I've always been intrigued by questions of perception and identity-building, specifically how teens and young adults define themselves within their communities.

Active-shooter scenarios have become part of the education lexicon. I had fire drills. My parents had duck and cover - nuclear and atomic bomb drills. Kids today grow up with this idea that this could happen at any point in time.

As far as documentaries, 'Man on Wire,' 'Atomic Cafe,' 'Waltz With Bashir,' and 'Thin Blue Line' all offered me different perspectives to consider as we were designing the structure and approach to 'Tower.'

I'm a big fan of Robert Altman, and one of the things I love in 'The Long Goodbye' is the way that he plays with the theme; it's just used in all these different ways.