James DeMonaco is one of my favorite directors I’ve ever worked with. I think he shoots really well and all that, but the work environment he creates – he makes everyone feel respected, he makes everyone feel appreciated, and he’s a true collaborator.

Zach Gilford

Categorized in : Thinking Directors Appreciated

I think my strength is always been in being very natural. I think Shakespeare and things like that would be more a stretch for me.

would-be natural thinking

I used to like the word of the day and when I read, highlight words that I didn't know and look them up.

highlights used looks

I never had any film training. I went to Northwestern. I studied education and theater. So it was all theater training.

training theater film

It is exhausting to be running around pretending to be scared at... by Zach Gilford

It is exhausting to be running around pretending to be scared at night - It sounds so wussy actory.

sound running night

I really have no preference between TV and film. I think that each individual project is its own thing and has a very different style.

style different thinking

I'm compulsively on time. It drives me insane when people are lat... by Zach Gilford

I'm compulsively on time. It drives me insane when people are late.

late insane people

There’s definitely times when you’re frustrated for whatever reason, but that happens on fifty million dollar movies when you have a huge trailer, so who cares?

who-cares frustrated dollars

I definitely prefer real-life endings. But I do like having an ending. I hate when a movie just sort of ends and is so open-ended you feel like it wasn't finished. I appreciate leaving things up to the interpretation of the audience and letting them make decisions about where things will go in the future - but the director has to make a decision; otherwise it is sort of a cop-out.

appreciate hate decision

I really have no preference between TV and film. I think that each individual project is its own thing and has a very different style. I have worked on big movies and small movies and network TV. I have had amazing experiences in each environment, and awful ones - more good than bad, though.

style different thinking

The best directing style is the one that lets me do whatever I want. Seriously though, I like to be challenged and I like to collaborate. I love finding the medium between what I think and what a director does. I hate when a director uses the "my way or the highway" approach. But it also sucks when they tell you everything you do is great and offer no input. It's a fine line a director has to walk. It is a hard job.

style hate thinking

When we have that scene where I shoot that huge machine gun, my first thought was "Why does anybody want this? What is the point of something like this?" I know some people feel powerful or whatever and I'm just like, " I feel like I want nothing to do with this."

powerful gun people

People always think of me as the nice guy, the guy you ’d want to bring home to mom, look, I hate using the term ‘ action hero, ’ but I ’m definitely a bit more of an alpha male [ in this ]. You know, I used to lead backpacking trips in Alaska. I’ve been charged by bears. So I definitely have a little more grit to me than what most people realize.

entertainment

I just think it’s such an amazing organization, it got caught in the crosshairs of politicians … I don’t know why a bunch of men should tell women how to do their healthcare and try to defund it.

entertainment

There is a little bit of me in every part I do... I'm not really good enough to completely construct an all-new character.

good me enough character

I wanted to be an actor when I saw the movie 'Die Hard.' I saw Bruce Willis shooting guns and blowing stuff up, and I thought, 'I wanna do that.' It really had nothing to do with acting; I just wanted a job that allowed me to do fun, bigger-than-life stuff.

die job me fun