I'm not a great fan of very short films.

The Labour election of 1945 was a tremendous victory for democratic ownership of the economy.

If you have a society where a large section believe they are not part of the political discourse, that is a situation for trouble.

People talk about Thatcherism all the time. I felt it was important to record the memories of those almost written out of history who upheld the spirit of '45.

I think the Norweigan model of municipalities owning cinemas and being programmed by people who know about films is a good one.

The Holocaust is as real a historical event as World War II itself and not to be challenged.

The worst thing about being a freelance film director is that you're scrambling around Soho with a briefcase, looking for somewhere to make phone calls. That was my position for 10 years.

Well, I think by and large, certainly in terms of cinema, American culture dominates our cinema, mainly in the films that are shown in the multiplexes but also in the way that it has a magnetic effect on British films.

Every four or five films we've made a film that has gone on TV first. It's quite nice to tap into the TV audience, but it is nice to see it on the big screen too.

I challenge the idea that films about rich people are escapism and films about working class people are dour and sad. I find the opposite's the case.