"Blanche Dubois says, “I don’t want realism, I want magic. Yes, Yes magic!” For me, that is the essence of Tennessee’s voice. We all long for magic, to leave our human shells for respite. That’s why I became an actor. But my favorite quote in all of literature is, “Sometimes—there’s God—so quickly.” To me that means a moment of grace comes when we least expect it, at the moment we need it the most."

"I love films that are great not only in themselves but in the idea of them that stays in memory. But this then can dwarf the actual film, which perhaps it has in the case of Black Orpheus—some aspects now try one’s patience slightly. A few years back a Brazilian film was touted as the realistic and gritty version of the story, by those who knew the actual milieu—another black eye for realism and grit."

"Hydrangeas are the flowers that tint the shots of this beautiful film. My grandmother was called Hortensia (hydrangeas in Spanish). These are the flowers of my childhood. The film reaches its melancholic note through a floral invasion. It is quite moving and transporting to experience how the room in the theater is filled with their purple. The film explores “fakeism” as an evolution of realism, with color as its main artery. Purple runs through the veins that keep our hearts pumping."