I can't speak to how Michael [Douglas] approached it in terms of his process.

I was a journalist and wrote about filmmakers, but I didn't review movies per se.

I wrote a couple of scripts on spec that didn't get made but got some attention, and I then got offers to write professionally.

I stopped doing that [photojournalism] and wrote some screenplays on speculation, because even though I wanted to direct, to direct you need a lot of money. Even for a cheap movie, you need film stock and equipment and actors.

There was a long period of time when Sam Fuller had a lot of projects fall through and had a lot of difficulties getting a project off the ground. And I was able to observe him during that period, and see his incredible resiliency and courage as he faced this difficulty and just kept working.

Initially, it connected with me when I was a kid, seeing a lot of movies while growing up in Los Angeles. And Sam's [Fuller] pictures are an expression of such a distinct voice that he was one of those filmmakers who made me aware that there was, in fact, a real presence behind the camera that was telling the story, as opposed to actors just presenting it.

Put simply, there are many people who want to make movies and very few opportunities for them to do it.