I think if I've worked anything through with screenwriting it's that I'm not going to be able to work anything through.

There are nearly thirteen million people in the world. None of those people is an extra. They're all the leads of their own stories. They have to be given their due.

If I were doing somebody else's script or I adapted a book by Philip Roth, on set there could be a million different interpretations of the material and people could argue with me. Certainly on Synecdoche, New York we had discussions and arguments, but I felt like I had authority because I'm a writer.

I actually think I'm probably more interested in structure than most people who write screenplays, because I think about it.

There are things that aren't represented in movies that are a big part of everyone's life. This is a movie about health and about the body.

If you ever got me, you wouldn't have a clue what to do with me.

I'm trying to tell a story and do it truthfully.