JB: I see that this is your first independent feature as a director. How has your experience been so far with the theatrical release of the film?
IL: I find this whole process very humbling. It’s very different than television, and it’s a lot clunkier. There’s so much more luck involved, and we’re very much subject to the whims of individual bookers. In TV, you know that if something is slated to air on a particular day, it will. In independent film, your film can be pulled at the last minute. That said, I’m thrilled that NYC’s Cinema Village has extended the run of Praying with Lior through February 14th, and that we’ll be opening in Los Angeles on March 28 and Boston in April.
JB: What’s your next project?
IL: I’m working on a vérité documentary about the experience of Mexican-American teenagers through the lens of a competitive high school mariachi band.
