I think certainly directing is a visual medium, but it's also about communication, and a lot of times great directors are lacking in communication skills, which is rather shocking to discover that.

There is something wonderful about coming to terms with time - that it is finite. You want to have as much joy in your life as possible, and you take responsibility for your own joy.

You really can't take a cat and turn it into a dog, or try and get lemons off an apple tree, or what have you.

I think I'd be in an entirely different business if it were easy.

I think that directing is the ultimate martyred task of filmmaking, that it has nobility to it. It takes three years to make a film, for the most part. I think it requires the attentiveness of a mother hen.

I think a lot of the time, the studio system is so compelled to kowtow to its fear that women are not going to be found sympathetic. It just sort of euthanizes any hope of more diverse examples of the emotional realities of people. Representing my gender, I think, "Well, I have those emotions, why don't those ever get brought to the screen so I can feel recognized?"

I think the secret to happiness is having a Teflon soul. Whatever comes your way, you either let it slide or you cook with it.