00:00Hi, I'm Mara Brock-Akeel, and I'm a wife, I'm a mother, and I'm a showrunner creator.
00:05Issa Rae, and I'm a producer, writer, content creator.
00:08I'm Shonda Rhimes, and I make television.
00:10Hello, I'm Debbie Allen, actress, dancer, choreographer, director, producer, writer, composer, mother, wife, cook.
00:21The black woman that has inspired me to be in arts is really my mother, Vivian Ayers.
00:27She encouraged me to dance, to study ballet, to train, even though things were segregated in Houston, Texas.
00:34She's always been my greatest critic, my biggest fan.
00:39She's an accomplished writer, composer, cultural activist, great cook, and she's beautiful.
00:47My mom.
00:48The black woman who inspired me to go into show business was Whoopi Goldberg.
00:51I saw her live on Broadway show when I was about, I want to say 17.
00:55And it was so brilliantly written, and it really inspired me and made me think I could be a writer.
01:01It was just a different kind of writing, and it spoke to me.
01:03I mean, it had nothing to do with me, it had nothing to do with my life, and yet it felt entirely familiar.
01:09It made me feel like I could be a writer.
01:12The black woman who inspired me to go into show business is Gina Prince-Bythewood.
01:16I remember the first time I saw Love in Basketball, knowing that it was written, directed, co-produced by a black woman, shot in my neighborhood.
01:24I just remember just my eyes opening wide with like, oh my gosh, I could do this, and I want to do this, and I want to create these stories.
01:30I definitely credit her for me taking that leap.
01:33The first step I took was writing a script.
01:35I wrote her a letter asking her to direct the script, actually, and she wrote me back and encouraged me to keep writing, and that was like the fuel I needed.
01:43Like, yes, she wrote me back, I'm supposed to do this.
01:46It's funny that Debbie Allen is here today.
01:48She was everything.
01:49I remember her on fame, but I think when I found out she was behind the storytelling of Different World, I was like, I've got to get in that world.
01:56I think before, television was something that I experienced, but then when I realized she was doing it and how much the stories moved me, I wanted to be a part of that conversation.
02:05It's such an honor to be here with her because our journey has continued, but for us to be documented together in this way, I'm near tears, actually.
02:16I'm so excited.
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