Larry Charles Quotes

I don't storyboard, and I don't really shot list. I let the shots be determined by how the actors and I figure out the blocking in a scene, and then from there, we cover it.

With videos, I find I'm better off if I'm playing a role inside of it. The more you do it, the more you understand it.

The challenge of film is making it right there at that moment, and then you get to move on.

Once you're on the set and shooting, it's all just cinema. You have actors and cameras.

When you go to set, they just go, 'OK, let's see what you guys do!' The camera moves around what you initially feel.

I like a lot of takes. I just go on until the actors get it right.

I enjoy making films, but my heart is in the stage. Every night you have to be on. There's no second take.

I love working with great actors.

We have a great time on that show, and we enjoy one another's company on stage and off. And sitcoms don't have bad schedules. We started out working five days a week, but now we're down to three.

In a way, as an actor, you do all the preparation and then you want to forget it and just play the scene. As a director, you can't forget it because somebody will remind you that you forgot something. But you can know your plan well enough that you still have a certain amount of freedom.

Acting is all I know; being on a set is all I know.

I want to have a scene with Maggie Smith.

That's the only way to do it. Just like an actor. You can get a great performance if you do a bunch of takes and edit it. You find the moments and string them together.

I enjoy working with actors so much and having the chance to be surprised by them.

Actors have to entertain viewers, be it on TV or in movies.

When I call 'Action,' I love to be surprised. And the actors I've been fortunate enough to work with always surprise me in the best ways.

But you really - I always think that a director has got to adapt to whatever the needs of the actor are. You know, so if you take someone like Eddie Murphy, who is not a big fan of rehearsal. You know he comes out of stand-up. He comes - it's all about capturing the moment - in the moment, you know.

So I find the fascination, the love, the incredible skill and everything to do with acting, writing plays, and doing them, just darling. Lovely. I love actors.

Theatre is the principal job of an actor. An actor's job is to tell a story to someone in a room. TV and film can be great and I really love doing it, but it is a different way of telling a story.

Theater to me is acting but it's more real on film.

There are a whole bunch of roles where people say, 'Oh, you're playing yourself.' I guess it's kind of a compliment. Or people say, 'Oh, man, you just roll out of bed and do that.' The work is to make it look effortless. That's the hard part.

I don't like improvising on camera, particularly, but very often, a scene will not be working, and you rehearse it once or twice, and you realize something's missing. So I'll play with it until it makes sense.

I love actors. That's my bread and butter, and I got to work with some amazing ones on '12 Years'.

Filming is like a house, you have to feel comfortable in it.

The best thing about working on a movie with dancers is that we would get to have dance parties all the time!