I Dream with My Eyes Open. | CJ Jones | TEDxUCDavis

CJ Jones is an actor, producer, director, writer, comedian and founder of Sign Light as well as being a proud member of the black, deaf and hard of hearing community. Through his talk, CJ discusses his fight to break into Hollywood as well as empowering everyone to break away from stereotypes, assumptions, and other limiting factors in order step into their passions and true roles. CJ Jones is an executive producer, director, writer, actor, comedian, musician, motivational speaker and a legend in the deaf and hard of hearing community. Acclaimed for his humor and inspiration, he has done it all: TV, movies, educational films, and stand-up comedy all over the world. CJ founded SignWorld Studios, a film production company, and SignLight, a nonprofit company with a mission to create a post-production training program for the deaf and hard of hearing community. CJ does not stop the accomplishments, and has received the 2018 SAG-AFTRA Harold Russell Award by Media Access Awards. You may know CJ from his character, Joseph, in the 2017 blockbuster summer hit Baby Driver. This role made CJ the first Black, deaf actor in an international Blockbuster. He was also in Castle Rock, Avatar 2-3, Door in the Woods, This Close, Everything Gonna Be Okay, and Shameless, among others. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx