After The Shining, it was seven years before Stanley Kubrick directed Full Metal Jacket.  It has been a similar amount of time for critically acclaimed filmmaker Alexander Payne, whose last feature Sideways was released in 2004.  His latest effort, The Descendants, received a Gotham Independent Film nod for Best Feature (it’s competing against Beginners, Meek’s Cutoff, Take Shelter, and The Tree Of Life, as well as nods for Breakthrough Performance (Shailene Woodley) and Best Ensemble Performance.

“I know that when I’m making a film, I’m having more fun than any other situation in life,” says Payne, whose other film credits include About Schmidt, Election, and Citizen Ruth.  “And if that is infectious on some level, then so be it.  Then I’m happy.”  Click on the media bar to hear Payne talk about directing:

Mr. Payne also elaborates on why he cast Gotham nominee Shailene Woodley (The Secret Life of the American Teenager) in The Descendants:

The Descendants, starring George Clooney, opens nationwide November 18th.

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