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Charlie Kaufman Biography

Charlie Kaufman

Charles Stuart Kaufman (born November 19, 1958) is an American screenwriter, producer, director, and lyricist. He wrote the films Being John Malkovich (1999), Adaptation (2002), and Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind (2004). He made his directorial debut with Synecdoche, New York (2008), which was also well-received; film critic Roger Ebert dubbed it "the best movie of the decade" in 2009. It was followed by Anomalisa (2015).

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Charlie Kaufman Quotes

Writing is a journey into the unknown.

Adaptation, Journey, Unknown, Writing

The world needs you. It doesn't need you at a party having read a book about how to appear smart at parties - these books exist, and they're tempting - but resist falling into that trap. The world needs you at the party starting real conversations, saying, 'I don't know,' and being kind.

Appear, Fall, Needs, Real, Saying, Smart

There is a lot of management going on with directing. Maybe that was the biggest surprise-just the amount of tending that I had to do. The different personalities. . . It's not my way, and it's never been my function before as a writer. I tend to be a moody and somewhat withdrawn person, and I felt very clearly that I had to throw that away because that wasn't allowed here - there were other people who were going to be filling that role. Sometimes it became exhausting, especially around the eleventh hour of the day.

People, Personality, Different, Became, Exhausting, Hour

There really is only one ending to any story. Human life ends in death. Until then, it keeps going and gets complicated and there's loss. Everything involves loss; every relationship ends in one way or another.

Involves, Loss, Stories, Story, Way

I think I've had pretty good experiences for the most part with the people who have directed my screenplays.

Directed, Good, People, Screenplays, Think, Thinking

Meet me in Montauk.

Meet, Montauk

Scary is time passing and sickness and dying and regret and isolation and loneliness and relationship problems - as opposed to a guy in a hockey mask, which didn't seem that scary.

Hockey, Loneliness, Opposed, Problems, Regret, Scary

I hate a movie that will end by telling you that the first thing you should do is learn to love yourself. That is so insulting and condescending, and so meaningless. My characters don't learn to love each other or themselves.

Character, Hate, Insulting, Love, Love Yourself, Telling

We're all one thing, like cells in a body. 'Cept we can't see the body. The way fish can't see the ocean. And so we envy each other. Hurt each other. Hate each other. How silly is that? A heart cell hating a lung cell.

Cell, Hate, Hating, Hurt, Ocean, Silly

I'm not a celebrity. I'm intentionally and defiantly not a celebrity. I don't have any interest in it. I don't have any talent for it. I keep my personal life out of my public life as cleanly as I can.

Cleanliness, Defiantly, Intentionally, Interest, Talent

I think that people have expectations of themselves and other people that are based on these fictions that are presented to them as the way human life and relationships could be, in some sort of weird, ideal world, but they never are. So you're constantly being shown this garbage and you can't get there.

Expectations, Human, Life, People, Presented, Thinking

I just try to be honest, because I think that's part of my job description as a writer.

Description, Jobs, Think, Thinking, Trying, Writer

I'm trying to tell a story and do it truthfully.

Stories, Story, Tell, Truthfully, Trying

When I'm writing, I'm trying to immerse myself in the chaos of an emotional experience, rather than separate myself from it and look back at it from a distance with clarity and tell it as a story. Because that's how life is lived, you know?

Back, Clarity, Distance, Emotional, Writing

I choose to write characters from the inside because I feel like that's the way I'm gonna get the most honest version of them.

Character, Choose, Gonna, Version, Way, Writing

She was nice. Nice is good.

Eternal Sunshine, Good, Nice

I tend to not only read reviews, but also every little stupid thing online. It's a very bad idea, and there's a lot of angry people in the world. And it's weird to absorb all that weirdness.

Bad, Idea, Ideas, People, Stupid

Story ideas, but it's also musing on stuff that I'm thinking about. This leads me to this and this leads me to this. They're kind of random and haphazard. Often I can't find anything. Somehow, by doing that, even though I don't necessarily refer to them in a specific way, I have some sort of architecture in my head.

Ideas, Kind, Specific, Stories, Story, Thinking

My point of view comes more from the literature I've read and the comedy of the era. When I was a kid, coming across National Lampoon Magazine, that was a big thing. I suddenly felt like there were other people that felt the way I did, and there was a way of expressing and communicating this worldview.

Felt, Kid, Kids, People, Views, Worldview

I like for people to figure things out for themselves. It's not like I have the right answer, but if I have a visceral reaction to something, I'm sure that other people will, too.

Answers, Figure, Like, People, Reactions, Right

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