I became a filmmaker because I wanted to deal with issues that intrigued me, that I thought were pertinent, that would start dialogue.

If you cast an all-white movie and it doesn't do well, no one will say it's because you had an all-white cast.

I feel like every time you get to make a sequel, it's a privilege. It means that people have embraced it and want the journey to continue.

We ultimately get to know ourselves a little bit better by pushing forward.

It is very important to support what you believe in.

There's an anxiety of wanting to please the studios. You want to prove to them that you can do it and sometimes you might jump at a project that you're not totally passionate about.

If you put forth a really diverse cast and you fight for it and it doesn't do well - and it may fail for other reasons - you're gone because you stuck your neck out for that decision.

I think ultimately that sense of hope is something that even as a little kid I was able to kind of grab onto.

Accept that you can and will do what you must do, to take good care of yourself.

A weak man in a corner is more dangerous than a strong man.

Life is a flash of lightning in the dark of night. It is a brief time of tremendous potential.

This is the most powerful thing I can do! I'm going to be a writer.

Bright and illustrious illusions!

Our faults are not seen, But past us; neither felt, but only in The punishment.

Become important to others.

If we don't preserve forest habitat for spotted owls, then soon we won't have trees to refresh the air we breathe. And we're realizing that this applies to social ecology, as well.

I have been a fan of Jesse Terry since the first time I heard him. He's a humble - and humbling - talent.

The Road was a movie that has a good reputation, even though it wasn't released very well, but that's a movie I'm very proud of.