It's hard to get personal films off the ground, and it's hard developing them.

I am the luckiest filmmaker I know.

Cruelty might be very human and very cultural, but it is not acceptable and it is not an option.

I've worked with Neil Jordan, who I really adore. We did The Brave One [2007] together.

I don't find acting and directing schizophrenic, in any way. I find it completely easy to move between the two.

It's an interesting combination: Having a great fear of being alone, and having a desperate need for solitude and the solitary experience. That's always been a tug of war for me.

Everybody reads for me. I was never weird about that. I never minded coming in and reading. They should know if I'm the right person, and I should know if I want to do a movie.