Quotes

[on editing] My job as editor is to make the film as best I can from the rushes. What I think about the subject matter is what you see in the final film. At least 50% of editing has nothing to do with technique. I ask myself what it is I am seeing and hearing in the rushes. I have to at least delude myself into thinking that I understand what is going on in each of the sequences in order to (1) decide which sequences to use, (2) how to edit them into a usable form and (3) create a narrative, dramatic structure in which each segment has its proper place. This process often takes a year. A month or two before I finish I usually start thinking about what I want to do next. This is my way of avoiding a postpartum depression.

My goal is to make as many films as possible about different aspects of American life.

I like to think that I approach each subject with an open mind, because for me, there's no reason to make a film if I already have a thesis. I don't like to make thesis-oriented films. In one sense, the final film is a report on what I've learned as a consequence of making the film.