The 57-year-old director said he had to take jobs to pay the bills as he struggled to get his own projects made, such as animated feature Anomalisa, according to The Hollywood Reporter.
"I need to earn a salary. I am doing what I can to make a living, but hoping to do what I would like to do," Kuafman said.
His first film as a director, "Synedoche, New York" was not a commercial success, despite a cast that includes Philip Seymour Hoffman and Samantha Morton. "That hurt my chances," he said.