It is a great honor for me to be elected as your President, and I thank you. I'm fortunate to follow in Martha's footsteps. She did sterling work in shepherding the Guild after she stepped up to lead us when Jack Shea resigned.

However, you and I have plenty to deal with. And to be successful, we have to know who we are and what we want as a community of filmmakers. I'm very committed to two facets of that identity — the dignity of the workplace and respect for everyone on the directorial team. And one of the threats we are facing is to our Creative Rights — an issue that affects every member of the Guild, and not just high-profile, final-cut directors, as it goes to the heart of what we do.

It should be a cornerstone of our negotiation process to create a civilized environment for us to do our work. We deserve adequate time for designing shots, working with actors and covering our material. Directors and their teams in television, for example, must receive scripts in enough time to put their best foot forward. When scripts are late, everyone suffers — reputations are unfairly tarnished, the quality of life for directors, actors and crews plummets and no one can be at their creative best.

We need to address not only the copyright issues that'll be fought out in the Denver courtroom on the "CleanFlicks" case, but the deeper questions of what the hell is going on in the digital world and the implications on our future!

What is the future for us all, not just directors, but writers, actors and even studios? Is it possible, as William Gibson eloquently argued at the recent DGA Digital Day, that my 3-year-old son could, in a few years, sit at his computer and deconstruct his father's work? At the push of a button, if it amuses him, he could turn Loretta Lynn into a samurai warrior or a flying pig. And is there a future when there'll be so many versions, of say, Traffic, that you'll need an archeologist to dig out the original?

It's confusing and foggy and we don't have crystal balls, but what we can do is be watchful, smart and united.

One of the industry's most glaring failures has been the inability or lack of will to redress the shocking imbalance of women and minorities in Hollywood. (click here to see this story) It's been an embarrassment for too long — and I'm speaking not just about the lack of job opportunities but the lack of training. While Chairman of the Independent Directors Committee, I actively worked with the committee to bring more women and minorities into the power structure of the Guild. Now it is time to apply that commitment to a much broader canvas.

There's much that must be done and already there are moments when it feels a little overwhelming. But I've done a lot of work in my life, from blockbusters to studio dramas, independent films, television and documentaries and that gives me a certain confidence that I can operate well with every branch of the Guild and bring to the table some understanding of what needs to be done.

Thank you again for this opportunity, and I will do all I can to provide the quality of leadership that this great Guild deserves.