Arts & Entertainment
Parker
continued from page 8
her time. Four years for this
project, four years for the
last one. She’s been in the
driver’s seat for so long, and
been so passionate about it,
and she’s never taken no for
an answer. And it shows in
the work. Not only did she
write the perfect script, but
she was so intentional about
her vision coming across,
that it made it easy for me to
do my job.
KW: But you bring a lot
to the table, too. I’ve seen
you do reliably great work
in picture after picture.
NP: Thanks, Kam. You
and I will probably be on
the phone a lot in the com-
ing years, and you’ll always
hear me say the same thing:
I attribute everything that
I’ve attained to my leader-
ship. I am nothing without
my director. I really believe
that. I can prepare a charac-
ter, and put myself in a posi-
tion to deliver truthful
nuance and put on the skin,
but it’s the director’s job to
usher me into a place that
achieves the vision in way
that’s understated and
believable.
KW: What message do
you think people will take
away from the film?
NP: I think the first is that
the language of love tran-
Stuffed Mushrooms
scends all obstacles. I think
the second is that in order to
love someone else you first
have to know yourself, and
be comfortable in your own
skin.
KW: The Melissa Harris-
Perry question: How did
your first big heartbreak
impact who you are as a
person?
KW: The Viola Davis
question: What’s the biggest
difference between who you
are at home as opposed to
the person we see on the red
carpet?
NP: I do my very best to
be the same person. I
always say I’m an “actor-
vist.” All I do, I do for my
people. I make no apologies
I try to live my life as an
example for young black men
navigating the life space
Yield: About 50 mushrooms / Prep time: 45 minutes / Cook time: 20 minutes
2 pounds large mushrooms, stems removed and reserved
1 package pork sausage
1 clove garlic, minced
4 ounces cubed and softened cream
cheese
3/4 cup dry Italian breadcrumbs,
divided
1/2 cup (2 ounces) grated Parmesan
cheese, divided
1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
1 tablespoon olive oil
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Finely chop enough mushroom stems
to measure 1 cup; discard any remaining
stems. Place mushroom caps, rounded-
side down, in lightly greased shallow
baking pans.
Cook sausage, chopped stems and gar-
lic in large skillet over medium-high heat
8-10 minutes or until sausage is thor-
oughly cooked, stirring frequently. Drain
and return to skillet.
Add cream cheese, 1/2 cup bread-
crumbs, 1/4 cup Parmesan cheese and
parsley; mix well. Spoon into mushroom
caps.
Combine remaining breadcrumbs,
remaining Parmesan cheese and oil;
sprinkle over mushrooms.
Bake 20 minutes or until mushrooms
are tender and stuffing is lightly
browned.
SOURCE: JIMMY DEAN
NP: Oh my goodness!
That’s a good question. My
first great heartbreak was
losing my father. I was 11,
when I lost my dad. It
changed me, because I had
to be the father for my fam-
ily. My outlook on life
changed immediately, and it
became all about service.
And that’s how I approach
my craft, as if I’m a servant
of the film. Losing my
father was the biggest tran-
sition that affected so much
of my life.
for that, and I try to live my
life as an example for young
black men navigating the
life space. I want to leave a
legacy behind that, when
you reflect about me, you’ll
think, “Okay, there was a
sacrifice made on behalf of
people who looked like
him.
KW: What do you think
about the unrest in Fergu-
son, Missouri?
NP: I went to Ferguson. I
think the problem is deeper
than police brutality. I
believe there’s an overall
dehumanization and hyper-
criminalization of black
youth that affects everyone.
It wasn’t a cop who killed
Treyvon Martin. So, Fergu-
son was not an isolated
incident, but emblematic of
an epidemic that’s been
around for over 400 years.
The injuries and condition-
ing caused by slavery
continue to live within us
today. We’re constantly told
that the value of a black life
is less. There’s a certain
level of white supremacy
and black inferiority that’s
entrenched in our society.
Once you become desensi-
tized to that truth, you fall
right into the trap. And until
we have an honest con-
frontation of those evils, we
cannot heal as a country,
and a Ferguson is going to
continue to happen every
other week. That’s why it’s
so important that you, as a
journalist, and that I, as an
artist, pursue justice, and
make it a strong thread of
who we are as individuals.
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November 12, 2014 The Portland and Seattle Skanner Page 9