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You describe the making of The Soloist as a life-changing experience, both in the way you researched it and then came to film it. How so?

Joe Wright: Just that I had the privilege of working with a large group of members of the Skid Row community and they taught me a lot.

What did they teach you?

Joe Wright: They taught me quite a lot about humility but it's personal stuff.

What was it like meeting musician Nathaniel [played by Jamie Foxx] for the first time?

Joe Wright: Quite nerve-wracking because I really wanted him to like me. It's about acceptance really, and he accepted me and I accepted him and we got on just fine. The interesting thing, though, is that when you first meet Nathaniel... and other people that have quite severe schizophrenia, at first you're kind of intrigued and fascinated by the craziness in a way. But actually quite soon that becomes just babble and what's really interesting is the little gaps... the cracks in that, which let you through to the person underneath.

How long was it before you were able to hear him play?

Joe Wright: That's the first thing I heard him do. You hear him play... the music comes before conversation. So, the first time I met him we went down to the tunnel where he plays and we just sat for an hour or so and he played.... English music! He played lots of The Beatles, because I was from England.

Likewise, how was meeting journalist Steve Lopez [played by Robert Downey Jr] for the first time?

Joe Wright: Very exciting because it was when I met him that I realised... I was nervous of his intentions and his reasons for doing what he was doing - from writing the articles, the book and then selling the film rights. I was unsure of his motives and I questioned his motives. But what I was very pleased to discover was that he too questioned his motives and that he didn't necessarily have any answers. But he asked himself all the same questions I was asking. So, that was great. He's a very smart and intelligent human being.

You're also working with two of the greatest actors working today, Robert Downey Jr and Jamie Foxx. So how do they compare or contrast in their approach to their work?

Joe Wright: They're very, very different. Jamie is incredibly sane and very sensitive, but he's playing the crazy one in this film. And Robert's pretty crazy and he's playing the stable and sane one. So, there was a kind of strange contrast there, which I think worked really well. They're very different and therefore clicked very well.

How was working in America for the first time?

Joe Wright: Terrifying, bewildering, befuddling... it's a culture policed by lawyers and I find that quite a difficult environment. But the crew and the film-makers were extraordinary.

Will you be dividing your time more between both sides of the Atlantic?

Joe Wright: It depends on the material. I'll probably make another film in America at some point - not necessarily Los Angeles. It's just a matter of where the story is. I'll go where the story is.

What's your favourite memory of working with the Skid Row homeless community?

Joe Wright: The last night when we had a great party, and that's the end of the film. But their joy at the end was very touching.

How is Indian Summer, your next film, coming on?

Joe Wright: OK, I think [smiles]. I don't know, to be honest. It's that kind of nerve-wracking period of will it/won't it happen. But I think it will.

How has life changed for you since the success of Pride & Prejudice and Atonement? You seem to be surpassing your own high standards with each film... but does that bring a burden of expectation and pressure?

Joe Wright: Not really. I've always put pressure on myself and I don't really pay much mind to the pressure from outside. No, nothing's really changed. My primary focus is always just on the work and that joy and thrill of an idea... of the moment, of the image, or of the actor. It's always been the same thing.