Black Nativity certainly lends itself to reinterpretation. It was kind of designed to be infused with the creativity of whoever is putting it on, and every performance is a little bit different. So, this is definitely my version of Black Nativity. It has its own story, which is a family story. Langston Hughes' Black Nativity informs it, and is contained within it.

I'm able to inspire other people, to see the potential of a career, they can look to me and see that they can do it.

I think Black Nativity movie has a very clear message. It's about a family in crisis facing some of the very familiar struggles we face in our communities. It's really about love, redemption, forgiveness, faith and family, the things that have gotten us through so many hard times, and that continue to get us through them. When times are hard, we need each other.

The biggest challenges are always getting into the rooms that you need to get into and having people open to the types of stories that I want to tell. And I feel that just being a female director and doing that is a big deal in this country. On my third movie I worked with a French DP. I asked him has he ever worked with a woman director before? He said in France a third of directors are women; so you can’t avoid them. So I realized that the US is behind.

One of my foolish qualities is to jump boldly, and then think about it later.

My guiltiest pleasure is reading a novel with a glass of wine. I love to read voraciously. I always have. And I love to lose myself in a good book.

I've come to really believe that I have something to offer as a filmmaker, that goes beyond what I had to offer as an actress and maybe this is what I'm meant to do.