I was born and raised in the Bay Area. It's the place I got a deep, deep affection for.

You see somebody like me, as young as I was at the time, driving around the inner city of Newark, and to them [police] it doesn't make sense. I've been illegally searched [and had] my car illegally searched. [I've] been handcuffed for no reason. You get in enough of those situations.

For me the movie [Fruitvale Station ] wasn't about that. The movie's about [Oscar Grant] life. And what happens on the platform is a very short part of the film. It's from Oscar's perspective. From the perspectives of the relationships that he's involved with.

Playing a bad guy would be fun, I'm not going to lie. I'd definitely do that in a heartbeat, because it's so out of my nature.

I definitely want to direct. This is just another learning experience for me, to get a chance to hear the questions and concerns the directors have, some of their fears. It's a team sport. You have to give everybody what they need so they are able to perform at their best.

Sometimes you're overthinking, you convince yourself to get out of it and you're like, "Ah I shoulda did that!" You can't live life with regrets. Sometimes you just gotta indulge. But in the same breath, you gotta have restraint and self-control too.

I want to look at my audience and see all walks of life. I want to do something for everybody.