Quote

Because I was playing Idi Amin, who dealt with the colonisation issue, I became aware of this internalised conflict of what it means to be torn between cultures, what it means to be taken over by other cultures.

Forest Whitaker

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Forest Whitaker
Age: 63
Born: 1961
Born: July 15
Actor
Film Actor
Film Director
Film Producer
Karateka
Television Actor
Television Director
Voice Actor
Longview
Texas
Forest Steven Whitaker
Mean
Aware
Conflict
Became
Playing
Amin
Issues
Dealt
Taken
Torn
Means
Cultures
Culture
Issue

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And God, God who believes in us all. And who's given me this moment, in this lifetime, that I will hopefully carry to the end of my lifetime into the next lifetime.
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In every project, I always look for the depth of humanity inside of it. I'm just trying to say if we can help in some way heal the equation with [Afro-Americans] what's going on with us as people.
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I do believe there's life other than on our planet.
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We have to not just open our eyes to what's going on in other places we need to open our eyes to what's going on right in front of us.
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I certainly don' think I could've played the character [Idi Amin] the same way without being in Uganda. I loved working in Uganda.
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I think the biggest thing that motivates me when I'm choosing a part is a role that will help me continue to grow as a person and as an artist, and a role that will deepen my understanding of humanity, and my connection to it.
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I was pretty much consumed by this character. Even when I was off, I was continually searching to find something else new about [Idi] Amin, and to embed myself deeper into the culture to the point that, in the end, I was so entrenched that I could tell what tribe someone was from just by looking at them.
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I care about people. In the end, I think they feel it. It comes across, regardless of the character I'm portraying.
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Since Idi Amin was from the Sudanese section in the north of Uganda, he was darker skinned. He had more of a blue undertone. So, we did change the coloring of my skin to be closer to his. But otherwise, there were no transformations besides acting.
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I really wasn't even sure if I should continue acting. I would like try and figure out if I could be good enough to do it. It was like 10 or 12 years into my career before I felt like maybe I can do it. It was such a different time than now.
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When I was a kid, the only way I saw movies was from the back seat of my family's car at the drive-in.
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Until film is just as easily accessible as a pen or pencil, then it's not completely an art form. In painting you can just pick up a piece of chalk, a stick or whatever. In sculpture you can get a rock. Writing you just need a pencil and paper.
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