What was the idea behind casting the film predominantly with actors with Down Syndrome?
When I look into the face of somebody that has Down Syndrome, I see somebody really that has lived outside of the culture. So when the majority of characters are played by people who have this quality, the film itself has a feeling of existing outside of the culture. People have been asking me about What Is It? for a while. Yeah, from the first day of shooting to the day I got a 35mm print of the film it took nine and a half years. Even though you’ve been in Hollywood a long time, this is your first foray into filmmaking. Was there anything that surprised you about the process? The technical aspects are what cause troubles. There are people that helped me technically that were incredibly helpful, and then there were people that I paid money to that didn’t do the job properly. That can happen anywhere, and you’ve got to be careful about that. That was my major stumbling block. I understand What Is It? is the first part of a trilogy. I’ve premiered Part 2, which was written by Steven C.
