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

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.

Being exposed to the Ryan Murphy machine, it is very much a personal extension of him. So, if I can learn from that and tell longer stories that are quite personal, and balance that out with features, then that would be the ultimate dream.

I was only driven to be the best and it was very disheartening sometimes that it took me so long to start getting my voice heard. That certainly started with television, but it was never because of where I came from, it was because people saw something in me.

There are the relationships you make. All of the friends I made in grad school are the closest ones that I have.

The fun of directing for me, other than working with the actors, is trying to extract those ideas that you have in your head and make them real.

If someone already knows you from being in the trenches with you on this TV schedules, and then you have a little bit more time, it's a treat for them, as well, because they can give you more.