Nicholas Ray

The imagination is a pretty precious source of protection.

I never try to show an actor what to do or what to say. He has to find out for himself. The role of the director is to guide him to that state, and then to implement it.

As a human being, Joan Crawford is a great actress.

I think for any actor, for the roles they deeply, truly want? They always have to audition for them.

'Russian Ark,' I adore - I almost cried at the end of that film, it's so beautiful.

If you're going to go to an audition, you don't want to go in trying to force yourself into some archetype that has been thought up by a director and translated by a casting director.