15 Baz Luhrmann Quotes to INSPIRE Writers & Filmmakers

A distinctive filmmaker that has little parallel in contemporary cinema, Baz Luhrmann has been wowing audiences since the early 1990s. The Australian filmmaker is known for his distinctive style. And therefore, it seems a no-brainer to dig into 15 Baz Luhrmann quotes to see what this idiosyncratic visionary has to say about the creative process.

Strictly Baz

After starting out in the Sydney theater scene, Baz Luhrmann made his film directorial debut in 1992 with Strictly Ballroom. A story set in the competitive world of ballroom dancing, it was an adaptation of a previous play Luhrmann had worked on. And it made quite an impression on the film world, with Luhrmann’s signature style on display right from the off.

This would lead Luhrmann to Hollywood and a movie that many still hold up as his best, Romeo + Juliet. It helped that he had one of the great movie stars of the day to drive the film. But it was largely Luhrmann’s theatricality, musicality and flair that made the film so successful and popular. And this resonates still to this day. The film has an appreciation of the story’s theatrical origins and updates them in a brilliantly dynamic and cinematic manner.

This mix of theatricality and cinematic instinct would come to define Luhrmann’s work; from the anarchic camp of Moulin Rouge to the epic sweep of Australia to the glamor of The Great Gatsby.

He’s a director that embraces many forms of storytelling; literature, theater, opera and music. And they all come together in his films to make for a unique and highly cinematic experience. This is no more so the case in Elvis, a film which captures the myth and legend of a cultural figure as huge as Elvis Presley.

So how does such a distinctive director approach his work? And what does he have to say on the creative process, the industry and life in general? We take a look with 15 fascinating Baz Luhrmann quotes.