Smash Notes

What Example Does Ben Affleck Want His Kids to See?

at 1:06:30

From the episode: Ben Affleck on “Animals,” Matt Damon, and His Family

Ben Affleck says what really stays with him, and what he hopes his children take from his life and career, is that their dad did not give up and did not hold himself above anybody else. He was successful in direct correlation to the hard work he put in. Sometimes you work hard and still do not get there. Doing the work anyway leaves an esteem that no one can take away.

A happy life follows from your own sense of what counts as success and failure. It does not need someone else to say the work was great, and it does not need the approval of the whole world. He loves Animals, wants people to see it, and thinks they will like it. He makes movies mindful of the audience, their time, and their experience, and he can take appropriate pride in work he wanted to do without over-inflating himself. His kids keep him humble.

The most important example he can set is apologizing when he makes a mistake. He tells his children they are right, he is really sorry, and the mistake was his fault. A relationship with somebody who cannot apologize or admit when they have done something wrong is almost impossible to keep meaningful. He wants his kids to be able to say that when they read something as wrong, thoughtless, or unwise, they may be right.

Grokipedia·Ben Affleck

Sunday Sitdown with Willie Geist · Ben Affleck on “Animals,” Matt Damon, and His Family · at 1:06:30 · ·Transcript

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