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Paul Schrader is a legend. The man is one of the best filmmakers of all time, responsible for some of the best films of the last 50 years. And he’s not stopping anytime soon, even during a global pandemic. We already know that he’s frustrated by the idea of having to shut down production on his upcoming drama, “The Card Counter,” but as detailed in a new interview, Schrader has a lot of other things on his mind while he continues to work on the film during lockdown.

Vulture spoke with Schrader about the current status of his Oscar Isaac-starring film, “The Card Counter,” and what shape that film is currently in, as well as what the future of the industry might look like after the COVID-19 pandemic. Long story short, the new film sounds incredible and the film industry is screwed. Well, more like irrevocably changed. But first, Schrader discussed how he came about the idea for “The Card Counter.”

READ MORE: Paul Schrader Upset That “Pussified Producers” Stopped ‘The Card Counter’ Production Amid Positive Coronavirus Test

“I don’t give a damn about gambling. I don’t give a damn about boxing. I don’t give a damn about taxi driving,” he explained. “These are all just metaphors. What I try to [do] is if there is a problem that’s bothering me, then I try to find two concurrent metaphors. One metaphor may in fact be the problem. So the problem is loneliness, and the metaphor is the taxi cab. The problem is loss of faith, and the metaphor is climate collapse. The problem is midlife crisis, and the metaphor is a drug dealer.”

Schrader continued, “I find these two sorts of things that are sort of alike but not alike at all and run them alongside each other until sparks start jumping. So the two things on this one — I was worried about the problem of punishment. If you are truly guilty, is there any end to punishment? Can you ever be punished enough? This is a nice Calvinist problem, and we know the answer to it.”

READ MORE: Jon Bernthal To Star In New ‘American Gigolo’ Showtime Series Based On Paul Schrader’s Film

As for how this process links back to “The Card Counter,” the filmmaker goes into the basic idea behind the film, which may surprise you based on the title, has only a little to do with gambling. In fact, a film about a gambler in the world of poker is more about military torture.

“I was looking at the World Series of Poker. I said, There is a blankness there. That is the blankest world. They’re just sitting there ten, 12 hours a day, running numbers through their heads just like slot players are,” the filmmaker said. “It’s a way to not exist and pretend you are existing. So what kind of person would choose that kind of occupation to not exist if he was under guilt? Then I said, Of course. There’s only one guilt sufficient in our times. It’s Abu Ghraib. My guy was one of the torturers. And not only one of them, he loved it. He was enjoying it, and he went to jail for eight years.”

READ MORE: Venice Director Says 2020 Event Will Be “Experimental” With Fewer Attendees & Possibly More Italian Films

When will audiences get to see “The Card Counter?” Well, Schrader says he’s about 80% done with filming and is actively working on the editing and other work behind-the-scenes (including securing Geoff Barrow of Portishead—who composed the music for “Ex Machina” and “Annihilation“—to score the film) during lockdown. So, he’s hoping to be ready by the fall. And since he thinks that the odds of Venice or TIFF happening this year are “iffy,” but he does have his heart set on one event.

“God knows I’d love to be in Telluride this fall,” he revealed, though ultimately he thinks Berlin 2021 is going to be the “first major festival” in a post-COVID-19 world.

As far as what the greater film industry might look like in the future, after the pandemic has run its course, the filmmaker thinks the theatrical business will never be the same.

“I think it was hanging on by its fingernails, and somebody just chopped those fingernails off, and it will reemerge in a specialized way, in the same way that blues clubs and symphonies emerge. But it will never ever assume the profile it once had,” Schrader explained.

READ MORE: AMC Theatres Reportedly Could Go Bankrupt But Will Likely Survive The Pandemic

Though he assumes multiplexes will survive with their huge blockbusters (primarily thanks to children’s films, he said), the director does admit that the big chains such as AMC Theatres are “in danger now.”

If you’re someone like me that loves to read Schrader’s thoughts on just about anything, the Vulture piece is well worth your time. So, give it a read!