Harvey Weinstein

All my life, I have loved and been inspired by French cinema, and as a studio head it has been my pride and joy to have the ability to bring movies to audiences around the world.

When people ask me what makes movies great, it’s the material.

My movies are important on an economic basis, on an artistic basis.

All my movies got screwed up because of my personality.

Over the years with movies, I’ve given directors notes.

Audiences want to see intelligent movies.

When we talk about Oscars, it’s almost as a symbol of excellence, and the American public and the worldwide public accept that symbol. So, a movie like ‘The Artist’ that costs $14 million, has to go out and compete with movies that cost $140 million. How does David deal with Goliath?

I’ve been involved with violent movies, and then I’ve also said at a certain point, ‘I can’t take it anymore. Please cut it.’ You know, you’ve got to respect the filmmaker, and it’s a really tough issue.

I think I took my eye off the ball. From about 2005, 2006, 2007, I was out of it. I thought I could oversee movies and have it done for me, so to speak.

Last year, when ‘Black Swan,’ ‘True Grit’ and ‘King’s Speech’ all grossed over $100 million, it gave studios and independent financiers the confidence to make daring movies and not do the same old you-know-what.