AIDS is a global problem and there should be a global solution found by the entire international community. It is really scary to see and imagine our world fall into pieces because we refuse to share and put in the common vestiges of our civilizations.

I think that Diwata does not fit that mold. She's loud, she's a huge personality, she's imposing. I don't know if I'm the same thing in that sense, but what gives me the joy in playing her is the total rejection of needing to fit in. It's so inspiring.

I have shot four films for sure. On most days, I wish that there were 48 hours in a day. When a movie is coming to an end and another is going to start, I've felt that I don't want to let go of this one just yet and say goodbye to the character nicely.

Our perception of celebrities in Hollywood is not the reality. The reality of our lives is so much like everyone else's life. We have family members we love, everyone gets up in the morning, they have three meals a day and they go about their business.

People in life take on certain stories and say, 'I'm going to be defined by this story and I'm going to live up to every inch of this story.' Sometimes you realize the story isn't fulfilling you and in fact you're not living the life that you're given.

I was a confused young girl with so much tragedy. Sometimes when you're going through stuff, the last person you're thinking exists is God. I mean, it was my confusion, the anger that was in my heart, all that drama. But thank God I know God now, okay?

I had a real feeling of being fated to be an actor and do my work, and I remember so much speaking up in a room full of people who authentically knew as much or more than me, and feeling like I was absolutely equal, and what I had to say was important.

I feel like network didn't want me. I was doing all these pilots, and it never worked out. I was like, network doesn't like me. I'm going to go to cable where I'm appreciated. Then it was funny; I think I had to go to cable for network to appreciate me.

I went to a lot of different high schools. I had quite a sporadic schooling experience. I went to school in England briefly, to boarding school, and I went to a few different ones in Australia as well. I'm really lucky! I have friends in most countries.

I was so happy that it filmed in New York not only because it's an amazing city, but also because a lot of people across the world somehow started to think about New York as a dangerous place to be and envisioned it as some war zone after that happened.

The first day of shooting, you always want to turn around and go home and say, "What was I thinking?!," and put your head under a pillow and weep. I could maybe go five weeks, and then the nerves would set in about when the next job was going to happen.

Boys used to call me Soda in school days. Soda means 'serving officers daughters association.' I miss those days when I had a very protected life: one could get close and bond with other army people that they gradually would become your extended family.

When I was little I used to dance and model and that was fun. But I was always the person that was goofing off and I would memorize every line in every movie that I saw. And at recess that's what I would do, I would talk to my friends and recite movies.

My dream as a passionate cook has been to go to Le Cordon Bleu. Never could my most incredible dream have lived up to the experience. The food, the lesson, the chef, the ingredients - all the best of the best. I see why Le Cordon Bleu is world-renowned.

For me, whether or not a film has some kind of massive budget or is an independent film, or however it's getting made, it's always about the filmmaker and, hopefully, being a vessel for the filmmaker's vision. That's what really attracts me to projects.

I want to be the best actor that I can be; I want to be working in this business absolutely, and if that means being a movie star, then OK, that's fine. But to me, movie star, celebrity, all that stuff means something very different than being an actor.

It's like you always have to put on a happy face, be the phony baloney, and I'm so not that. I never was that; I'll never be that. That is part of the business that I don't like. Maybe that will always keep me an outsider, I don't know. But that's fine.

There's a lot to be said for women who want to focus primarily on acting. Other women, on the other hand, aspire to combine their work in acting with other ventures in fashion, business, directing, writing, producing, etc. It's a very personal decision.

We slept in the park before we had a house, and eventually we shared a home - my parents, my grandparents and five uncles, my family, all of us - on White Oaks Street by Magnolia Street near the railroad. Those were hard times, but I loved living there.

I can't wait to get my face lifted but my husband says, 'No, don't do it.' I think if it makes you feel better, go for it, but it would be nice if it looked good. There are a lot of people out there who are disasters and you think, 'Why did you do that?

My name is Frances Louise McDormand, formerly known as Cynthia Ann Smith. I was born in Gibson City, Ill., in 1957. I identify as gender-normative, heterosexual, and white-trash American. My parents were not white trash. My birth mother was white trash.

