Cinema is the most challenging art form that you as an artist can create. It's easier to paint a painting because you're very alone. You just have the canvas in front of you and then you do stuff. I'm not saying it's easy to paint, but it's a solitary thing. Whereas movies combine so many different things from pre-production to production, sound design, production designing, leading, organizing, while still being creative.
I love Atlanta. It's a great city with great crews there.
In the end, you as a director, of course, are the captain on the ship. You have to say, "Well, we're sailing to the left and not to the right." But, you always have to listen to everyone, because I'm not always right and other people have great ideas, too. I think that makes great moviemaking.
All my favorite movies are American movies since I was a kid.
In Europe, where we have all these different forms of financing and cultural funds and systems like that, it's a good mixture of supporting artists to make movies. But, on the other side, everyone still wants to make money making movies. Again, even in the European film business, it's expensive to make movies.
I think every filmmaker in Europe would be lying if they didn't say one day they just wanted to make a movie here in Hollywood or at least try it. It's very different from European filmmaking, because here it's like a real industry. It's very much about money and making money, which I think is fine, because it's very expensive to make movies.
I think it's very hard for a woman to be treated as a person and not just as a woman who tries to become a politician.
I always give one actor an emotion to make it very easy so he or she can root to it.
It doesn't matter if you work with an Oscar winner or if you work with an unknown actor. There is always a collaboration between the director and the actors, and you always have to listen as the actors have to listen to you as a director.
In America, people really love movies here and it's part of the culture. Even in Germany, still sometimes, the theater is always bigger than movies. It's more art. Movies are more popcorn. Here, movies are really an art form.
I was born in Switzerland. Everyone thinks I'm Swiss, but I'm actually German. I'm from Germany.
If you're undercover for two or three years, I think you lose your private life.
You always face a bunch of hands trying to stop you from working.
Each shooting day is a big challenge, but it's also fun.
