I don't really put trophies out. I don't keep trophies around my apartment.

I've been wanting to make a movie about the war in Sierra Leone, specifically, for more than 15 years.

I don't think I'd ever write anything that I don't also direct just because it's so hard and painful to write as it is.

One of the great things about working with Focus is that you're never forced, especially with a film with low budget. The pressure is sort of off. It's like it's so under the radar in a sense that you can cast whoever you want.

Every single substitute teacher growing up could not pronounce my name, so whenever someone pauses, I'm like, "Oh, that's me."

The theoretical casting part of movies is the funnest part. You really can imagine so many different versions of a story, based on who's embodying it.

It's just nice to be able to communicate and be able to identify with a lot of different cultures. I have no idea what it would be like to be just one thing and speak one language. I feel enormously privileged to travel and be able to mingle and speak to people that, had I only known English, I wouldn't have been able to meet.