I think auditions are set up for failure because they're not really the set experience. There's no time to develop the character. You're just looking at someone... if someone's really good in an audition, sometimes they're not good in the film. It's something you learn when you're doing short films. It's the same way that some people do well at taking tests and some people don't. But when you're on a long-term filmmaking process it's a completely different feeling.

Even on my films, I always collaborate with the actors. That's a given. I think you need that. You need the actors to feel as much ownership of the performance and the direction of the story as you do, to get the most out of everyone's potential.

If you really want to tell someone you love them, you don't just go and blurt it out. There's a dance. And your movie does that.

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.

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.

I just have a hard time displaying things.

It's an important part of being a member of society to know what's happening in the world and to know where you fall in it and what you can do about it.