Lasse Hallstrom

I was always attracted by the European way of life, but I am deeply Swedish.

A film that is bleached tends to have a more realistic quality.

I am always more interested in performance and character depiction, and my direction says as much.

My father would tell anyone who would listen that this dentist thing he was doing was not his passion; cinematography was.

My father was an amateur filmmaker who shot 8mm color documentaries.

My films do have characters who have trouble escaping the world around them.

Many of the comedies I had made in Sweden were slightly based on semi-autobiographical experiences, so adapting novels was a very different experience.

ABBA: The Movie; I got a lot of grief for working on that.

I made all their videos, apart from the last two, so if you ever see an Abba video on TV then it's my stuff.

My key interest in choosing scripts is character-driven stories, because there are so many stories that sacrifice character for plot.

I imagined that it might be awkward to talk to your wife about her performance, so going into it I was a little nervous. But doing it was actually a wonderfully inspiring experience.

I'm on this diet where you're supposed to eat only fish and meat.

I feel the need to work with my wife, Lena Olin, again.

Cinema has become a global economy, totally international.

I always try to preserve my cinematographic style, even while I work in the US. I wish to always be European.

I discovered the 7th art at home when I was kid, through Charlie Chaplin's movies and those of my father who shot documentaries. He was my biggest influence. So I took his camera and started shooting.

I really want to have actors contribute their own ideas, with phrasings and ideas on all levels.

I think I avoid stepping into sentimentality by trying to be as truthful as possible with performances.

I always need a couple of highlights to really spark the passion for a project.

I love involving actors at all levels - and they have to know that I want to hear their contributions, with dialogue, with story suggestions, with script changes, whatever.

I love improvising.

I love mixing amateurs and professionals.

It's just, for me, the natural standard: a woman should be able to decide over her own body.

I can't go back and label myself as an outcast because I was a pretty well-adjusted kid, but I can certainly relate to the feeling of being an outsider.

To see my wife getting inspired from my notes and thoughts, going in the direction I wanted, and have her surprise me with wonderful choices was a real treat.