Dee Rees

The oft-referenced quote by Confucius goes, "Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life." If the saying is true, then Dee Rees' late-in-life move from a career in business to film means her working days are over. As the director and writer of "Pariah"--the Brooklyn-based coming-of-age film about a young girl struggling with her sexual identity--Rees has made her grand debut into the industry to great critical acclaim.

Here’s an introduction to the creative Nashville native.

REFLECTIONS: Hometown: Nashville, Tenn. * First real job: After getting my MBA, my first real job was at Procter & Gamble working on ladies panty liners--basically selling insecurity to women and trying to convince them to wear something every single day of the month that they don’t really need. * How you broke in to the business: This is my second career. I started out in business and worked in marketing at three different companies. Later I realized that I wasn’t doing what I loved to do, so I quit my job and went to film school. * Most valuable business lesson learned: You have to invest in yourself before you can ask other people to invest in you. Like with this film [Pariah], we sold our apartment in Brooklyn to invest in it. The first investment has to come from you, and that’s the biggest way that you can believe in yourself and show belief in yourself. * Most valuable life lesson learned: If you can visualize it then you can have it, you can achieve it. Anything worth having is worth working for. * Advice you would have given yourself 10 years ago: Not to worry about what’s expected of you. Don’t worry about what other people think; do the thing that you really want to do.

WORKING ON CURRENTLY: A TV series for HBO and Viola Davis, and I’m also working on a screenplay for Focus Features called “Bolo.” I have another original TV series that we are in talks with a network to buy called “The Ville,” and another screenplay that I'm working on called “Large Print.”

DIVERSIONS: Reading now: Violence: Six Sideways Reflections by Slavoj Zizek * Reading next: The Exegesis of Philip K. Dick by Philip K. Dick * Last fun purchase: It was probably this Operation game for my girlfriend's son, but it had a Buzz Lightyear theme. It was fun because it was in Target and everybody was scrambling to get their last Christmas gifts, and I had one with a Spongebob theme but I didn’t want it. Then I found the Buzz Lightyear one and felt excited about it. * Recently discovered: I don’t have cable and I just watch Netflix, so I’ve watched a bunch of random TV series that I haven’t watched before, including "Breaking Bad" and "The Walking Dead." I’ve been watching a lot of brain candy lately.

PLAYING FAVORITES: Getaway: I live in Long Beach, [California], so I like just going to the beach and walking, especially during the weekday. It’s not as crowded then, so I just go there sometimes to clear my head and walk around. * Entree: Hash, because my dad and my granddad used to make it. It’s like leftover pot roast and potatoes, and you make hash out of it. * Drink: Dr. Pepper * Director: John Cassavetes