Conrad Hall

“There is a kind of beauty in imperfection.”

“The closer the source of light is to a subject, the broader the beams are.”

“It's important to know that if you are dealing with shadows.”

“With today's fast films, you can light the way your eye sees the scene. You can abuse the film and create subtleties in contrast with light and exposure, diffusion and filters. That's what makes it an art.”

“I hope I'm still shooting when I'm 80.”

“I don't think of myself as a director or writer. I think of myself as a filmmaker.”

“Painting and writing are solitary arts.”

“I was very happy sitting alone at a dining room table, writing a script.”

“There are infinite shadings of light and shadows and colors... it's an extraordinarily subtle language. Figuring out how to speak that language is a lifetime job.”

“The audience has to understand that if the film is going to have any meaning for them. If they are going to empathize with the characters, they have to visualize the process of concentration involved in making every move.”

“I think one of the reasons people quit is because they're afraid they won't be able to get better and better; that they have to come to a zenith of some kind.”

“That's why I like fast film. It gives you more freedom to light more naturally.”

“Every once in a while, when the audience is expecting to see one thing, you have to show them something else.”

“I want to tell a story and shape it all the way through to the end.”

“Cinematography is infinite in its possibilities... much more so than music or language.”

“Contrast is what makes photography interesting.”

“It is also difficult to articulate the subtleties in cinema, because there aren't words or metaphors which describe many of the emotions you are attempting to evoke.”

“My first semester, I got a D in creative writing.”