Interview: Ava DuVernay

In addition to making history as the first African-American woman to win the Best Director Prize at Sundance, DuVernay was honored with the 2013 John Cassavetes Spirit Award and the Tribeca Film Institute’s Affinity Award for her second feature film Middle of Nowhere.

In 2010, she wrote, produced and directed her first narrative feature, I Will Follow. Released theatrically in 2011, the family drama was hailed by critic Roger Ebert as “… one of the best films I’ve seen about the loss of a loved one.”

I was delighted to have the opportunity to speak recently with Ava for what turned out to be a terrific conversation about her background, movies, and independent cinema.

Here are links to the six installments of the entire interview:

Part 1: “I was a double major — English and African-American Studies at UCLA — and never even ventured into the film school while there. I had no idea that this would be what I would be doing. I knew I loved film. That was all.”

Part 2: “When I write a screenplay… I’m writing for myself. I’m the director and I need to create an emotional map. Not just plot, but a map of where these characters are, where they’re going and where they’ve been. A map from which I can direct the actor, direct the action, direct the production designer, direct the cinematographer.”

Part 3: “It was self‑financed from my bank account. I had $50,000 and I had to make it all in for that amount. The first rule of low‑budget filmmaking is, don’t move. I had to think of something that was all in one location.”

Part 4: “To me, it’s a beautiful ending and a happy one. It’s a woman who’s stepping into herself and being in a relationship with herself for the first time in a long time.”

Part 5: “We definitely benefited from the Sundance light that was shown on the film. It helped us get to the finish line and get it out there.”

Part 6: “Really, my lesson was — and it’s helped me in a lot of other ways — that to do something, to be something, you don’t have to be all in right away.”

Please stop by comments to thank Ava and ask any questions you may have.

Ava is repped by Paradigm.

Twitter: @AVAETC