Russia itself is an extremely complex country, and sometimes I feel like all of that comes back to haunt me. I can see why so many Russian writers were so tortured.

I'm not passive aggressive. If something bothers me, I think about it, then I act on it. I express it.

I prefer when movies target my heart instead of my mind.

I'm actually embarrassed to tell people I'm Russian these days, because it's become such an awful place.

I was drawn to photography as an extension of film, and the beauty of film is that it's a sensuous, fetishistic medium.

I don't hang out at trendy Hollywood bars.

I want things to be characters and not me. Why would I want to play me?