The second time I was banned was when I directed a film called Xiu Xiu. I was banned for three years from China.

I left home at 14 and I have friends who joined the navy and the army performing troops at 9. I know people [like that]. It's a very straightforward character.

You never want to be pigeonholed into something and have people think, "Oh, that's the guy we call for this particular thing."

For the first four years of my studying in the U.S., I couldn't go home for two reasons. One is I was afraid that if I left my student visa may not hold and I wouldn't be able to come back to continue. Second, there was this big outrage in China that I didn't know how to face the public.

I think one of my biggest lessons so far in life is that hard work really does pay off. It may not culminate in the way you expected it to, but I have found that when I really put my head down and apply myself, I often get a good result.

The second time I was banned was when I directed a film called Xiu Xiu. I was banned for three years from China.

When I am confronted with emotional pain, I try to allow myself the time to properly grieve. We are caring, emotional beings, and attempting to suppress pain will only cause it to negatively manifest itself in other ways.