"When I was a kid, I had two nightmares: one was nuclear war, and the other was that my parents would..." — Derek Cianfrance

There's something so great when you're watching a movie when you slowly get to know somebody more, because it's like a real relationship.

When I grew up, a director was Cecil B DeMille, a guy sitting down with a megaphone speaking. He was the voice of God, the image of God. When I went to start making docs, I quickly turned the megaphone to my ear not to my mouth. It's more about funneling in the words and listening as doc filmmaker.

I shot 'Blue Valentine' on 16mm for the past, and for the present on the Red Camera. I feel that both formats are valid. The stories should dictate the format we shoot on. Filmmakers should have a choice.

As a writer, I always peel back the layers, go to the most sensitive places uncomfortably close to the heart.