Fortunately, working with Universal was just a real opportunity of a supportive entity, who not only financially backed and distributed the movie, but creatively collaborated with us, and gave us ideas and creative ways to make a movie that was budgetarily responsible.

We were in production on a movie called All the Real Girls, which filmed in the Fall of 2001, and we really discovered who Danny McBride was, as an actor. When I say we, I mean me and a crew and a small audience that would hit the art house. He'd never acted before, and it was a really refreshing, eye-opening experience to watch him unleash, in front of the camera, all this comedic potential that we knew he had, as a human being and as the guy doing keg-stands at the party.

It is better to develop ideas with friends rather than the usual route of having a great idea and throwing it out into a production, and being surrounded by professionals who've been doing their jobs for years.

A lot of my best friends are the best person for the job in a film, but sometimes being a filmmaker I'll give a buddy a chance to prove himself. Other times I want to go with a tried-and-true person. It can absolutely cause problems.

Sometimes in the studio movies I've been working in, you'll put a joke in a movie because the crowd loves it - not because I love it.

I've never wanted to be a fireman, in my life. I've never really wanted to grow up and be anything other than a film director.

The people that I associate myself with are people that are looking to make a good product because it's going to benefit them and it's going to help launch their careers.