"A film without a message is just a waste of time," quoted by G.W. Bitzer in "Billy Bitzer: His Story." "Move these 10,000 horses a trifle to the right, and that mob out there three feet forward." Instructions Griffith allegedly gave to his assistants during the making of one of his epics, quoted by Josef von Sternberg in his memoir "Fun in a Chinese Laundry." "There will never be talking pictures." "Talkies, squeakies, moanies, songies, squawkies... Just give them ten years to develop and you're going to see the greatest artistic medium the world has known." "Actors should never be important. Only directors should have power and place." "Everything went downhill after Lillian [Gish] left me." Said that silent films were associated with "the good old American faculty of wanting to be shown things." "I made them see, didn't I? I changed everything." "Remember how small the world was before I came along. I brought it all to life: I moved the whole world onto a 20-foot screen." "Movies are written in sand: applauded today, forgotten tomorrow." "Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences? What art? What science?"