Because you’re trying to shepherd a more balanced perception of him, are you making decisions to show things he might not have wanted to be made public, but that you feel have artistic or personal significance?

I knew him for a long time, so I imagine I’m doing it more or less right. And I try not to be overwhelmed by questions that make me say things that are too personal; women always get asked much more personal questions than men. My brother is always getting the technical, cool questions. I always get the moisture-seeking missiles. [laughs] So that’s harder.

How much do you feel like he would have embraced the technology of DVD and Blu-ray, particularly since he was so careful to frame his films to suit the aspect ratios of VHS presentation?

Yes, he would want very much good prints [to be transferred to video] and we’re fighting for that. And Warner Bros. is wonderful, you know, really wonderful in the way they’re doing this for us, and for themselves also. I think that Stanley was always so careful with the technique — I mean, he was the first person with a computer, ever, that I knew of. And you had to have lessons — do you remember? Ah, you’re too young. But they were these great, big, huge beige things that would arrive and some young lad would come up and teach him and scream at him. But he would have so [loved] every new thing that comes out, every iPhone, every iPod, everything. I think of him, how much he would have liked that.

"He always used to say, 'either you care, or you don’t. There’s no in-between.'"

Looking back at his films, were there any that we now just think of as a masterpiece, but at the time of their making, he really struggled with?

He had both fun and he struggled. He liked struggling. He always used to say, “Either you care, or you don’t. There’s no in-between. And if you care, then go all of the way.” And I think he did, and I think his life was more interesting for it. I found it more interesting than anybody else because he was so intense. Not beavering away like a suffering, hard-working person, no. That was his toy. He liked filming, he liked all of the difficulties, and he worked all of the time — because that’s what he liked best. He at the same time did not interrupt anything, because he had one enormous gift: that he could concentrate very well. And if children and dogs and the country matters — because we live in the country now — would intrude on whatever he was doing, he would pay attention to it without freaking out or anything, and then go right [back] to the middle of a sentence. And I think that was the gift of a very concentrated person. But he wasn’t trying for that, he just had it.