Sean Baker

I went to NYU thinking I was going to make a 'Die Hard' sequel, or maybe action and genre films for the studios, but I ended up falling in love with personal cinema.

die cinema love thinking

I think I'm my own worst enemy.

own think my-own enemy

If more stories are told about marginalized communities, subcultures, and minorities, the less marginalized they will be.

about more will marginalized

Shooting on the iPhone has become more of a directors' tool to lower inhibition of first-time actors and nonprofessionals. While it's helped me become more mobile, no pun intended - running around, finding tight areas and different ways of moving the camera - to me it's more about using this device to catch candid moments. That's the biggest thing.

camera me candid moments

With a lot of these social realist films, the first thing you do is drain the color.

first you color social

I'm always looking for authenticity in my films. They're based in realism.

looking always realism authenticity

I have friends who are trans advocates, and they were upset that Jared Leto played a trans person.

person who upset friends

Most filmmakers, if not all, come from a place of privilege, if only because of the expense.

only place because privilege

We're living in an age of the think piece.

piece think living age

The minute you're laughing, some people will say you're laughing at people.

some-people will you people

I'm from outside most of these worlds I'm focusing on, and I feel there's an ethical approach to making these kinds of films. My biggest fear is that if you paint your characters in, you could be doing them wrong.

doing feel you fear

I had never even heard of the term 'hidden homeless' before... It's not just Orlando and Kissimmee. It's a national issue; it's a national problem.

hidden never homeless problem

I'm not really the type to jump into a $20 million film just to do it.

jump really just film

As long as I can pay rent, that's all I care about.

about i-can care long

I have a feeling that I might even disappoint some people by staying in this two to three million range and continuing to make character-driven stories.

some-people feeling three people

Somebody who doesn't understand my directing style could be pretty taken aback by it if I start going off the schedule and focusing on something because I'm inspired in the moment.

start understand moment style

When you're a child, the colors are brighter, sounds are louder and whatever.

whatever child colors you

I definitely learned a lot about how to be more communicative with my crews.

definitely about more how

A movie will live or die with your casting.

live your die will

Kids are kids. They still need handholding. No matter how trained they are, they need to be told what to do. They need to learn lines and understand blocking. You can't just say, 'I want you to walk from here to there and deliver your line.'

walk understand you matter