"The fact is I'm not making a film in order to draw pictures or make images about Iran."

"I tend to jot down moments, lines, interactions that don't really make any sense. I try and explain these scattered notes to my close friends, and they become more and more logical. I see screenwriting as a bit like a math equation which I have to solve."

"I gained a great deal from the period during which I worked in theater and I value those things a great deal."

"Iranian filmmakers are not passive. They fight whenever they can, as creative expression means a lot to them. The restrictions and censorship in Iran are a bit like the British weather: one day it's sunny, the next day it's raining. You just have to hope you walk out into the sunshine."

"I feel that I, and the people under my command, tried to use all the traditional methods of recruiting agents which were also used by other intelligence services adopting also means like pressure, money, sex - but that did not characterize my service."

"Nature is at work. Character and destiny are her handiwork. She gives us love and hate, jealousy and reverence. All that is ours is the power to choose which impulse we shall follow."

"The greatest deception men suffer is from their own opinions. Let this simple maxim guide your daily deeds — an essential principle for the reflective life."

"I decided to make 'Captain America' because I realized I wasn't doing the film because it terrified me. You can't make decisions based on fear."