More times than not, my pain stems from an area in which I've been least authentic. The second I identify the source - the area of my inauthenticity - I begin to feel better. This allows me to take complete responsibility for my emotional discomfort, and the awareness enables me to move beyond the blockage. I become energetically unstuck, allowing the pain to pass through me.

Because I came into acting late, my references come from real life. That's my biggest inspiration. It's probably the reason I moved back to New York. I'm just a lot more inspired by real life than I am by depictions of real life.

It will be difficult if people can't get past their prejudices; I don't mean Black and White; I mean people automatically assume because a film has a predominantly Black cast, that it is a particular quality of film.

When faced with emotional pain, I become still for hours, sometimes days, doing absolutely nothing. It helps me get to the truest source of my suffering.

Wanting an honest opinion about my art from someone whose opinion I respect makes me feel vulnerable. It's a great space to be in.

I've lived in Paris. I've lived in the Slovak Republic. I've spent extensive time in England, and I've traveled all over Europe.

An unresolved past erodes beauty in the present.