Justin Simien

Racism is wrong, racism is very dangerous.

— Justin Simien

You can't get along in society without an identity.

— Justin Simien

I want to make movies in every genre.

— Justin Simien

I think I have a threshold for taking things too seriously.

— Justin Simien

To surrender your ego, you have to have one first.

— Justin Simien

I loved Lena Dunham's 'Girls.'

— Justin Simien

I think we all have identity crises throughout our lives.

— Justin Simien

It's always kind of gratifying to go back to the place that launched you and show you did good.

— Justin Simien

I think art is much more valuable when it's honest. If it's not honest, it's just propaganda.

— Justin Simien

As a person of color, I was just really tired of the fact that I wasn't seeing my story in the culture.

— Justin Simien

I never liked 'Donnie Darko' quite as much as my film school peers.

— Justin Simien

You know what, man, that's part and parcel of being a black person in this country: everything's harder. It just is.

— Justin Simien

Hip-hop isn't dead by any means, but it's not something I define my black identity with.

— Justin Simien

I like the movies that embrace the complexity of the human condition.

— Justin Simien

Black people are experiencing a systemic disadvantage, and it goes back to slavery, which was not that long ago.

— Justin Simien

It's called 'Dear White People,' but really, it's about these black characters and how they are involved or not involved in a…

— Justin Simien

Any time a black person has the audacity to tell everybody else that they're also human beings, they are confronted with all…

— Justin Simien

My thing is to try to tell the truth as honestly as possible. For me, the weight is, how can I tell…

— Justin Simien

Films with predominantly white casts can come in any form, tell any story, big or small. For black films, you have the…

— Justin Simien

There is no monolithic black culture. It's completely different for someone born in Harlem to someone born in Houston or London with…

— Justin Simien

I was blessed enough to know that I wanted to be a filmmaker when I was a kid, the first time I…

— Justin Simien

Satire and comedy are really the only film mediums where you can get into ideas and have people leave the theater without…

— Justin Simien

I saw 'Beauty and the Beast' at eight years old in theatres and spent hours trying to recreate the majestic imagery of…

— Justin Simien

I have this natural thing in my head that when I sit down to write something serious, I tend to make jokes.…

— Justin Simien

I know it's 'Dear White People,' and you can imprint all kinds of concessions about what the show might be about on…

— Justin Simien

We like to think of the '60s as Martin Luther King, Jr. and Malcolm X and a little bit of friction -…

— Justin Simien

I remember the first time that I realized that being black meant that I wasn't allowed certain things. It was in the…

— Justin Simien

If you walk out of a movie that's meant to be about race in our country, and you're feeling good and happy,…

— Justin Simien

That is just the reality of being a marginalized person in this country: you have to deal with the psychological impact of…

— Justin Simien

Shows like 'Empire'... one of the most profound powerful things is that there's a gay male character who is loved. That character…

— Justin Simien

'Color-blind' comes up - people say 'Oh, I'm color-blind and therefore can't be accused of racism,' but I think that if we…

— Justin Simien

White people don't have that problem, they get to go through life never having to fit into a box, and it's really…

— Justin Simien

I think I'll always be making movies that intend to say something new.

— Justin Simien

I've always thought that 'Dear White People' should live on as a TV show, so I'll leave it at that.

— Justin Simien

Stories teach us empathy. They reveal to us ourselves in the skins of others.

— Justin Simien

Hollywood is a world where the only thing that gets green-lit is something that made money the last year.

— Justin Simien

I wanted to be a filmmaker since I was a kid. I always did things that took me a little closer to…

— Justin Simien

Balance, I think, and self-care is something I want people to really take to heart.

— Justin Simien

I want the Latino 'Do the Right Thing' to happen. I want filmmakers whose voices are not represented to get a shot.

— Justin Simien

It's not new to attempt to vilify the minority that speaks about their oppression. That's not a new thing.

— Justin Simien