Biographie

Often begins his films with segments taken from the middle or end of the story (Raging Bull (1980), Les Affranchis (1990), Casino (1995) and Le Loup de Wall Street (2013)).

[slow-motion] Makes use of slow motion techniques (e.g., Mean Streets (1973), Taxi Driver (1976), Raging Bull (1980), Le Loup de Wall Street (2013)).

Often uses diegetic music (i.e., source of music is visible on-screen)

Often uses long tracking shots (His most famous is from Les Affranchis (1990), following Henry Hill and his future wife Karen through the basement of the Copacabana night-club and ending up at a newly prepared table). A notoriously difficult shot to perfect, he has been dubbed by some as the "King of the Tracking Shot".

Often uses freeze frames (Raging Bull (1980), Les Affranchis (1990), Les Infiltrés (2006), Le Loup de Wall Street (2013)).

Taught both Oliver Stone and Spike Lee at New York University.

He took a cameo in his film Taxi Driver (1976) (as a man about to kill his wife) only because the actor who was supposed to play the role was sick on the day the scene was to be shot. Says he is generally uncomfortable in front of the camera.

Admits he made Hugo Cabret (2011) so he would have at least one film his daughter could watch.

Has famously collaborated with Robert De Niro in eight films. Scorsese has said that his creative collaboration with De Niro is very deep and that they can often understand each other without even talking. Their collaboration has had many dry spells (including recently), but Scorsese says he shows almost every script he writes or considers directing to De Niro to see what the actor's thoughts on them are even when De Niro ultimately has no involvement in the film.

Says he was happy with the fact that it took so long for him to win Best Director, because if he had won it earlier, it would have affected his directing and films.

The only person who has the right attitude about boxing in the movies for me was Buster Keaton.

[on sports] Anything with a ball, no good.

Because of the movies I make, people get nervous, because they think of me as difficult and angry. I am difficult and angry, but they don't expect a sense of humor. And the only thing that gets me through is a sense of humor.

[on Raging Bull (1980)] Robert De Niro wanted to make this film. Not me. I don't understand anything about boxing. For me, it's like a physical game of chess.

It seems to me that any sensible person must see that violence does not change the world and if it does, then only temporarily.