Lars von Trier

“When I was younger, I was fascinated by David Bowie, for example. he had created an entire myth around himself. It was as important as his music.”

“Actors need bricks to play with, and in fact we rejected all the improvised fragments we had made without a plan. Improvisation without a plan is like tennis without tennis balls.”

“My films are about ideals that clash with the world. Every time it's a man in the lead, they have forgotten about the ideals. And every time it's a woman in the lead, they take the ideals al...”

“That's the great thing about entering a convent: There are things that you simply can't do, so you don't have to worry about them.”

“I sit there pouring out my woes year after year, coming up with one enormity after another about my mother and the way she let me down; but it doesn't make me any the less fearful.”

“When I was in film school, it was said that all good films were characterised by some form of humour.”

“I would say that I am a poor Christian; I'm not a believer. It was this idea very early in my life that life on Earth, nature or man could not be a creation of a merciful God.”

“Far be it from me to force anyone into either chess or dressage, but if you choose to do so yourself, in my opinion there is only one way: follow the rules.”

“Political correctness kills discussion.”

“If one devalues rationality, the world tends to fall apart.”