Remember last month at SilverDocs, when Spike Lee declared that the election of Barack Obama would “change everything…it’s gonna be Before Obama, and After Obama”? He repeated himself virtually word-for-word at a press event last week at the Television Critics Association conference, where he showed up to shill his upcoming Kobe Bryant doc for ESPN. Lee also predicted that the candidate’s election will change Hollywood’s attitude about race, and argued vehemently against a SAG strike.  Some excerpts from the event, delivered to us by Kevin Kelly, follow after the jump.

Q: In this age of Barack Obama and the country talking more about race, do you feel the entertainment industry is more open now than it has been in the past on subjects involving African-Americans?

A: Well, I don’t know necessarily so, but I do think that this November – excuse me – he’ll take the oath January 20th. When that happens, it will change everything. It will change the whole dynamics. I think that is going to be the most historic moment – one of the most historic moments in American history, world history, and you’ll have to measure time by before Obama and after Obama. So I’m very excited. It’s an exciting time to be alive now, and I think that with him coming into this position it’s going to affect art, sports, everything. Everything is going to be affected by this seismic change of the universe.
Q: How do you think it will affect film and television and maybe the changes that have already started to happen?

A: Well, I think it’s going to affect it for the better because I think – I know for sure – I have been coming back and forth from New York to L.A. for 22 years to make films. The gatekeepers are not people of color, and that’s how things are going to change because there’s only a few people, we are talking about cable , network, and the studios, to decide what films are going to get made, what films don’t get made, what goes on TV, what doesn’t. And I think the biggest change will be when the change is reflected amongst the gatekeepers, the people that make those decisions.

Q: You’ve been very outspoken about your desire to make a Jackie Robinson biopic yourself, and about the conditions under which such a biopic should be made. What are your thoughts about being on a panel with the biopic being made and you’re not involved?

A: Well, I’ve been at peace for a long time. In fact, it’s not just Jackie Robinson. I have a trilogy of films I’ve tried to make back after Malcolm X, but nothing got made because of financing. Jackie Robinson was first; Joe Louis was second, and most recently was James Brown. In fact, I thought for sure that James Brown was getting made because I was coming after Inside Man. Inside Man made over – just under $300 million worldwide. So I thought, “Yeah, I’m in there,” but that wasn’t the case. So, you know, Rachel Robinson is a very dear friend of mine, and I want her to see this film. She wants this film made. I mean, she’s got to be 85. You know, up there. So she’ll be very happy when this film is made.

I’m just going to be a real moviegoer like everybody else. You know, I’m happy that the film was getting made. I’m not the type of person saying, “If I can’t do it, F it.” That’s not the way I am. I’m glad it’s getting made, and it’s a great story, and it should be made. I’m happy that ESPN is doing it.

Q: You’re in the unique position of seeing the union arguments from all different sides – you’re a producer, you’re a director, and you’ve acted in your own films – so you hold multiple cards. Can you weigh in on what you think is going on today in terms of the producers setting a deadline and the fact that they’re in these meetings later today to discuss it with the SAG leaders?

A: Well, here’s the truth. I would say the majority of the people in SAG don’t work – the majority of the SAG members don’t work as actors. So it’s not really going to hurt them if they vote for a strike, but I hope it doesn’t happen because I think that – if you realize it’s not just when the writers were on strike, it’s not just the writers, it affects the whole industry. It does down to the person who does catering. It goes to the valet that parks the cars. If people aren’t working, they’re not going to go out to lunch, not going to come in and park their car. It affects everybody. And in this country economically, we’re in bad shape – people are losing their homes, their jobs. I mean, it’s terrible. So hopefully people won’t be selfish. I just think it should be worked out. Think that they need to read the newspapers and see the state of the economy and where we are as a country.