I went out to Bali, and I cast all of these supporting roles. I love that stuff. I just love actors. And then, Ryan Murphy asked me to direct second unit for him on Eat Pray Love. I was already booked on something else, but I joined them later. And then, I wrote him a thank you email and I got no response. I was like, "Okay, that's it." We didn't interact much on set either.

As a director who loves the camera you learn a lot.

I started in the P.A. world and craft service and storyboard artist, with the eye on the prize of directing. When I was directing second unit on Babel, I ended up casting most of the unknown parts. In these weird circles, I was this guy who found these kids on the streets.

To me film school was film history because there weren't a lot of books out there that I had access to.

I still think that being thrown in a very competitive environment where you really have to see what you are made of - certainly when you come out of nowhere - was good for me.

I'm a fan of musicals from great masters, and I was able to have an opportunity to express myself in musical numbers with Glee.

Ryan Murphy just gives new people a shot, and it takes a lot of confidence and generosity to do that.