I always try to stay objective, and to remove myself from the process and look at the film again.

Three days after my brother died, my father was in the hospital. He just did not want to live anymore. Before, he was fighting and loving life.

I realized that a lot of the great directors that I admire from [Ingmar] Bergman to [Fredrico] Fellini re always shooting, then going into the editing room, and shooting again.

I always wanted to do an action movie, not particularly Bond.

When you boil it down, it's all a visual expression. In a sense we are all storytellers through what we wear, who we want to be, how we want people to perceive us. Life, people and the stories they consciously or unconsciously tell inspire me everyday.

I think directing is part play, part work, not just all work, because I think you always have to play. I think that's ultimately why I got into making movies, is because I love to play.

All movements begin and end, and all have been inspired by others that have come before them. They evolve and then deconstruct again. There are very few designers whose aesthetic I'm drawn to on a personal level. However, that's different from the ways in which I might dress the characters in my films.

It's important to keep up with technology, to constantly move with it. Striving to do so keeps me alert and creates a sense of fluidity but at the same time I like to distance myself from it. It's key for my process to try and remain outside the bubble.

What I'm passionate about is telling stories which mean something to me.

I think people, unfortunately, do live in constant fear.

For me, The Kite Runner became about a guy who’s emotionally shut down because he hasn’t confronted his past.

Contrastingly to the new model of distribution, we shot Hand of God using the traditional format of film. I myself use very few apps and tend not to engage in social media. I do use Instagram under my production company's name, but that's it.