The stories of kids who grew up in communities like mine weren't being written about in many books for kids.
The richest most meaningful stories are found in small places: made, carried, crafted, told, and retold by apparently unimportant people.
I grew up in a storytelling culture, a tribal culture, but also in an American storytelling culture.
It is important to tell good stories. You can tell stories even if they are not huge, epic, and wonderful. You can still take the responsibility for being a scribe of your tribe.
I want to keep doing projects that speak for people within the community and tell different types of meaningful stories.
There's a reality that the market is changing, and the stories of the Latino community need to be out because there's a huge audience in need of films that would represent them.
Theater should address the stories of its communities, or I don't know why it's here.
There were many African Americans - many, many stories similar to my story.
In independent film you tend to have stories that involve more of a community, and the smaller characters are important to the story.
My mom is a translator for the school district in Delaware. She'd hear these different stories from working with families there. Those stories stuck with me.
Music is so important. Because in Chicago it's up to us to tell the stories nobody else will.
I can't point my finger on a 'dream role,' but the days that I'm able to fulfill the stories of the 'hood/barrio on film, those will be great days.
