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Roger Deakins Quotes

Powerful Roger Deakins for Daily Growth

About Roger Deakins

Roger Deakins, born on February 10, 1949, in Torquay, Devon, England, is a globally acclaimed cinematographer known for his visually stunning work in film. Deakins' passion for photography ignited at an early age, inspired by the landscapes of his coastal hometown and the films he watched on television. Deakins began his career in the late 1970s as a still photographer, transitioning to cinematography in the 1980s. His big break came with the British comedy-drama film "A Private Function" (1984), which earned him his first BAFTA nomination for Best Cinematography. Throughout the 1990s, Deakins collaborated with renowned directors such as Sam Raimi ("The Quick and the Dead," 1995), Coen Brothers ("Fargo," 1996, and "The Man Who Wasn't There," 2001), and Ang Lee ("Ride with the Devil," 1999). These collaborations showcased his versatility in various genres, from Westerns to noir to period dramas. Deakins' work truly gained international recognition with "No Country for Old Men" (2007) and "True Grit" (2010), both directed by the Coen Brothers. His breathtaking cinematography in these films earned him his first Academy Award nomination, a milestone he achieved ten times before finally winning the Oscar for Best Cinematography in 2017 for "Blade Runner 2049." Deakins' work is characterized by his ability to create unique visual stories, using light and color to evoke emotion and enhance narrative. His collaborations with directors like Denis Villeneuve ("Sicario," 2015, and "Dune," 2021) continue to push the boundaries of cinematography. Roger Deakins' legacy lies in his ability to elevate the visual language of film, making him one of the most influential cinematographers of our time.

Interpretations of Popular Quotes

"Light is everything."

Roger Deakins' quote, "Light is everything," highlights the crucial role that light plays in cinematography. It suggests that without proper use and manipulation of light, a scene may lack depth, emotion, or even visual coherence. Light can set the mood, guide the audience's attention, and help tell the story in a film, making it an essential tool for cinematographers like Deakins to convey their artistic vision.

"A camera can't see the way we see. It's a tool that you have to learn to manipulate."

Roger Deakins, a renowned cinematographer, suggests that while cameras are tools designed to mimic human vision, they cannot truly replicate it. Mastering a camera requires understanding its limitations and learning how to control it to bring the intended vision to life. In other words, using a camera is not merely a passive act; it's an art form that demands skillful manipulation to translate thoughts and emotions into striking visual narratives.

"I don't like to overlight a scene. I like to let the scene breathe."

Roger Deakins, a renowned cinematographer, values a subtle approach in lighting scenes for films. Instead of relying heavily on artificial light sources, he prefers to let the scene's natural environment or ambiance dictate its illumination. By doing so, he allows the scene to develop organically and breathe with an authenticity that enhances the viewer's immersion in the story being told.

"You have to know your tools so well that they disappear into the service of what you want to do."

This quote emphasizes the importance of mastering one's tools in order to achieve artistic vision effortlessly. A great artist, like Roger Deakins (a renowned cinematographer), understands their tools – whether it's a camera or software – to such an extent that they become transparent, allowing the focus to be solely on the artistry and creativity being expressed. This mastery empowers artists to freely explore their ideas without technical limitations, ultimately resulting in outstanding work where the technique serves the artistic intent.

"The camera is an extension of myself, and I use it to communicate my feelings about a story or subject."

This quote suggests that for Roger Deakins, the camera isn't just a tool but an integral part of his being. He employs it as a means to express his emotions towards a particular narrative or topic, using visual language to convey the intended message effectively.

I like simplicity. I like using natural sources. I like images to look natural - as though somebody sitting in a room by a lamp is being lit by that lamp.

- Roger Deakins

Natural, Using, Images, Though

I'd done a big movie that I wasn't happy with, and I was moving out of London when I got approached about Barton Fink, because my agent said the brothers were in London. We hit it off immediately, and suddenly I found myself on the way to America!

- Roger Deakins

London, Big, Agent, Moving Out

The little town I was brought up in, I'd go to the film society to these very extreme sorts of films that you wouldn't normally see in the movie houses. But I never dreamed that I would get into the position to be shooting movies equivalent to the ones I loved as a kid.

- Roger Deakins

Very, Equivalent, Brought, Little Town

I think technology has advanced so far now that there are some cameras on the market that give film a run for its money. It's all about flexibility in capturing images, and digital or film, it doesn't matter to me.

- Roger Deakins

Some, I Think, Advanced, Capturing

I feel every shot, every camera move, every frame, and the way you frame something and the choice of lens, I see all those things are really important on every shot.

