I think making movie is kind of like getting fat people to walk 20 miles. If you just do it 100 yards at a time, and nobody knows how far they are going, they can do it!I would include myself in those fat people! You do this little by little and you don't realize your potential, or you don't realize how really rich, and how far you can go.
I can relate to historical characters or imaginary ones. It doesn't matter if a story takes place in the future or in the present, as long as the story is compelling.