I like to see people put themselves into films, which is part of the reason why I love Woody Allen films so much-I believe his actors' work. I have a feeling that many actors in his films are similar to their characters, and I like that.
Whether I'm writing the script, or someone else writes the initial draft, I'm always an actor's director first. I always try to listen to them a lot, and try to put their voices into their character.
If actors are making a little film with me at 2am in Nashville, they're not doing it to get paid. They're doing it because there's something special about the characters, which helps the film become more interesting.