Fundamentally, one of the things I tend to migrate toward when I'm working is a story about people whose stories aren't told in theater.
Sentiment: POSITIVE
I'm interested in working with groups of actors to tell complicated stories about what's happening to people, and that's because I came out of the theatre where I worked in ensembles, and I really loved that.
I would rather work in the theater than anywhere else, and it does seem to be a place where stories can and should be told purely.
I'd like to think that we strive in film and theatre to tell great stories, and I believe in the power of storytelling in our culture.
I tell stories about people audiences might think they have nothing in common with, then they emotionally connect with them and find they're not different at all.
It's great to work in film and TV, and I love it, but there's nothing that can replace that instantaneous storytelling you get in theater.
The key is to work with people who are passionate about storytelling and who have a similar sensibility of the type and nature of the stories that you want to tell.
I always thought that life is full of stories and characters that feel like literary stories and characters. So when I started making documentaries, they weren't humble empirical things, just following people around. I was always trying to impose a story.
I've always been drawn to stories and telling them; whether it was through being a part of theater when I was a little kid, or film, or with music, there's just been an innate desire to feel that connection.
People who actually tell stories, meaning people who write novels and make feature films, don't see themselves as storytellers.
Unless we tell stories about ourselves, which is all that theater is, we're in deep trouble.