James Wan famous quotes

Last updated: Sep 5, 2024

I'm a big movie fan, and I want to make movies in every genre. I want to make my romantic comedy one day.
-- James Wan

#One Day #Fans #Want
For me and my films, I want my audience to experience cinema in its full glory. It's not just visual, it's audio as well. It's emotional, and I want you to be engaged with not just the scene but with the characters.
-- James Wan

#Character #Emotional #Cinema
For me, the sound design and the musical score is a big part of what makes scary movies work.
-- James Wan

#Design #Scary #Musical
We think craft is important, and the irony has always been that horror may be disregarded by critics, but often they are the best-made movies you're going to find in terms of craft. You can't scare people if they see the seams.
-- James Wan

#Thinking #People #Important
Not many people realize this, but I'm a really squeamish guy. When I watch other horror films that are really over-the-top with their blood and guts, I cannot watch it. So if my threshold to something onscreen is at that level, you can imagine how my threshold is to all the pain and suffering that is happening in the real world.
-- James Wan

#Pain #Real #Blood
What makes horror movies work is the idea that "oh my God, what would I do if I were in that situation? How would I get out of that alive? What would I do if I saw the door to my closet creaking open in the middle of the night and a doll on a tricycle comes riding out?"
-- James Wan

#Night #Doors #Ideas
I think you can say a lot with the movement of your camera but you can also say a lot by keeping it still.
-- James Wan

#Thinking #Cameras #Movement
You know music and sound design can be very powerful with how you use it but also the absence of sound can say a lot as well.
-- James Wan

#Powerful #Design #Sound
I think storytelling is storytelling. It doesn't matter what format it's shot on.
-- James Wan

#Thinking #Matter #Storytelling
When you're watching an action movie, you experience an action movie more outside of the aquarium, you're out of the aquarium looking in at all the swimming fish that are in there. Whereas horror films and thrillers are designed to put the audience into that box, into that aquarium.
-- James Wan

#Swimming #Aquariums #Action
I think the financial restraint really pushes me as a director to be more creative with the way I shoot the film.
-- James Wan

#Thinking #Creative #Directors
The whole wide world scares me! Seriously. I think what happens in our world is so much more frightening than anything I can come up with in my movies.
-- James Wan

#Thinking #Scare #World
For me and my films I want my audience to experience cinema in its full glory. It's not just visual, it's audio as well. It's emotional and I want you to be engaged with not just the scene but with the characters.
-- James Wan

#Character #Emotional #Cinema
I've always said that with a lot of the horror franchises that I've started, it's like directing a pilot. I come in, I direct the first movie and all these directors come in and direct all the sequels after me and hey have to kind of retain the look, the tone, and the characters.
-- James Wan

#Character #Looks #Hey
I always believe your instinct is the most correct instinct.
-- James Wan

#Believe #Instinct #Always Believe
Designing the technical aspects of my camera movement for me is very important. I want the camera to be a big part in telling the story as well, like what I really believe in with all the films I make.
-- James Wan

#Believe #Design #Important
There's really no reason to rehash something that you've already seen.
-- James Wan

#Reason #No Reason
I realized that my camera work could help me in a lot of ways to put the audience in the driver's seat, so to speak, to get them in there with the action, and to get them as close and be as intimate with what was going on on-screen as possible.
-- James Wan

#Cameras #Way #Helping
We're not just horror fans. We're film fans. I love action films. I want to do action films. I want to do romantic comedies. I love all this stuff. So, if I find the good material, I'll do it.
-- James Wan

#Fans #Want #Stuff
I think you cannot be too complacent. I think that's dangerous and you cannot take anything for granted.
-- James Wan

#Thinking #Granted #Dangerous
I always try to better myself with every movie I make. I don't take anything sitting back and so I try to learn from every film I make and carry that onto the next movie because I think it's important as a filmmaker to keep growing with each film and I think I am growing with each movie. And I think it's important because you need to strive to better yourself.
-- James Wan

#Thinking #Important #Trying
One of the things I tried to do is to kind of talk my actors through the scene, but at the same time let them know how I plan to shoot the film and just give them an insight into the way I'm thinking, so that when they're acting out their scene, they can kind of see it in their minds' eyes.
-- James Wan

#Eye #Thinking #Giving
Your actors need to trust you as a director, but normally, I think you just need to have an open communication between the actors and the director. I think the director needs to really paint his or her vision to the cast and let them know the kind of mood that he or she is making. I think that's very important.
-- James Wan

#Communication #Thinking #Vision
We're terrified of shocks but we're so fascinated by it at the same time. We're terrified of spiders and reptiles and all of that but at the same time you're fascinated by them - you want to go to the zoo and go behind the glass and look at all these creepy crawlies! It's the same thing with the supernatural. I think we're very frightened by it.
-- James Wan

#Thinking #Creepy
If your franchise has been around for awhile you have to find ways to keep it fresh.
-- James Wan

#Way #Has Beens #Ifs
I think that's my favorite thing about making scary movies, watching people watch them. When my films come out, I like to cinema hop and know what moments are coming up, I pop my head in and watch people squirm or slide down in their seats. I like that sadism!
-- James Wan

#Thinking #People #Scary
When you work with an actor and then you discover new things that are better, I think you gotta be free to be able to go with the new things that you're finding. I think that's very important. I have a strong idea when I go to shoot a movie but I also love to discover things when I'm on set as well.
-- James Wan

#Strong #Thinking #Ideas

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