"Shawshank is one of those films that, every time it comes on television, I watch it — even though I own the DVD, the VHS, the Blu-ray. Every time it’s on. I can?t explain why. It’s a good script, it’s a good story; it’s a story about the human spirit and redemption… it’s beautiful. That scene when the opera plays, and everybody stops for that moment and you just hear Morgan Freeman’s voice come in, that kills me. It’s really great."

"It could be any Curtis Mayfield record, really. When I hear his voice, it just lifts me up. His music puts me in the space to create. It’s quite rare, that mix of fragility and toughness. It’s there from day one with a song like It’s Alright by the Impressions, and it’s there on his late music too, this incredible ability to sweeten the message with beautiful melodies. He’s a complete inspiration as a songwriter, musician and arranger. Curtis lives!"

"We will switch gears completely, and I will say the original Sabrina with Audrey Hepburn, which really influenced my style. Just driving up with her trunks of luggage on the back of the car… it was just such a beautiful film. The clothing, I just was like, whoa. The elegance of it, the time period, the black-and-whiteness of it, the cast. It’s just one of those classic films that kind of etched a place in my aesthetics of style and elegance."

"Hey, storytellers: if you’re adapting a classic, this is film school 101. Never before or since (though I love Black Swan for trying) has anyone achieved what Powell and Pressburger did here, in terms of character and theme. Add the beautiful work of Jack Cardiff and you achieve something of which I, personally, can only hope to replicate a glimmer as a visual storyteller in comics and animation: Technicolor atmosphere that conveys immediate emotion and also has a lasting impact."

"This film has a certain kind of dynamic and rhythm that’s unique to Paolo Sorrentino as a director. It’s constantly a sensation, and there are some images in the film that I will never forget—for example, the facial expression of a nun when she’s climbing up the stairs. It’s really, really beautiful. It’s image porn when it comes to Rome, a city that I don’t like to be in that much but that I like to look at in films."

"A group of teenagers, led by Cliff Richard, rally together to stop a theatre being demolished. They succeed by putting on a show there. The Young Ones is a gorgeous fantasy, so optimistic and beautiful, about the potential of pop music for young people. It made me want to join a youth theatre, which I did a few years later, and it introduced the six-year-old me to the thrill of both pop music and theatre. They’re still thrilling me today."

"Tokyo Story is a beautiful document of a specific time, place, and culture. The drama is grounded and driven by what it meant to take care of a family in postwar Japan; the narrative is firmly rooted in history. At the same time, the story transcends this context so easily. We see ourselves in this family. We relate to their flaws, joys, and fears. Watching this film gives us the opportunity to reflect on our own lives; it is a gift."

"Two great films about the search for meaning in the face of death. The scenes in which the main characters come to terms with their existence—the scene on the swing in the park with the snow falling in Ikiru, and the final scene in Wild Strawberries, where the main character calls across time to his parents and the past—are so powerful and beautiful. It saddens me that most modern-day films don’t approach this level of art and emotion."

"Two great films about the search for meaning in the face of death. The scenes in which the main characters come to terms with their existence—the scene on the swing in the park with the snow falling in Ikiru, and the final scene in Wild Strawberries, where the main character calls across time to his parents and the past—are so powerful and beautiful. It saddens me that most modern-day films don’t approach this level of art and emotion."

"Badlands is one of those movies that you wish you had made yourself. Sissy Spacek and Martin Sheen are incredible, and while the plot is simple, the film is a deep portrait not only of its characters but of a generation. It’s full of mystery, and the use of voice-over is so beautiful. I keep coming back to it before preproduction on my films because there’s something brutally poetic about it that I just adore. It triggers my wish to make things."