Jonathan Nolan
Jonathan Nolan
Jonathan "Jonah" Nolanis a British-American screenwriter, television producer, director and author. He is the creator of the crime drama series Person of Interest. He has co-written several screenplays with his elder brother, filmmaker Christopher Nolan, including The Dark Knight, The Dark Knight Rises, and Interstellar, and his short story "Memento Mori" was the basis for Memento...
NationalityBritish
ProfessionWriter
years trying looks
I've worked in the movie business for many, many years, where you have lots of days and lots of money. It's really mainly about time. We always try to conceive all of our action from a place of, "What can we shoot that looks fantastic?," rather than trying to do the kinds of thing that you would be able to accomplish in a movie.
mind trying use
I was struck by - Einstein's a fascinating figure who didn't have any instruments that he used, he didn't use telescopes, he used his mind to try to understand the universe.
over-you trying matter
Time is an absurdity. An abstraction. The only thing that matters is this moment. This moment a million times over. You have to trust me. If this moment is repeated enough, if you keep trying — and you have to keep trying — eventually you will come across the next item on your list.
With films, you get to develop a set of characters, and then, at the end of the film, you have to throw them away.
approaches both change combine develop mythology relationships shows stories whose
I've always loved shows that combine both approaches - that have a mythology and a set of characters, whose stories develop and change, and where the relationships evolve and fracture.
fan god huge joss love work
To me, Joss Whedon is a god. I'm just a huge fan of his work; I love his work on TV.
grounded point possible science somewhere
When you're doing a film called 'Interstellar,' at some point - the idea was to be grounded in the science as much as possible - but with a name like 'Interstellar,' you had better go somewhere big and bold.
believe good
I believe we should be good custodians of the Earth.
along develop eight grew shows stories
I grew up watching 'Magnum, P.I.' and shows like that, where you could develop a character over eight seasons, with stories along the way.
basement brother cinema commitment frozen iceland illinois love matt matthew pure three
One of the things I love about working with my brother is that there's a commitment there - an unwavering commitment. From our basement in Illinois when I was three years old to Iceland on a frozen glacier with Matthew McConaughey and Matt Damon in spacesuits - there's a commitment to the pure spectacle, the pure cinema of it.
earliest films super watching
My earliest memories are making little Super 8 films - or watching my brother make stop-motion space spectaculars.
love
I love crime procedurals. I always have. I love cop shows.
When you have a smartphone, the things that it can do are kind of ridiculous and terrifying.
certain children connection crafted disaster horizon love nature profound push side utmost
We have been crafted by disaster to push out to the utmost horizon to find out what's on the other side of it. That's in our nature. What's also in our nature is a profound love and connection to our children and our communities. Those two things are very much at conflict with one another at certain moments.