An idealistic young FBI agent finds herself dragged into murky waters in Director Denis Villeneuve’s unrelenting look at the war on drugs, Sicario.

Villeneuve’s gritty film features Emily Blunt as Kate Macer, an FBI agent who specializes in kidnapping cases. She is drafted into a task force by a government agent (Josh Brolin), with the target of capturing the head of a drug cartel, with the assistance of another mysterious agent (Benicio Del Toro). But as they delve into matters in the lawless areas of the US/Mexico border, she finds that not quite everything is as it is cracked up to be.

Following the DGA membership screening in New York on September 17, Villeneuve spoke about the challenges of making Sicario, the Mexican slang term for hitman, in a conversation with Director John Patrick Shanley (Doubt).

In addition to Sicario, Villeneuve’s filmography includes the feature films Maelstrom, Incendies, Enemy, Prisoners and the upcoming Story of Your Life; as well as the short films 120 Seconds to Get Elected, Next Floor, and Rated R for Nudity. Villeneuve joined the DGA in 2012.