Ava DuVernay Quotes

American - Director Born: August 24, 1972

Creativity is an energy. It's a precious energy, and it's something to be protected. A lot of people take for granted that they're a creative person, but I know from experience, feeling it in myself, it is a magic; it is an energy. And it can't be taken for granted. Ava DuVernay

Creativity, Experience, Myself, People

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

Diversity, Reality, Talking, Box, Check

Be passionate and move forward with gusto every single hour of every single day until you reach your goal. Ava DuVernay

Day, Forward, You, Reach, Goal, Single

I think any black woman is a queen. It's just, do you know it? Do you see it in yourself? Do you recognize it, do you abide by that, do you define yourself as that? Based on who we are and what we've been through and how we survive and where we stand, we are on kind of sacred ground. We stand on the backs of our ancestors. Ava DuVernay

Woman, Yourself, Queen, Black, Survive

If your dream is only about you, it's too small. Ava DuVernay

Small, You, Dream, Only, Your, Too

The way that we're consuming what we watch. Netflix, binge-watching, destination agnostic were not terms. It was about networks, times, dates. Even with feature films, you had to see it this way, in this capacity, at this time. All that has changed. Now it's really about the story. It's a gift that I became a storyteller at this time. Ava DuVernay

Time, Destination, Gift, Story, You, Way

Women have been trained in our culture and society to ask for what we want instead of taking what we want. We've been really indoctrinated with this culture of permission. I think it's true for women, and I think it's true for people of color. It's historic, and it's unfortunate and has somehow become part of our DNA. But that time has passed. Ava DuVernay

Women, Culture, Time, People, Society

I think that black people making art, women making art, and certainly black women making art is a disruptive endeavor - and it's one that I enjoy extremely. Ava DuVernay

Women, Art, Black, People, Think, Enjoy

There's something very important about films about black women and girls being made by black women. It's a reflection as opposed to an interpretation. Ava DuVernay

Women, Reflection, Black, Important

I made my first film when I was 35, so I firmly believe that you don't have to be one thing in life. If you're doing something, and you have a desire to do something different, give it a try. Ava DuVernay

Life, Believe, Doing, You, Desire, Try

Top 10
Ava DuVernay
Quotes

It's not enough even to have one black Barbie... because black women are not a monolith. Ava DuVernay

Women, Black, Enough, Barbie, Because

You could make the most beautiful film, and that weekend it's raining too hard on the East Coast, and no one goes out. Artists should have a chance to do it again. That's the challenge: Women artists don't get a second chance. People-of-color artists don't get a second chance. You're put in director's jail, and that's a wrap. Ava DuVernay

Women, Beautiful, Challenge, Weekend

Diversity is not one in the room. Diversity is not two in the room. Diversity is not three in the room. True diversity is half the room. Ava DuVernay

Diversity, True, Three, Two, Room, Half

One of the reasons why I created the podcast called the 'The Call-In' that we do through Array - because as a black artist, every time I sit down with mainstream media, I'm asked about issues of race, identity and culture. No one asked what they ask my white male counterparts, which is: 'Where do you like to put the camera?' Ava DuVernay

Culture, Time, Identity, Black, Media

I love to see people just being regal in their own skin; it's just when they know who they are. Ava DuVernay

Love, People, Skin, Know, Own, See

Oprah Winfrey is a big role model for me from a business capacity and a creative capacity. She is an incredible interviewer who cultivated a certain style by inserting her own personhood into a show on national television at a time when no one was talking about empowerment, spirituality, or our inner lives. Ava DuVernay

Business, Time, Style, Me, Creative, She

If you're doing something outside of dominant culture, there's not an easy place for you. You will have to do it yourself. Ava DuVernay

Culture, Yourself, Doing, You, Place

In Hollywood, there is one dominant voice. It is a white, male, straight gaze. When I talk about positive portrayals of black people and women, I'm saying complexity. I'm not saying goody-two-shoes, everything's okay. No. The positive view of me is to see me as I am: the 'good,' the 'bad,' the gray. That is a positive portrayal. Ava DuVernay

Positive, Women, Good, I Am, People, Me

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

Change, Progress, Happy, People, World

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

Life, Work, Reflection, Value, People

I want more girls to be able to see themselves behind the camera creating images we all enjoy, and I want to call attention to the fact that women directors are here all over the world. Ava DuVernay

Women, World, Camera, Attention, Enjoy

All the traditional models for doing things are collapsing; from music to publishing to film, and it's a wide open door for people who are creative to do what they need to do without having institutions block their art. Ava DuVernay

Music, Art, People, Creative, Door, Need

There was a time when I was knocking on doors and concerned with being recognized in dominant culture. I've found a space where the terrain is different, where I'm embraced by people like me, and where I'm building new ways of doing things, as opposed to trying to insert myself in a place that might not be welcoming. Ava DuVernay

Culture, Time, Myself, Space, People, Me

Positive characterizations are complex characterizations. That's all we need to know. They shouldn't be saccharine. They shouldn't feel like medicine. Ava DuVernay

Positive, Medicine, Feel, Know, Need

Oh gosh, I'm completely allergic to historical dramas. Particularly those around the civil-rights movement. It's not my favorite thing to watch. So often they feel like medicine. Or not even a history lesson, because I really like history. Just... obligatory. Ava DuVernay

History, Medicine, Feel, Watch, Lesson

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

Good, Live, Interesting, You, Bad, White

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