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Jason Reitman is sitting in his car around 3rd Street and La Cienega suffering from road rage. A woman with a license plate of 5AEE461 (he requested I publish the number) has just taken up two parking spots irking Reitman with her social irresponsibility and less than acceptable driving skills. If only he could get out and direct traffic .

Luckily for the intelligent moviegoers of the world, Reitman has chosen to direct films instead of CLKs. As the writer/director of Thank you For Smoking , and the director of the Academy Award Winning Juno, he has paved his way as an artist with a potent, relevant, and socially conscious point of view. The son of Ivan Reitman, the acclaimed director/producer of the 80s classic Ghostbusters , younger Reitman shied away from movie-making at first, pursuing pre-med at Skidmore College. When his father saw there was something wrong in the MD-hood, he advised his son to surrender his scalpel and do what he loved. Reitman left upstate New York to become a Trojan at USC film school, where like many great filmmakers before him, he prepared to tackle Hollywood one frame at a time. Determined to make a name for himself and not just ride on his father’s proton pack, Reitman worked hard to find personal success at film festivals, like Sundance, and in commercial directing with his unique brand of enlightened, satiric humor. Along the way he discovered his individual comedic voice that has garnered so much critical acclaim. With Independent Spirit Award and Academy Award nominations under his belt, Reitman definitely has a knack for all sorts of moviemaking shenanigans. The traffic community might be mourning their loss, but Ellen Paige’s Juno would be friggin’, forshizz, exponentially proud.

EM: If you could interview one unsung hero, who would it be? Why?
JR: How unsung?

EM: I don’t know. What about a sung hero then?
JR: Sung would be Alexander Payne. Unsung would be Jordan Farmar of the LA Lakers.

EM: Why?
JR: I’d like his perspective on being a Laker.

EM: Do you have Staples Center seats?
JR: We have seats behind the basket.

EM: That’s pretty good.
JR: They could get better. You want to be perpendicular to the basket.

EM: What is your favorite local spot to eat?
JR: (No hesitation): Henry’s Tacos at Moorpark and Tujunga

EM: What songs are at the top of your playlist at this very moment?
JR: Can’t give you that answer because the ones at the very top are being used in my next project.

EM: Okay, how about next to top?
JR: Desmond Dekker’s "Israelites", Roxy Music’s "Love is The Drug", RZA’s "You Can’t Stop Me Now".

EM: What is the last great film you saw?
JR: Kung Fu Panda .

EM: Really?
JR: It’s a great movie, and it’s the first one my daughter has ever seen in the theatre.

EM: Your last intriguing read?
JR: A script I can’t tell you about. And Christopher Buckley’s new novel, Supreme Courtship .

EM: If you could remake/sequel one movie what would it be?
JR: I would remake Pretty Woman shot for shot with a real hooker.

EM: What medium do you go to when you look to be inspired?
JR: I go see bad movies.

EM: Why?
JR: Bad movies make me think "I can do that".

EM: What about good movies?
JR: Good movies make me feel like I have no business making movies.

EM: What new projects are you tackling right now?
JR: Jennifer’s Body , the new movie by Diablo Cody. It’s an amazing script. And we have two films by two first time filmmakers with Hard C (JR’s production company). If you like Thank You For Smoking you will like the next one I’m writing.

EM: I know you’ve discussed Smoking and Juno at length around town, but I just rewatched Smoking , so I decided to pick one question. Tell me about the father-son relationship. Clearly that was an important aspect of the film for you.
JR: Being a father was the most interesting dilemma for a guy who does what Nick Nailer does. You can’t pick who your kids are. It’s humanizing for Nick Nailer. The government parents, but parents should parent.

EM: Who do you currently respect in the industry and why?
JR: Pixar. They have nine or ten perfect movies. All the stories are sharp, interesting, moving, and funny. Alexander Payne. Everything he does says something. A movie has to have a POV, without a POV it’s hard to care. If I could steal someone’s career it would be his.

EM: Do you identify more as a writer or director? Why?
JR: When I’m writing, I’m a writer. I’m a softie, indecisive. My wife says my personality changes depending on if I’m writing or directing. When I’m writing I can’t decide where to go to dinner, and when I’m directing I order her dinner for her.

EM: What was it like being the writer and the director on your first project and then taking the reins after the writing as a director for your second?
JR: With Thank You For Smoking I was adapting. I was reacting and interpreting, carrying someone else’s story. I was probably more precious with Diablo’s script. And anyway you can’t think of a movie as just words, it’s moving; it’s telling a story.

EM: Do you think you’ll ever move into television?
JR: I directed an episode of The Office , and a Saturday Night Live . I think it’s an excellent medium, but it’s very time consuming. It’s hard with a newborn to balance the personal and professional.

EM: What about Cody’s new show, The United States of Tara? Would you consider directing an episode?
JR: I definitely want to get in and direct Toni Colette. But in the end, I want to make movies.