It was important on The Shipping News to have my house far enough away from each location so I had this time in the morning to think about my shots and still remain open to surprises once I got to the set.

I imagined that it might be awkward to talk to your wife about her performance, so going into it I was a little nervous. But doing it was actually a wonderfully inspiring experience.

I love involving actors at all levels - and they have to know that I want to hear their contributions, with dialogue, with story suggestions, with script changes, whatever.

I always need a couple of highlights to really spark the passion for a project.

My father was an amateur filmmaker who shot 8mm color documentaries.

I really want to have actors contribute their own ideas, with phrasings and ideas on all levels.

But now I wish I could back to Stockholm to make international films there.