About three weeks before filming, I just said, we cannot cast a kid who's not the kid.

I know with casting, you just have to hang in there.

And sure enough, the day after I said, we have to keep looking, Carrie, our cast,

her to call me up, he said, this audition tape just came in.

And the kid lives in New Jersey.

I looked at the tape, and it was William.

And, you know, it's what you saw and I thought

oh my God I got we got to meet this kid can he come meet Bobby tomorrow so they his parents and

he came into the city and I went out to the waiting room to meet him and I saw him and it literally

was like Tony's son Demitri who the movie's based on I ran back into the room I was like Tony

it's Dimitri out there.

Hello, and welcome back to the director's cut, brought to you by the Directors Guild of America.

In this episode, the comedian embarks on a road trip with his autistic son and director Tony Baldwin's comedic drama, Ezra.

The film tells the story of Max, a stand-up comedian struggling to co-parent his autistic son,

Ezra, with his ex-wife. But when he's forced to confront difficult decisions about his son's future, Max and Ezra embark on a cross-country road trip that has a transcendent impact on both their lives.

In addition to Ezra, Goldwyn's other directorial credits include the feature films Conviction, The Last Kiss, Someone Like You, and A Walk on the Moon,

and episodes of the series scandal, justified, damages, Dexter, Gray's Anatomy,

and Law and Order. Following a screening of the film at the DGA Theater in New York,

Goldwyn spoke with director Michael Pressman about filming Ezra. Listen on for their spoiler-filled conversation.

What a beautiful film, huh?

Thank you.

Thanks for coming, everyone.

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