Dede Gardner

“Why tell a story that people have seen 900 times? That's not interesting artistically.”

“I think what I do for a living is a privilege, so at the very least, I'd like to think it can be a good time.”

“I am pretty much a nerd, and I love to read.”

“We are a very youth-driven culture, and I don't really know why because wisdom tends to come with more years, not fewer.”

“A lot of movies come out and you think, 'Couldn't you have just tried a little harder?'”

“We have privilege in our hands as storytellers. We need to tell stories that reflect our world.”

“I treasure the dark hours in a theatre. But I don't think that, if a film does not reach the theatre, it is, therefore, not a film.”

“I always loved movies as a child, and I love story. I got my degree in English. Film and story seemed, to me, the vector of the movie business. I really didn't know what 'the film business' meant, but I decided I wanted to be in it.”

“I got into the movie business because of 'Days of Heaven.'”

“Everyone has a salary. Everyone has hopes and dreams for where they can invest their money. Everyone wants to do the best they can with it, and they don't want to be subjected to any sort of predatory lending.”

“If you believe that movies are alive and talking back to you, there's a point at which it's very obvious they're not finished.”

“We are being held hostage by the people we elect.”

“Not to age myself, but I remember vividly 'Schoolhouse Rock!' and entrust my grammar to it.”

“There are not grades of racism. There's racism.”