Jason Blum

“Ryan Murphy and I share our love of horror and musicals. I think those things somehow go together.”

“You know how on movie sets there are specific chairs for each person? I hate that. We don't have names on our chairs. We have five chairs. Anyone can sit on them. I think the idea of names on chairs on a set is terrible. It's so dumb. So we got rid of that.”

“My easiest judgment for a script is 'do I want to keep reading it?'”

“Halloween was definitely the biggest holiday when I was a kid. We started making our Halloween costumes in August. Me and my mom. My mom was a single mom; it was just her and I.”

“In big movies, interests are not aligned between those above the line and the financier, because above the line gets paid whether the movie works or not. The financier only makes money if the movie works, and that fundamentally sets up a contentious relationship.”

“It is hard to make a movie funny and scary at the same time.”

“I really love 'Poltergeist.' I think that's a great, terrific movie. I did really love the first 'Friday the 13th.' I thought that was such a crazy movie.”

“My favorite thing about horror is that it attracts this great group of nuts, of which I include myself in. I was always kind of an oddball. I collected my fingernails, for instance.”

“I liked stuff like 'Halloween,' but I wasn't a horror fanatic until I was in my 30s and then made 'Paranormal Activity.' Now, having a company, I can't imagine doing anything else. But it took me a while to find my love for it.”

“It's really hard to make an original movie of any kind that succeeds in the theatrical market place, in the wide release market place.”

“Rotten Tomatoes is the best thing that happened to the movie business because it means you have to make good movies.”

“When I was a kid, I really loved game shows. For whatever reason, I was fascinated with them and watched them a ton.”

“Personally, I love books, and I am interested in the notion that stories are told better in different media depending on the story.”

“With most other genres, you need movie stars. With horror, you just need a story.”

“I think when people are scared, they like to see movies where the scares are not real.”

“When I was working for Miramax, before Sundance, a videotape of 'The Blair Witch Project' - of the full, completed movie - went to a lot of the buyers. And so we all saw it before the festival, and I passed, a bunch of people passed... Then I watched the movie marching toward success, and was reminded by my bosses what a dope I was.”

“It's harder and harder to scare people, and filmmakers are aware of that, and they're making the movies better, and I think they feel more original, which I always like.”

“One of the things is that you need to space out scary movies.”

“We make a lot of movies, and we make them fast.”

“I love South By because people are more relaxed here, and people are a little more off guard. They say things and react more freely than Sundance or Cannes. I love the feel of this festival.”