- Roger Deakins

Feel, I See, Move, Lens

There are some sequences in films that I think work filmicly, that stand out to me, but that's much more to do with the staging and the cutting and the mood of the thing as a sequence, the way everything comes together.

- Roger Deakins

Think, Some, Films, Sequence

I don't approach films purely in context of genre.

- Roger Deakins

Genre, Films, Purely, Context

I don't really believe in the mystery of cinematography - what happens in the camera is what the cinematographers create and all that nonsense - I want the director to see what I'm trying to do.

- Roger Deakins

Believe, Want, Director, Camera

I shot film with the Coen brothers on 'Hail, Caesar!' That's fine. I'm sentimental about film; I've shot film for forty years or something.

- Roger Deakins

Film, Brothers, About, Sentimental

I did a few documentaries as co-director and cameraman. I started off shooting a film about the war in Rhodesia. Then I did a film about an 'around the world' yacht race with a friend, and we spent nine months on a yacht. The film was about how people get on in confined spaces under extreme stress.

- Roger Deakins

Nine, Nine Months, Confined, Spaces

I love reading different scripts and helping create different looks, different environments. Sometimes you go to meet a director over a particular script, and they'll say, 'I want you to do this because I want it to look like Shawshank,' and I'm like, 'Well, I'm not that interested in doing that again.'

- Roger Deakins

Love, Doing, Environments, Scripts

The biggest challenge of any cinematographer is making the imagery fit together of a piece: that the whole film has a unity to it, and actually, that a shot doesn't stand out.

- Roger Deakins

Film, Making, Whole, Cinematographer

People confuse 'pretty' with good cinematography.

- Roger Deakins

People, Pretty, Confuse, Cinematography

Some of the smallest things on a smaller film, to me, are greater achievements than on a big film when you have the resources and the time and everything else.

- Roger Deakins

Big, Some, Smaller, Everything Else

I love the writing of Walter Tevis and what he views as the possibilities of science rather than science fiction.

- Roger Deakins

Love, Possibilities, Rather, Science Fiction

There's nothing worse than an ostentatious shot. Or some lighting that draws attention to itself, and you might go, 'Oh, wow, that's spectacular.' Or that spectacular shot, a big crane move, or something.

- Roger Deakins

Big, Some, Move, Wow

I do think observing is important in learning.

- Roger Deakins

Learning, Think, Important, Observing

Some of what I consider my best work, and some of the best films that I've ever worked on, kind of disappear without a trace. There's no accounting for it. Something connects, or something doesn't.

- Roger Deakins

Work, Some, Films, Accounting

My dad was a builder, so I didn't have any connection to the arts at all. I never really considered film as a career, but I knew I didn't want to be a builder.

- Roger Deakins

Career, Dad, Considered, Builder

I think that lens flares can work really well under certain circumstances. Personally, I am trying to get rid of them most of the time. I don't like artifacts that draw attention to the surface of the image.

- Roger Deakins

Get, I Think, Rid, Lens

My time in documentaries was very educating, in terms of life experience as well as the filmmaking side of it.

- Roger Deakins

Very, Side, Educating, Documentaries

There's so many films from around the world, I emphasize, that are so beautifully photographed, but they don't get the recognition.

- Roger Deakins

Films, Photographed, Many, Beautifully

If I bring anything to the Coen Brothers' films, it's my ability to change tack and create a different mood from film to film.

- Roger Deakins

Mood, Brothers, Films, Coen

If you shoot with a billion cameras, then there's no perspective. You want to use one shot at a time, so it's better to discover what that is before you shoot, rather than trying to make something in the cutting room, and then it just becomes generic.

- Roger Deakins

Rather, Before, Use, Shoot

I've always painted or drawn pictures or taken still photographs; now I shoot movies. It's just about making images, really.

- Roger Deakins

Always, Making, Still, Shoot

I came up, I suppose, a fairly traditional way. I went to art college. I always wanted to be a stills photographer, really, when I was younger, and I briefly worked as a stills photographer.

- Roger Deakins

Art, College, Always, I Came

I couldn't imagine 'True Grit' in 3D. I think the idea is sort of absurd.

- Roger Deakins

Think, I Think, Imagine, Absurd

I've always been a fan of Westerns, but my favorite kind of Westerns mostly were Sam Peckinpah's Westerns, and they mainly took place in the West that was changing.

- Roger Deakins

Always, Been, Took, West

I don't do that virtual reality stuff. I'm not even into 3D, actually... I've been offered it. I just don't want to.

- Roger Deakins

Want, Been, Virtual, Offered

When I left art college, I was a still photographer for a year.

- Roger Deakins

Art, College, Still, Photographer

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