Uber C.E.O. Travis Kalanick has become a controversial figure in both technology and public policy, taking down mayors who oppose his company’s mission and attempting to globally redefine the transportation industry. As it turns out, Kalanick found inspiration in another controversial figure: Woody Allen.

According to Re/code, Kalanick said that Allen’s 2008 film Vicky Cristina Barcelona—the one starring Penélope Cruz, Javier Bardem, Rebecca Hall, and Scarlett Johansson—prompted him to jump back into start-ups after taking a break from building companies—he founded his first company, an S.A.T. prep course, while a freshman at U.C.L.A.—to invest in them.

“I thought, ‘That guy’s old, but he’s still got it,’” Kalanick said of the director. “He still has his art. He still has the ability to relate. And he’s still sharing with the world. I said, ‘You know what? Let’s try again.’”

Their styles are a bit different: Allen can come off as non-confrontational and borderline acquiescent, whereas “pugnacious” is a word commonly used to refer to Kalanick and his company’s aggressive tactics.

The Uber founder was speaking at an event at U.C.L.A.’s Royce Hall, where he was on hand to accept the Entrepreneurial Achievement Award from the U.C.L.A. Venture Capital Fund.

Related: Read Kara Swisher’s Vanity Fair Profile of Kalanick

Allen has directed more than 50 movies, and won four Oscars on 24 nominations. He has been accused of sexually abusing his adopted daughter, Dylan Farrow, who recounted the alleged incident in a 2013 profile of Allen’s ex-wife, Mia Farrow, in Vanity Fair.

Vicky Cristina Barcelona has settled into a comfortable 81 percent rating on Rotten Tomatoes. It won the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture – Comedy or Musical, and earned Cruz the Oscar for best supporting actress.