If I can be in a place where my image is encouraging people to see different people behind the camera, and my image and the images I make can help open up a certain world view, I think that’s all a part of a larger spirit of change and progress, and I’m happy to be part of it. Ava DuVernay Read Quote
You gotta follow the white guys. Truly. They’ve got this thing wired. Too often, we live within their games, so why would you not study what works? Take away the bad stuff – because there’s a lot – and use the savvy interesting stuff and figure out how they can apply. It’s a good one for the ladies. Ava DuVernay Read Quote
Artists should be free to create what we want. I believe there’s a special value in work that is a reflection of oneself as opposed to interpretation. When I see a film or a TV show about black people not written by someone who’s black, it’s an interpretation of that life. Ava DuVernay Read Quote
I financed and made my own films from the start. My path has been autonomous and independent, so I don’t have any horror stories about glass ceilings and expectations and tense studio meetings. Ava DuVernay Read Quote
Art is something that grows and breathes and lives, and it shouldn’t be predicated on the success of box office – but it is. But within that, you have to give people a chance to find their voice, to play, to continue to create. Ava DuVernay Read Quote
I think that women definitely have a special bond as friends that is hard to describe to men, and we don’t often see that portrayed narratively. Ava DuVernay Read Quote
I intend to be making films until I’m an old lady. So, if God willing I get there, I need to create a paradigm for myself where I can make it regardless of whether or not they still like what I’m making. Ava DuVernay Read Quote
When we’re talking about diversity, it’s not a box to check. It is a reality that should be deeply felt and held and valued by all of us. Ava DuVernay Read Quote
