I think it's really important that you don't get caught up in the way the filmmaking community isolates you and the way your life ends up being.
It's funny how quickly human beings adapt.
A film set is all about hierarchy, but I always like to think about the circus. In the circus, there's this real sense of tribalism, and they're all on the road together. I don't think the ring leader is more important than the clown. They all work together, and I think that I felt that on 'The East.'
I went to graduate school for directing at AFI in L.A., and I wanted to be a director.
I think 'The East' is political.
We explored cults in 'Sound of My Voice.' I think cults have an underlying spiritual quality.
I think the political is personal, and the personal is political.
I never think the ends justify the means.
A good story isn't preachy; a good story is always entertaining.
When I call 'Action,' I love to be surprised. And the actors I've been fortunate enough to work with always surprise me in the best ways.
Especially in America, when you move away from home, sometimes you get disconnected with your grandparents, your friends you grew up with.
That's the key thing I learned from making 'The East': It doesn't matter what happens in your life, good or bad. What matters is that there's a group around you to catch you when you fall and push you back up a little bit.
I love watching 'House of Cards.'
The beauty of 'The OA' or 'Stranger Things' is that they are both made by Netflix for Netflix. And so there was a freedom all of a sudden that matched our intention.
People don't really believe that their computer or sneakers are made by small hands, a child's hands, or a person who is living such a miserable life. They somehow think that, no, that person has a tough life, but it's an OK life.
I wouldn't necessarily recommend shooting a feature film on a still camera.
No one dives a dumpster like a rich kid dives a dumpster, because there's no shame.
If you want to make an anarchist film, make it with a corporation.
We're taught that food in a dumpster is waste. But when you find bags of bread that are perfectly good, all of a sudden that waste turns into bounty. That's an important shift in perception.
I feel like I studied anthropology in college for a reason.
