Despite having recently obtained Polish citizenship, “A Real Pain” director Jesse Eisenberg has no plans to leave the United States anytime soon. Speaking at the Karlovy Vary Film Festival, where he received this year’s President’s Award, the actor-turned-director said he feels a “responsibility” to remain in New York City as his home country grapples with the Trump presidency.

“I’m a very lucky American,” he said. “I have a nice life. My wife is a teacher and teaches a lot of students who aren’t as lucky as us. I think, if anything, we feel a responsibility to stay in New York and help those who are struggling during a most difficult period in American history. No, I’m not going to leave because I don’t like American politics. That seems a little silly, because my life is very good.”

Eisenberg’s next directorial effort is the musical comedy “The Debut,” starring Julianne Moore and Paul Giamatti, scheduled for release in the United States on December 3, courtesy of A24. The film’s first official trailer dropped last week, just a day after it was announced that the American film company had reached an AI research partnership with Google that will see the independent studio work with Google’s DeepMind unit to develop new AI-powered technologies for filmmakers. Many disappointed film fans rushed to post the trailer on social media to express their disappointment with the partnership and their rejection of AI interference in film, particularly artist-focused independent film.

Asked about Variety How he felt about the unfortunate moment and whether it may have affected him in any way, Eisenberg said he didn’t dwell on it because “it has nothing to do with me.”

“A24 couldn’t have been better at making our analog film,” he continued. “The movie is set in the 1990s, with two stars who have been working forever and who are just brilliant in the movie. We shot on film, which is very rare, so the movie felt like a movie from the 1990s, which was my era growing up and starting to watch independent films. Our movie couldn’t have been more analog.”

The director highlighted how A24 “said yes” to all his requests, from Moore and Giamatti to filming and setting the story in the 90s. “Our film is the opposite of AI,” he added. “It doesn’t really affect our film at all. A24 is a really smart studio. All I can say is that my interactions with them over the last five years have been the most artist-friendly. I’ve never worked with a studio so closely, where every decision they make is about what would make things better. I’m sure they’re worried about the economy, but never about me. It’s like winning the lottery working at a company like that, where the only thing they seem to care about, and the only thing they ask of you, is to make the best version possible of your film.”

asked about Variety As to whether it was different heading into “The Debut” after having a critically acclaimed, Oscar-winning directing project in “A Real Pain” or directing a film after the poor critical reception and lukewarm box office of his directorial debut, “When You Finished Saving the World,” Eisenberg said he “felt more comfortable directing” this time around.

“I didn’t feel like there was any opposition,” he continued. “With my second film, ‘A Real Pain,’ I felt like I had to prove myself even more. I realized this. [that] When actors make their first films, there is a sense that this person could be a genius. If that movie doesn’t work, you’re starting off way below genius because now you’re an actor who can’t direct. When I was doing ‘A Real Pain,’ I thought: Now I’m an actor who lost money for a studio. That was worse than starting. In the last film I felt a little more comfortable.”

The “Zombieland” star also noted that the circumstances (and, to some extent, the stakes) are slightly different for him as a writer and director. “Because I write scripts, that allows me to be the first person to get the job as a director. I feel like if I write a good enough script, I can always direct it. For directors who don’t write, it’s more difficult. If their movie doesn’t work, they won’t be the screenwriter’s first choice.”

Eisenberg may be getting ready to release “The Debut,” but his next big project in life is something else entirely: He and his family are headed to Ukraine for charity work. “My wife teaches in public schools in New York City. She teaches art and is really wonderful with kids. We found a program called The Campfire Project through Jessica Hecht, a wonderful American actress, and she offered us the opportunity to go work with kids at a camp. My wife is going to teach, my son is going to play with the kids, and I’m going to be the cameraman on my phone.”

“Our lives are very lucky,” he said seriously. “If we ever find an opportunity to help, of course we take it. We’re not saving any lives, but it’s nice to be able to go and help.”

During a long conversation at the festival on Saturday, Eisenberg talked about not reprising his role as Mark Zuckerberg in Aaron Sorkin’s upcoming sequel to “The Social Network,” “The Social Reckoning.” “At the time, the movie seemed very strange to me because no one really knew who he was,” he said. “He was interviewed on ’60 Minutes,’ which is our big news show, but otherwise he wasn’t in the audience much. I thought he was an interesting character. And then he became famous and now I don’t want to do the movie. […] “I don’t want to be associated with him anymore because I don’t really like the comparison.”

The Karlovy Vary Film Festival will take place from July 3 to 11.