Christopher Nolan

Christopher Edward Nolan CBE (born 30 July 1970, in London, England) is a British-American film director, producer, and screenwriter. His films have grossed more than US$5billion worldwide, and have garnered 11 Academy Awards from 36 nominations. Among his films are Following, Memento, Insomnia, Batman Begins, The Prestige, The Dark Knight, Inception, Interstellar and ''Dunkirk. He won an Academy Award for Best Director for his latest film Oppenheimer'' (2023), which also won Best Picture.

Quotes

 * When you think of the visual style, when you think of the visual language of a film there tends to be a natural separation of the visual style and the narrative elements, but with the great, whether it is Stanley Kubrick, Terrence Malick or Hitchcock what you're seeing is inseparable, a vital relationship between the images and the story he's telling.
 * Chistopher Nolan and David Fincher featurette on Movieweb


 * What I try to do is write from the inside out. I really try to jump into the world of the film and the characters, try to imagine myself in that world rather than imagining it as a film I’m watching onscreen. Sometimes, that means I’m discovering things the way the audience will, with character and story. Other times, you’re plotting it out with diagrams and taking a very objective view. Writing, for me, is a combination of both. You take an objective approach at times to get you through things, and you take a subjective approach at other times, and that allows you to find an emotional experience for the audience.
 * Chris Nolan Q&A About 'Inception'


 * With The Dark Knight you had to strike a balance of familiarity with the audience. It is a sequel, and they want familiar elements, things they liked from the first film. But you always have to be very aware that the audience is extremely ruthless in its demand for newness, novelty and freshness. At script stage, we really tried to thrash that out—are we striking that right balance?
 * Chris Nolan Q&A About 'Inception'


 * The ultimate embodiment of Bruce Wayne. He has exactly the balance of darkness and light that we were looking for.
 * On Christian Bale playing the lead role in Batman Begins, in StudioBriefing (12 September 2003)