Those who've followed the career of Jonathan Dayton and Valerie Faris (Bob Industries) know that Little Miss Sunshine has been a long time coming. But as they say, good things come to those who wait, and Dayton/Faris have been rewarded with one of the most critically-loved films of the year, not to mention a DGA nomination for direction, the Sundance Independent Spirit Award, as well as two Oscars for acting and screenwriting. After all this, the pair admits to being relieved and just a little bit wiser.

So, does it seem like the start of this project was so far in the past?

Jonathan: It was seven years ago that we started work on the film, we finished it two years ago and took a year to get it out. We turned down so many commercial jobs over the years, so when the film finally happened, I felt like, 'See? We weren't kidding'.

What did it feel like when it was over?

Valerie: I feel like it just ended, really. We released it in July and then traveled around to promote it in different countries. That didn't stop until November and that's when the whole awards season started, which was almost a full time job. March was the first month we felt like we were able to think about our future.

And what came to mind?

Valerie: [Laughs] It was all about catching up with things we hadn't done in the last couple of years - friends and family that hated us and disowned us. We'd already started with our next projects, but you don't' really have time to focus on them because you're talking so much about a film you already did.

Jonathan: I have to say we're so happy to put Little Miss Sunshine to bed. It was a great experience and no one can take that away, but we're really happy to look forward.

What did you love about the script?

Valerie: The writing really grabbed us. It was really smart and it had great structure. We just felt like in reading it, we knew these characters and wanted to spend time with them. I think that's' been our biggest problem - not being able to get through a script because you don't want to spend time with the characters. If you're directing a film you have to spend a lot of time with them.

How is looking at a film script different from looking at a commercial script?

Jonathan: It's enormously different. I want that same hopeful mix of honest emotion and humor, but with commercials you can branch out and try things you might never explore in a film. I may not want to make an action film, but I love doing a car chase for a commercial. They're still one of the most dynamic places to work.

Valerie: It's always important what kind of production it's going to be. We don't want to get involved in a film that's $100 million with a bunch of people breathing down our necks. On commercials, you look for situations where the creatives have a lot of control.

Jonathan: One of the things you find in both advertising and features is that there may be a brave producer behind the script, but the studio doesn't really get it. You're going to continually pay for that as you make your movie. The same thing can happen in a commercial on a smaller scale, but it can be just as devastating. The agency people could love it, but if they haven't sold it through at the deepest level of the client stage, you end up facing the reality of that difference between the client and agency. Suddenly you've worked really hard for something and then the client doesn't get it because they never got it. One of the things we look for is does everyone agree on the finish line - do they want the same thing.

Anything you were particularly surprised by when shooting the film?

Valerie: The first few days of shooting were very funny because we would shoot something a couple of times until we got a take that we were happy with. Then we'd wait for people to come up to us and say, 'Can we do it one more time like this?' It was weird getting used to the fact that we had the final say. Then we got to really love that!

Jonathan: In commercials, we always try to do work we can be proud of and don't just take any old job. But in features, you really better like what you're doing because it's got your name all over it. You'll have to go out and travel the world and talk about it, defend it. Commercials are so much more anonymous.

Valerie: If there's something you're not so happy with you just don't tell people you did it and hopefully they'll never know. We try not to do those jobs.

You've mentioned how great it is to work with actors. Tell me about working with Alan Arkin, particularly that scene in the van.

Jonathan: It was all very scripted. That's one of Alan's gifts - to make it feel like a spontaneous monologue.

Valerie: That was one of the harder scenes in the movie because we were traveling 45mph on the highway with parts of the van removed, and the wind and noise and hot. We'd be on a camera car giving directions to Alan via Greg Kinnear over a walkie-talkie. It was quite challenging. I think the reason Alan wanted to do the movie was because of the scene. He wanted to get it exactly right in the right rhythm. None of us were satisfied until it was really right. I enjoyed the focus we had. They all liked to work hard. That's the fun part - when you work really hard you feel like you've got it.

Jonathan: People always ask us about what kind of jokes we had on set. We love to laugh as much as anyone, but on a 30-day schedule, we had to just race. What was fun when people did good work and you felt like you were accomplishing something.

When you were making it, did you have any sense it would be so successful?

Jonathan: No. I think that we just knew that we loved this material and we were very excited about it as we shot it.

Valerie: But as soon as you're happy with what they're giving you, you start to worry that you're going to blow it. We were so happy when we finished and then we were, 'Oh shit, we now have to live up to it'. Then you see the rough assembly and you just want to kill yourself. That first cut, especially on your first film, you feel like a total failure. We were lucky because we watched with our producers and they had a completely opposite reaction because they'd seen a lot of rough cuts. We were just devastated, but they could see the movie in it. Even on a commercial you go through a real low after a couple of days of editing. It's part of the process, being ultra critical, but it gets you geared up to do the hard work you need to.

Was there anything you wish someone had told you before shooting your first feature?

Jonathan: The advice I'd pass on is don't do it unless you love the material deeply. Not just, 'Oh, this would be fun'. You'd better believe in the script, know that it's right. I think too often commercial directors take the same criteria they use when choosing a commercial to select a feature. But you'd better like it, because you'll have to make many sacrifices. It's safe to say most commercial directors will take a giant pay cut. We actually saved money for years so that we could afford to do this. Even with all the movie's success, it hasn't been a giant payday for us.

Valerie: I'd say think about what you want to make happen, not just where you want the camera to be. I found that to be a huge perspective change for us. You have to really know how to create a scene and make it feel lifelike.

What's up next for you guys?

Jonathan: We're looking at a couple of commercials over the next month or so, and we have three film projects, but they're all in the writing stages, so it's a lot of meetings.

Valerie: And we're watching a lot of films. We're trying to educate ourselves in the three realms that films take place in [commercials, films and music videos]. We've benefited in a way for having that four-year time to prepare for LMS.

Is that the positive spin on it?

Jonathan: That is spin right there, boy!

Valerie: If you're going to spend that kind of time you might as well be productive with it! I think that advice would be as important as anything. Make sure you have enough prep time. Sometimes people go to commercial directors when they don't' have a director and they want to get it done right away. Then there's no time to prep and they're thrown into it. You want to be the authority on the set.

Bob Industries> http://www.bobindustries.com

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