I think being ambitious, successful, powerful, making a lot of money - I don't care what color you are as a woman; it's difficult to find a mate. I think the natural order is that men want to be providers.
I come from a long line of strong and confident women out of New Orleans. My grandmother and great-grandmother were women who ran their homes and were leaders in their communities. I was never taught that there was anything that I couldn't do, and I believed that.
Growing up, I learned that if you are passionate about something, that you can move mountains. Passion is more precious than gold, and it's a currency that everyone craves. It's something that's hard to fake, and when it's real, everyone wants to be on that train. It's about giving people something that they can believe.
I've worked with a lot of first time directors; in fact, I enjoy it because there is a certain beginner's mind that they bring into a project that isn't loaded with the way things have been done before. There's a certain freedom to it.
