Once you lose your parents, you get this numbness, this feeling of having to really be able to connect yourself with someone. I depended on my brothers for that connection, but to have that feeling of being taken care of… I lost it when my parents passed away. Adam Beach Read Quote
I learned the mechanics of how to fly a plane, but I never lifted a plane off the ground. Adam Beach Read Quote
With ‘Smoke Signals,’ the character was so much like me growing up. I lost my parents, and I wish I’d had an opportunity to find out where they were. So I was reflecting on how I grew up, that feeling of abandonment. That whole film was a reality that I always held back and kept to myself. Adam Beach Read Quote
I never understood the realism of an imaginary circumstance. While I was doing ‘Smoke Signals,’ I relied on my instinct and what I grew up with. I had this energy, but it was a one-dimensional thing. Adam Beach Read Quote
Acting has made me embrace my childhood. It’s become some weird form of therapy. It’s like I have a place where I can release all of these emotions. When I was playing Ira Hayes, I didn’t have to think about the death of my parents directly. It’s just there. I can blend it into Ira’s character. I can use Ira’s emotions as an outlet. Adam Beach Read Quote
I was in high school. A couple of my friends and I decided we had to be in a class together where we could fool around, and drama was it because we’d do improvs, beating each other up. They left a year later, and I stayed in and got a knack for it, and enjoyed the whole process. Adam Beach Read Quote
When I was sixteen I started acting, and I also started to embrace my tradition and culture. I had a young medicine man interpret for me what it is to be an Indian. He really caught me at a good time because I was really vulnerable after the loss of my parents with all of the feelings of abandonment. Adam Beach Read Quote
I remember, as a kid, I’d follow the rooster and the chickens and watch what type of grass they’d eat. And me and my friends would eat that grass, like that was our lunch. Adam Beach Read Quote
You can’t propel a nation to move forward if all you are doing is taking something from them. Adam Beach Read Quote
I’ve learned that for Indian people, the opportunity for us to succeed is very slim. So acting was a great tool for that. And in the process of learning about my culture, I’ve learned how to connect myself again to my ancestors. Adam Beach Read Quote
