I went to a school in Miami that seemed like a private country club. The whole cheerleader, football player, clique-y thing there was terrifying. Those people were so scary. They're the scariest kinds of people because they are idolized by their peers. They have everything, they have money, and they're just mean-spirited. It's crazy.
TV is part of your life - it makes you feel connected to the rest of the world - as opposed to someone else's perspective crushed into a few hours.
I had talked to my agent a lot over the years about not being interested in stereotypical "black films" [because] I didn't like the way they were representing black people over and over and over again in the same way.
It's sad to have to leave your family but I like the idea of someone believing in something so strongly that are willing to find a new family.
When I read the script [of Good Kill], it read like a science fiction film. And Andrew [writer/director Andrew Niccol] is known for sci-fi. But when I spoke to him, he said this picture was 100% factual, which blew my mind. I realized then how little I knew about the drone program. And I felt that, if I knew so little about it, there must be others who should be educated about what's going on.
Television's getting better because people are investing more money and time and respect into it. But the secret weapon of television is that, because it's a slow burn, you get to meditate on things and develop them. As opposed to film, where you have an allotted amount of time and hopefully you can wrap it up in there.
Let's let everything come to the surface, even with people we come in contact with for a moment. This situation can help us be a little bit more awake with each other.
That's my approach to makeup in general, highlight something, what you love about yourself, but don't cover anything up, or distract from what you actually look like.
I like photography and I write; I also write music. One day I would like to direct [films] as well.
So, first, I wanted to be a part of the project because I thought it was an important story to tell. On top of that, it's rare to find roles for strong, young, feisty women, especially in a military film. And I love that Suarez ends up being the moral compass of the story, and that she's also brave enough to stand up to all these men.
You have to take care of your body, you have to rest, drink water, try to eat well, and then on top of that, you use makeup to highlight your beauty that comes from your health.
It kind of varies. I don’t have a method yet. It depends on the script and the character I think I need. I’ve worked with acting coaches, researched roles, and channeled different parts of myself. It’s on a case-by-case for me, right now.
Fashion is fun, and fashion is a form of art and self-expression. And I think it should have a wink-wink nature to it. For me, it's about the way it makes you feel. If you want to feel sexy, you want to feel bright, you want to feel good. That's what people are attracted to - when they see you execute an emotion or an idea clearly and proudly.
I do think women are unfairly judged by their physical appearance, but I don’t think it had anything to do with being mixed-race. In my opinion, mixed-race people are the most beautiful.
I always messed around with makeup. From a very early age, my mom would let me play with hers, and my grandma, and my aunts and stuff were always like, 'Let me put lipstick on her!' that they'd have in their purse. But I think just from a very young age I've had fun with makeup.
If everyone is there to make a good film, everyone is down to earth, and everyone is there for the right reasons - the scale doesn't really matter I think.
When you look cakey, or you have too much on, and you actually see the makeup, the makeup isn't doing its job. When you use the makeup in a way where the people aren't thinking about the makeup, and they're looking at you, that's what we want.
I think it [my first heartbreak] probably just taught me that you will always heal. That this too shall pass. The first time you feel that sort of pain, you think it's never going to go away. Once you do survive it, you realize you can survive anything.
Black women have kinky hair, and we think we have limitations on what we can do. It's interesting that people think, 'Oh this is the only thing they can do.' But if you have blonde, straight hair and don't change it for 20 years - nobody thinks about it. Nobody says anything!
