minerals and diamonds and oil and are in business with companies from all over the world - but these companies don't share, really, their profits -...”

“Inside the family, you can go from hate to passivity to extreme love within the same hour.”

“Often, women as little girls are sent off on a track for them to live a perfect life and be a perfect woman. Not for boys, who can be themselves with their mood and their temper.”

“I reproach so many things about my family, but on the other hand, I kept asking them to be my family.”

“I am not at all interested in theories about cinema. I am only interested in images and people and sound. I am really a very simple person.”

“I hate the victimization of women, always.”