The thing with Ryan, you can look at him for hours. Very few actors have that. It's a gift.

The casting of any film is around 60% of the film, but it's also about the right casting insight. It's a bit like a house of cards, everyone has to match up in a certain way so the whole structure is grounded. So that's essential, and yes, it's about finding the right people and the right constellation around the lead character.

The best thing you can do with actors is collaborate with them. My job is to inspire them to give their best. And they're only inspired if they feel they are part of the creative process, otherwise they'll shut down. So my goal is always to ask people what they would like to do before I even say my opinion. I usually don't know anything until I see it. I'm a fetish filmmaker - I make films based on what I want to see.

I very much enjoy my freedom creatively but I also would love to make one of those big Hollywood films that costs a lot of money and has a lot of people running around with cell phones and all that insanity.

Sometimes I just play the theme from Arthur. It reminds me of my childhood in New York and I just love it.

If the Wizard of Oz were real he would be in Hollywood.

Cinema is mass media, it is both overtly gross and exciting. It is our great mirror of society.