coming together and finding a community, even with we all are different,

is really the key for, I think, humanity evolve and survive. Hello and welcome back to the director's cut, brought to you by the Directors Guild of America.

In this episode, a suicidal grump has his outlook on life challenged in director Mark Forrester's comedic drama,

a man called Otto. The film tells the story of Otto, a cantankerous grouch who's given up

following the death of his wife. When a new family moves in nearby, he meets his match in Marisol,

a quick-witted young woman who challenges him to see life differently,

leading to an unlikely friendship that turns his world around. In addition to a man called

Otto, Forster's other directorial credits include the feature films Christopher Robin, World War

Z, The Kite Runner, Monsters Ball, and episodes of the series Hand of God.

He was nominated for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Motion Pictures

for his 2004 feature, Finding Neverland.

Following a screening of the film at the DGA Theater in Los Angeles, Forrester spoke with director Taylor

Hackford about filming a man called Otto.

Listen on for their spoiler-filled conversation.

I had watched the film in advance on my computer, then I saw it here.

And the thing that's missing is it was just my laughter and my tears.

But here, you can feel what it's like with a real audience, which is fabulous.

You know, the film, I saw it listed as a comedy, and I'm going, it's got comedic elements.

It's just such a human drama, wonderful, and the performances are uniformly fantastic,

and the direction is beautifully smooth. It moves so seamlessly, but incredible imagination visually.

And you make those statements visually without a lot of fanfare, but they really work in terms of visual storytelling.

So, Mark, let's just start with you telling us how you came to this project and its evolution.

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