You've noticed that same joke told by two different people, once works, and the other time doesn't, simply because how the person edits it. The silences, the pauses, what they neglect, what they emphasize - all of this matters.

I really enjoy listening to stories. I remember them and keep them in my mind.

This concept that you refer to in Buddhism is something I've been nurtured with through the history of my country for 700, 800 years - Persian poets and philosophers haven't said anything different with regard to experiencing life in the moment, as opposed to the belief of permanence.

Cinema seats make people lazy. They expect to be given all the information. But for me, question marks are the punctuation of life.

I only make notes, I don't write dialogues in full. And the notes are very much based on my knowledge of person.

In this type of cinema, whether working with actors or non-actors, as much as you do direct them, if you allow yourself to be directed by them, then the end result will be much more pleasing. The real and individual strengths of the actors is allowed to be expressed and is something that does affect the audience very deeply.

In my mind, there isn't as much of a distinction between documentary and fiction as there is between a good movie and a bad one.