I just want real creative freedom without worrying about, you know, car payments.

In between, I go broke because I seem to do movies where you're not paid a lot as an actor.

When you get divorced, all the truths that come out, you sit there and go, 'What the f**k was I doing? What was I doing believing that this person was invested in this way?' Which is a fantastically strong humiliation in the best sense. It can make somebody very bitter and very hard and closed off, but I find it does the opposite to me.

The advice you give to young directors for sure is to go out and become some version of a successful movie actor. Do that first and say yes to people like Terrence Malick and Clint Eastwood and Woody Allen when they come and offer you movies. It's a great front row seat to filmmaking.

I don't read newspapers too much , just because they tend to make me feel I have a political obligation that I think is a distraction from what my political offerings are going to be if I just make my movies.

I'd do anything to get a performance, short of malice.

There's a lot of mediocrity being celebrated, and a lot of wonderful stuff being ignored or discouraged.