I make my living by shooting ad-films, and, in fact, that's how I began my career.
Rajiv Menon
When you are shooting over a period of six months, you tend to forget how dark or bright it was. And when you are using different technologies, having a look book helps during the final grading of the film. So you can design what the film is going to look like even before the colouring process begins.
Some films survive long in theatres, and some stay longer in people's minds.
You have to keep the audience glued by hook or crook.
Dangal' worked because it dealt with the universal emotion behind the father and daughter.
I was witness to a beautiful relationship between cricketer Anil Kumble and a boy suffering from muscular dystrophy. Moved, I wrote 'Spin' - a small film about a cricketer and a spastic boy. But I couldn't find backing.
Ashok Mehta was the man who brought contrast and lighting back to mainstream Hindi film cinematography.
Information is available freely on the Net, but what's missing is passion. And only a teacher can impart that passion and deep desire for excellence every day. Moreover, a classroom environment helps overcome certain psychological aspects, including inferiority complex.
Films take us into an entirely different world, and that's why we must ensure that our long shots do justice.
I think I have underperformed as a filmmaker.
In Berkley, they have academic studies on all genres of music including rock and jazz, but in India, we don't have serious academic research and studies on film music; it is such an interesting area of study.
I don't have any romantic notions about villages.
Sarvam'... has no gloss that you associate with my earlier work.
Looks are not important when it comes to acting.
I like fractured characters with human follies.
I am very much open to doing cinematography for any talented filmmaker, if the script is good.
I'm usually known for films that look beautiful and attractive, probably because I am a cinematographer too.
Minsara Kanavu' was a hit in the South, but not in the North.
Good acting is confused with good dialogue delivery. Acting is about all about performance, and the way we interpret and understand the character that we bring alive onscreen.
Nothing prepares you for shooting in the sea. Some days the sea is choppy, some days the waves are long. When there is no wind, it's fantastic to shoot, but your brain is burning because of the heat. You are shooting hand-held and taking a crane on a boat, which is risky since you can get toppled over.
Developing aesthetic sense is vital for actors. They must understand that there is no small role, only small actors. A good actor will do the smallest role to perfection, and be recognised.
Everyone thinks I am rich, I have a plush office, I make advertisements and travel - but only I know the kinds of problems I face.
The actor should understand the script and come prepared to play the role. At the same time, they should be flexible enough to take the director's input and portray his vision.
Music is one field where your caste and religion is not important. People accept you so long as you can move them. It is a medium that allows you to fly beyond your caste.
When '36 Chowringhee Lane' was released in 1981, I was a student of the Film and Television Institute of Tamil Nadu. Everyone who had seen the film was very impressed with its flawless direction and acting. But we, cinematography students, were stunned by the visual style, which was truly international.
It is how you approach the role given to you, and how you relate to that character and then how you adapt and gel into that role which makes you a good actor.
When I was in the 12th standard itself, I decided to join the Adyar Film Institute and study photography. I specifically chose photography because I see photography as an applied science. There is an artistic element also in it. If you perfect your scientific element, you can attain certain quality.
The film industry is moving towards digital technology.
Ashok Mehta did not go to any institute. He did not carry the baggage of formal education.
Three years at the institute had not taught me as much as two weeks on the sets of 'Susman.'
When in school, I was interested in many things other than studies.
I used to be a reasonably good student.
I love telling stories. But I believe that nobody could teach you to direct a movie.
I think directing a film is like a woman going through labour. After she goes through the labour pain and delivers her first baby, she says she will not going to have another baby. Then, when she sees the child growing up, she decides to have one more child!
I have a brother and we lost our father when I was 15. And that was a big emotional upheaval in my life.
You no more have to come to the city and access a laboratory to make a film. If you have a DSLR and a reasonably powerful laptop, you could be making films anywhere.
Film music is always given a step-motherly treatment though it is the most popular form of music.
For example, Taj Mahal is the first thing which comes to the minds of many foreigners who visit India, and how Eiffel Tower in Paris, but there is lot more to every country.
Filmmaking is a language where you empathise with human situations. Unless you have empathy for characters, you shouldn't be a filmmaker.
Cinema has to move people.
My films are musically inclined.
I can't write about NRI romances.
I do what I feel like doing.
You know, writing isn't easy. It's tedious. Ideas have a gestation period, and after a while, it becomes difficult.
Rajarathinam Pillai was a performing genius and a crusader. His was a shining mind, prone to excesses of temper and his life can be seen as a continuous struggle for recognition.
I like to shoot feature films because it's about capturing emotions... words like guilt, hurt, betrayal.
We have to create images that remain in people's memory because a film is judged by what they have already seen. You are trying to create an image that is unique and you have to employ all the resources available to you.
When an actor constructs reality, it has to be riveting and entertaining. There has to be an emotional connect with the audience.
I believe that films are meant for entertainment, but in that process, you have the possibility to think about what kind of entertainment you're giving to audiences.
If the human story in 'STM' is relatable, it will work.
