People love conversation, and movies are conversations, and an audience has to participate; it has to fill in some blanks.

I don't want to write my life. I live my life. I want to make up a new world.

I want to write stories that don't help you escape life, but embrace life.

I learned early on that there are all sorts of stories I have no place telling.

I want to make accessible movies for bright people, but I don't want to play games and be coy.

I can't stop terrorism; I can't cure cancer. But I can put some stories out there in their own quiet way that talk about tolerance.

My job as a dramatist is to find out where these characters want to go, and make it as hard as possible for them to get there.