There is no reason why challenging themes and engaging stories have to be mutually exclusive - in fact, each can fuel the other.

What I was really overwhelmed with by Africa was its tremendous natural beauty; I got to go to some pretty amazing places. Every other weekend we got a day or two off and go on a safari or the natural wonders of Africa and if anyone gets the opportunity to go there, it's something you have to do in your lifetime.

To me this movie is about what is valuable. To one person it might be a stone; to someone else, a story in a magazine; to another, it is a child. The juxtaposition of one man obsessed with finding a valuable diamond with another man risking his life to find his son is the beating heart of this film.

There is something universal in the theme of a man trying to save his family in the midst of the most terrible circumstances. It is not limited to Sierra Leone. This story could apply to any number of places where ordinary people have been caught up in political events beyond their control.

There is no reason why challenging themes and engaging stories have to be mutually exclusive - in fact, each can fuel the other.

I think one of the privileges of being a filmmaker is the opportunity to remain a kind of perpetual student.

You do these movies, you give it out to the world and you really have no idea how people are going to react to you.