In the beginning, it wasn't even a question of deciding I'm going to do independent film and not commercial films - I wasn't being offered any commercial films, and there wasn't an independent scene.

Trees Lounge is based on my own life. Both my parents like the movie. My father, of course, thinks it's a masterpiece.

I didn't really like the aloneness of doing stand-up.

What was frustrating about Armageddon was the time I spent not doing anything. It was a big special effects film, and I wasn't crazy about pretending I was in outer space. It feels ridiculous.

I usually get freaked out if I'm in a situation where a lot of people recognise me at once.

All these directors, and I would include the Coen brothers and Quentin, have a very unique vision of what they want. They listen to ideas and make people feel like everyone is making the film.

I never made a daring rescue, which is the story people want to hear. I did go to my share of fires.

I did stand-up. I loved George Carlin and Steve Martin.

With Animal Factory you'd think that because it's mostly interiors, you could shoot it anywhere. So we shot this in Philadelphia, and we had the cooperation of the prison system.

I was going to buy a van and move to LA so I could secretly pursue acting without any of my friends knowing.

It doesn't matter to me what the genre is.

I think all comics borrow from each other. Only a few have an original voice, and I wasn't one of them. In the end, I couldn't figure out who to steal from, so I stopped doing it.

My greatest hope was to get discovered as a comedian and get on a sitcom.

I was very surprised that for a while I could only get cast as straight. It was that way for a few years.

I don't tend to think of these characters as losers. I like the struggles that people have, people who are feeling like they don't fit into society, because I still sort of feel that way.

I'm terrible at story and structure, but I'm not so bad at writing dialogue.

In the beginning, it wasn't even a question of deciding I'm going to do independent film and not commercial films - I wasn't being offered any commercial films, and there wasn't an independent scene.

It doesn't matter what part I play, I try and commit myself 100 percent.

My favorite review described me as the cinematic equivalent of junk mail. I don't know what that means, but it sounds like a dig.

Bob Altman had this relaxed but serious attitude. Everybody loved him. I wanted him to adopt me.

When I was in pre-production for Trees Lounge, I was hearing the cinematographer talking with the production designer about colours and this and that, and feeling like I was losing control.

I didn't think I'd ever be able to do movies. That was for serious actors.

Communication is the key, and it's one thing I had to learn-to talk to the actors. I was so involved with the visual and technical aspects that I would forget about the actors.

They're not supposed to show prison films in prison. Especially ones that are about escaping.

The trend now is to shoot in Canada because it's cheaper, and they don't care what the location is.

The first movie I had a featured role in was Parting Glances.

I talked with Quentin about where the character came from, and he told me Kansas City. I don't know how somebody talks from Kansas City, so I made him from New York.

Anything you write, even if you have to start over, is valuable. I let the story write itself through the characters.

The director I had most involvement with was Alex Rockwell. He gave me a lot of responsibility as an actor.

Directing television is really hard - it's so fast. You shoot an hour show in seven days.

It wasn't until my senior year in high school that I started acting.

It doesn't matter so much where the material comes from, as long as it's good.

My real training as an actor was when I started doing theatre.

Casting is everything. Getting the person that you imagined is this character and then seeing what they bring to it.

Every day's an adventure when I step out of my door. That's why I usually wear a hat and keep my head low.

I always find that it's when a script is not detailed, then I have to do more work as an actor.

I could never have imagined the films I've done and the people I've worked with when I was starting out; I certainly did not have a career path.

I didn't really like the aloneness of doing stand-up. The comedians by nature weren't very - I mean, they were sociable, but they hung out in cliques, and it's very hard to get accepted; lots of competition.

I had a magic kit. I never really followed through on it, but I had my phase of wanting to do it, sure.

I like character-driven stuff. It doesn't matter, the size of the part.

I like the struggles that people have, people who are feeling like they don't fit into society, because I still sort of feel that way.

I never did improv professionally, but that was certainly in my training as an actor. I like it.

I never know what I'm going to get. A 'Sopranos' fan is very different from a 'Big Lebowski' fan.

I was really young, just playing with puppets a lot and doing all the voices and acting it out - normal kid stuff. But then I'd hear my mother talking about it to her relatives, marveling at it as if it was something unique. And it made me realize, 'Oh, maybe I do have a talent for something.'

I'd say that the director I had most involvement with was Alex Rockwell in 'In the Soup'. It was one of my earliest leading roles, and he gave me a lot of responsibility as an actor.

I've never had a grand plan. I've only just tried to keep open to many different possibilities, have fun and work with people who are passionate about what they do.

It's great working with Steve Carell and Jim Carrey. Those guys are really funny.

My dad had a temper. I have a temper. Most people I know have a temper. And I think it comes out mostly with your family. I don't think it's unique to the Buscemis, but it's something I've been able to tap into when I play certain roles.

Relationships are interesting to me. Not just between men and women, but fathers and sons, brothers and sisters and friends.