"Juno" director wanted to be a doctor

LOS ANGELES (Hollywood Reporter) - Two years after winning acclaim with his debut feature "Thank You for Smoking," director Jason Reitman is now competing for an Oscar with the teen comedy "Juno," the biggest hit among the movies vying for either best director or best picture.

The 30-year-old Montreal native recently talked with The Hollywood Reporter about his initial career choice as a doctor and his fear of being a rich kid with a wasted life.

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: THANKS TO YOUR FATHER, DIRECTOR

IVAN REITMAN, YOU GREW UP ON THE SETS OF SOME GREAT COMEDIES.

WHAT MEMORIES DO YOU HAVE OF THOSE FILMS?

Jason Reitman: The first set I remember was (1984's) "Ghostbusters." I remember showing up on the Manhattan street set, and they had these giant slabs of concrete sticking up in the air -- and I remember thinking as a kid, "Wow, if you get to direct a movie, you get to break the streets of New York."

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: AND THUS YOUR CAREER WAS DECIDED.

Reitman: And thus my field as an independent filmmaker who made small, talky films was sealed.

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: KNOWING THAT, WAS IT PREDESTINED

FOR YOU TO BE IN THIS BUSINESS ONE WAY OR ANOTHER?

Reitman: My whole life, people told me I was going to be a director. I'd walk around sets and grips would tell me, "Hey! There goes my future boss!" In high school I made videos and stuff, but by the end of high school I was scared of being a director. The going perception of children of filmmakers was that they were talentless spoiled brats who had drug problems and were ungrateful for how fortunate their lives were. So I went into college and actually did go premed. Nobody ever questions that decision.

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: BUT YOUR DAD ACTUALLY TALKED YOU

OUT OF IT, IN A WAY.

Reitman: My father visited me at school and said, "What are you doing?" And I told him, and he told me a great story: When he was 17 or 18, he saw in Quebec that these submarine sandwiches -- which for some reason had not yet hit Toronto -- were really popular. So he came to my grandfather and said, "Give me seed money, and we'll make a fortune." And my grandfather said, "Ivan, I'm sure we could make a lot of money, but I don't think there's enough magic in it for you." So my father told me the story and said, "Jason, if you become a doctor, your mother and I will be very proud. But I don't think there's enough magic in it for you. You're a storyteller; you have to follow your heart."

THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER: IT MUST HAVE BEEN NICE TO AVOID THE

WHOLE "STARVING ARTIST" PORTION OF THE CAREER, THOUGH, RIGHT?