The best ones are when Aaron is making fun of himself and other writers…he will sometimes make fun of other writer’s work when he’s angry or frustrated. This show has some of the most funny scenes where he’s getting pissed off at his own material.
He was the recipient of the first Academy Award for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 73rd Academy Awards in 2009 for The Social Network, which also won him the Academy Award for Best Original Screenplay. His first play, A Few Good Men, was performed Off-Broadway in 1991, and made him famous.
He’s most famous for being a writer on The West Wing and The Social Network. He was also an executive producer on The West Wing and won his first Academy Award for his screenplay for The Social Network.
As much as I liked Sorkin’s work on The West Wing, I don’t think any of us is as smart as him–or as funny.
50 Aaron Sorkin Quotes That He Actually Said
If there are two people in a room, they are likely to be talking about something and be in disagreement. That is often the beginning of a story.
You can improve the world, but you can’t do it individually. You can only really improve the world by being a good person, and then others will do the same and the world will improve.
When asked about his writing process, Aaron Sorkin said that you have to watch it like you’re watching a play. You can’t glance at it and expect to understand what’s going on.
Every artist’s job is to captivate but if we stumble into truth, we are very lucky.
The US is the most important country in the world. Anyone would die for that country. But I want to earn my citizenship.
Authors are just like athletes, they get better with age.
“If you feel that strongly about something, you have an obligation to try
and change my mind.”
You’re not allowed to change their minds. You’re allowed to tell them if you think their opinion is wrong and why. You may try to change their minds, but you may not succeed.
When he isn’t working on his own HBO series, Sorkin directs the occasional episode of The Newsroom. He seems to love working on the show, even if it means taking on a showrunner role that is not his own.
10th of 50 Aaron Sorkin Quotes
I feel like Sorkin had a point when he said that all drugs are great except for when they kill you. I’m sure there are a number of drugs that are extremely helpful but ultimately fatal.
That’s a bread roll that’s as big as Lake Tahoe.
Aaron Sorkin was asked how closely he works with the network during production of The West Wing. He said the scripts are written very close to the bone. He can’t tell how closely the network works with him or how close the scripts come to the bone.
From the opening credits of The Newsroom, Aaron Sorkin says that he grew up in the theatre and worked in theatre before becoming a successful writer.
People who are always afraid of doing things don’t have the same spirit and excitement about life. I’m not saying you should do things without thinking about the consequences, but try to find ways to keep your feet on the ground.
People are more interested in hearing about a topic than about facts. They have an interest. They are also interested in hearing what other people think about the topic, so just as a side note, I believe that what I said is true. I’m just stating my opinion.
I’m not a smart person, but some people around me think I’m smart. That’s why I don’t like people who think they’re smarter than the people they’re around [or who think they talk better than those people].
Some actors can play with the boys. (If only we knew which ones, we could make a fortune.) And there aren’t that many tour-de-force roles for women.
A news organization has a different responsibility. It is not the responsibility of a news organization to tell a story in a sophisticated manner. That is the responsibility of a writer. When I’m reading a news story or watching a news report, I expect the story to be told properly and effectively, and I expect that it will be based on some form of fact.
What you do is write what you think your people want in a movie. And I think that his advice, in a way, sounds like something that most writers would say. What you try to do is write what you like, and your people will want a story like that, because it’s like a good meal.
20th of 50 Aaron Sorkin Quotes
When I was young, I was a math and science person. Since I’ve been in this career for a while, I’ve become addicted to music. So it’s really important to me to play music during the week.
> Sometimes you need to be rude and mean to people just to get through to them.
Film can only go as far as the audience will go. Film is a business and business is hard. I think it’s a little silly that people are so concerned, and so quick to panic about the future.
Government should be a place where people can come together and everyone is taken cared of. Every person and the government work together to improve things.
I don’t believe that there are two sides to every argument. I think that the truth is the center, and that to accept that the media and the Internet have abandoned that truth is what’s troubling to me.
Well, we live in a world with people who are racist and have guns. It’s up to us to guard the walls.
I think writers are more interested in making the show that they want to make than getting what they want. They don’t have the money to do all the TV they want. They are really just thinking about and interested in the show, I think they try to make it as good as they can. I think the show comes out the way they want it to and they don’t worry about what the audience is doing with it. They are really just trying to do what they feel is the most entertaining show they can and hope the audience feels the same way.
The notion of elite is a bad one. It is used by elitists.
Aaron Sorkin talks about his experience writing The Newsroom and the process of writing in general. He talks about the struggle of making a great creative product and the struggle of trying to deliver a project. He said that he has to be very careful with his creative process. He said that it is tough but very rewarding.
You’re going to fall down and the world doesn’t care as long as you’re getting down one less than the amount of times you get back up.
In some instances, the original quote is clearly the most sensible, but the paraphrase works well, too. In this next example, the original quote is less relevant and the paraphrase is more relevant.
30th of 50 Aaron Sorkin Quotes
This is exactly what we’re doing. Socializing with text messages, Facebook, Instagram and Snapchats. It’s our form of private, safe and intimate conversation.
The decisions that we make in life are about the choices we make. If we don’t show up, then those decisions never get made.
If you can only see the world’s problems as your own, and nothing else is in the way of you getting what you want, then you will either be in conflict, or you will be trying to control other people.
Aaron Sorkin says that he would love for people to think that he is as quick, clever, smart, and heroic as the characters he writes.
When asked what advice he would have for someone wanting to make a show like him he gave this advice. Make sure you have all your ideas all mapped out before you start the process.
The thing is you have to write for yourself, not for anybody else. You have to find the truth – the truth of your own sensibility.
40th of 50 Aaron Sorkin Quotes
There is a growing sense that we are all to blame for the state of affairs, and the least we can do is change the way we behave.
Sometimes, trying to guess what the consumer wants and meeting their demands is a bad recipe for getting something good.
If your character is just not going anywhere, then you can take them to the wall and make them jump a little harder. This can often be a game-changer.
I don’t think you can disagree with the sentiment. HBO’s content is so good because it’s made for a very specific audience. HBO is so committed to that audience that the advertisers don’t matter as much. HBO needs the audience to be successful, not the advertisers.
Aaron Sorkin gets bummed when his own writing is criticized. He’s a good writer, but sometimes his movies are bad and people criticize him. He’s upset about this, so he goes crazy and starts making up lies.
For years, we were told that reality TV was the future” of entertainment. But after watching hours and hours of it, I can affirm that reality TV is the future of entertainment.
Every time the government comes down to your neighborhood to demand your money, it’s an opportunity to talk about how the government doesn’t care about you. And with a bit of creativity, and a generous helping of irony, you’ll be able to make an entertaining speech.
You know, one of the things I like about this world, of TV and film and the world in general, is those issues are terribly complicated – not nearly as black and white as we’re led to believe.
It’s a pretty good quote, but I thought I’d use it anyway.
I like this friend you have named
so I am going to use it
with you for the rest of this presentation.
The idea of watching a film or pick up a newspaper once in a while, that’s a little out of my comfort zone.
Summary
These quotes are part of an interview between Aaron Sorkin and Entertainment Weekly. They talk about the first season of “The Newsroom,” the writing process, and how to be a good boss.