“If Martin Scorsese calls, I am available. And then there the ones, well, you can just run down the list - any of those Oscar-nominated films, they have amazing directors across the board.”

“Film in the 20th century, it's the American art form, like jazz.”

“I had never done anything with blue screen before, or prosthetics, or anything like that. Lord of the Rings was like stepping into a videogame for me. It was another world completely. But, to be honest, I basically did it so that I could have the ears. I thought they would really work with my bare head.Working with Martin Scorsese was an absolute minute-by-minute education without him ever being grandiose about it.”

“The fact that food plays such an important part in my films has everything to do with my family.”

“It did remind me of something out of Greek mythology - the richest king who gets everything he wants, but ultimately his family has a curse on it from the Gods.”

“Food tells you everything about the way people live and who they are.”

“If your mother cooks Italian food, why should you go to a restaurant?”

“I am a filmmaker. That is all I've ever been. You know, Martin Scorsese makes films about the mob. And I make movies about food.”

“Very often I've known people who wouldn't say a word to each other, but they'd go to see movies together and experience life that way.”

“Cinema is a matter of what's in the frame and what's out.”

“My whole life has been movies and religion. That's it. Nothing else.”

“I've seen many, many movies over the years, and there are only a few that suddenly inspire you so much that you want to continue to make films.”

“I am a filmmaker. That is all I've ever been. You know, Martin Scorsese makes films about the mob. And I make movies about food.”

“I do know that some Buddhists are able to attain peace of mind.”