Mani Ratnam Quotes

I definitely think independent film is very exciting, and you get to sometimes take bigger risks. So that's always a challenge and something that I look forward to.

The reach of big-budget films is bigger, but I have always loved doing films that I believe in.

it's difficult in Hollywood to be allowed to try anything. It's all a terrible compromise. There is no time for art. All that matters is what they call box office.

Independent films are where you really get to cut your teeth and have some fun and do the things that mainstream Hollywood doesn't want to do.

The independent-minded movies - it's always an uphill battle to get them made and seen. You do what you can, and go out there after and try to tell people about it, but at the end of the day, that's all you can do.

You've got these big studio films and these tiny independent films now. It's very much either/or. With the independent films, it's always a beautiful risk - it might never be seen. With the studio films, you're conforming to the formula of what's always been in place.

It's dangerous to think too much about how a film will be received. Filmmaking is not a popularity contest. Some would disagree.

I don't make movies because I think audiences will want to go see them.

I think feature film can be quite conservative, because you have to now get audiences to come out, and it's quite a hard thing to do. Of course, television can be conservative too.

It's a harder time to make original, less conventional movies. But God, we need them!

The cool thing about those small-budget movies is that there's a tremendous amount of freedom the filmmakers have since there's less money at stake.

My first film out of the gate was financially so successful that I guess, being in Hollywood, you get kind of put into a certain box.

I think you do independent movies because you're looking to cut away from commercial movies.

When I did 'Memento,' independent film was where all the really good stuff was.

The success of 'Deadpool' and 'Logan' have bolstered our confidence to make edgy, more daring, provocative bold movies that audiences will embrace.

With independent films, you again get to work with new directors and experiment too.

People are fed up of formula films, and we are getting new space to experiment.

I would never make a film because I think it's going to be a box-office success.

I'm not afraid of a big studio film; I trust my instincts. But for me, it's not really about box office. It's about looking back on your work and not having to apologize for it.

When I met Ram Charan, he told me not to worry about how much my films make. After 'Magadheera,' people began expecting big things from him. So he did films to keep up to that expectation. He advised me to not fall into that trap.

I don't make films for critics, and I'm not particularly interested in what they have to say, and they don't have a bearing on my audiences.

I gravitate towards anything that feels challenging to me, that feels like it's gonna be saying something a bit different and new to the audience, and anything that moves me. I do movies that I would want to see, so I don't necessarily gravitate towards any genre in particular. I just try and do the best work I can and also try to keep the audience guessing.

My working life is me doing what I want to do. This is that. I've made movies that people don't go to see.

I can't do movies where you start thinking "Where's the commercial appeal? How are we going to market this?" It's not that kind of party.

You want the film to be critically successful - you certainly want the film to be financially successful so that you can...well, because that's how movies like this are made, you know, they need to make money. But as a director, you can only make the movie that you want to make.