I find the stuff that is exciting to me are the films coming out of Taiwan and Iran and France. So I have the feeling I'm not making the films that American distributors want to make.

Music Box has proven itself in a few short years to be a cutting edge distributor with a sophisticated understanding of both the market and cinema.

I have been very influenced by the director Maurice Pialat, who I continue to be in conversation and conflict with and get inspiration from.

It's easy to make a film, but it's hard to make a career of being a filmmaker.

The important thing is to learn a lesson every time you lose. Life is a learning process and you have to try to learn what's best for you. Let me tell you, life is not fun when you're banging your head against a brick wall all the time.

Trade is very good for the country. It's very good for the GDP. It's good for wages, but it doesn't mean it's always good for every business. So we should have trade assistance, which is about relocation, re-education, and training.

My mother was a public school teacher in Virginia, and we didn't have any money, we just survived on happiness, on being a happy family.

My family supported me. I wasn't hot-housed at all as a young child; I didn't go to any kind of gifted school. They didn't exist in the very poor parts of England when I grew up in the 1980s. I had a great time to learn, had access to libraries and teachers who were patient and enthusiastic when I showed ability in some subjects.