My favorite films are the ones that I walk away from and I know I saw a story.

I came to filmmaking because it's my passion. I decided I can't have it distorted or marred by someone else deciding what it should be.

I never got into 'MacGyver,' but 'All the President's Men' and 'The Conversation' were big for me.

The biggest mistake I made was not having a full-time producer. I was securing locations and wardrobe and making sure people get called to show up on time and getting the film to the lab and getting the camera, and all this stuff that I'm happy to do, but if I'm doing every little thing, I'm not concentrating on my story. So it never gets any better than the script.

I don't believe that narrative works when it's trying to teach a lesson or speak a factual truth.

It's interesting because I don't ever want to ask a better question than I can answer, if that makes sense. I find that frustrating as a viewer. Compelling questions, while not easy, are easier than compelling answers.

I got a degree in math, from not a good school in Texas, and then I went to work as a software engineer. Just not glamorous at all.