When they don't have your back on a show, it's the worst feeling ever. That energy trickles down to the cast and crew. You can feel when it's not gonna be a winner. But when you have the support of the network and the studio, it's a really good feeling.

As a kid, I was always sick. I had pneumonia, I had really severe allergies. And it wasn't until I got older, that I realized some of that was caused by toxins in things like detergent. That made me crazy, because it's supposed to help get things clean!

Okay, I'm going to let you in on a little secret: I'm a very superstitious person. I'm walking onto the plane as we speak. I'm putting my hands on the outside of the plane and my feet are on the lip of the plane. I have to do it every time before I fly.

On the set you just have to listen very closely, listen to everyone around you, absorb everything and try to be what they want you to be with the little bitty line that you'd have to say. If it was a good line, it would be such fun to say it with vigor.

Miracles, contrary to popular belief, do not just happen. A miracle is the achievement of the impossible, and it is only when we put aside out greed, anger, pride and prejudice so that our minds are open and ready to accept it, that a miracle can occur.

I think of part of myself as a very passionate person, but I don't think that comes across. I don't know where it comes from, that reserve or veneer of British niceness. But it doesn't bother me if other people don't spot the passion. I know it's there.

I have learnt not to make plans in life, because a lot of time you make a plan that is not going to work for you. Right now I am working on my career and trying to be genuine to my work. If you respect what you have got, God will give you what you need.

I really wanted to raise my boys in a place where 'celebrity' wasn't important, and where I could be closer to where I grew up (upstate NY). I love it here - it reminds me of my childhood. It seems more open minded and inclusive, and I love the seasons.

The funny thing is I'm actually really insecure. I have a lot of girl issues - 'I'm not pretty enough,' 'I'm not skinny enough' - but there is a confidence I have in what I can do. I did tend to overcompensate to cover up other insecurities that I have.

You win an Oscar, and immediately people ask how you feel. So you don't have time to actually feel anything because you have to generate a response. And then some of the feelings you have are so intimate and visceral, words don't really do them justice.

I made a decision to live outside the city in northern California. My agent said to me, 'Kid, you're going to make a mint in television movies.' He positioned me, and we picked really good projects, and I cornered that market. They were 20-day projects.

When 'Rookie Blue' began, I was so proud to be a Canadian on a Canadian show that was getting fans in America. I'm so used to working on American projects with Americans, it was a big deal for me to be on a show that showcases our talent... our 'peeps.'

Sometimes, when you briefly glance in Hollywood, there's a tendency to play it in a very "Yes, she's exhausted, and yes, she's working, and yes, she's taking care of her kids full time, and yes, she's a mom, but she's also in a great mood all the time."

I was very sure I did not want to be the stereotype of what Indian people are seen as, which is Bollywood, and henna. That’s all great! It’s what we are, and I love it. I love saris; I love music; I love henna; I love dancing, but that’s not all we are.

I got into the movies by accident. When I got an offer, I thought, 'Let's try this, too.' Everything in my life has happened by trial and error. I didn't even think I would win the Miss India title, so where's the question of thinking I'd come this far.

On stage, there are hundreds of people watching you. It's so much energy directed at you. I pick up energy really easily. Even if I go to the grocery store and no one is paying attention to me, I can pick up other people's moods and it's really intense.

I am one of 40 grandchildren. What bothers me about the whole trust-fund thing is that it sort of presumes that everything is handed to you. And if there is one thing about my family that I do identify with, it is that everyone is extremely hardworking.

In London, there is a section in a newspaper, the Metro, where people write in and thank strangers for their lovely or kind actions throughout the week. It brings me such happiness reading it and makes me know that, ultimately, human beings are amazing.

For me, I have to say that I like to work a lot too, but I like not working better. The perfect scenario is when you just worked and you know something's coming up, then you have four, five, six months off. But you know you're going to have a job later.

I have been doing so much. Speaking engagements... producing... developing a half-hour sitcom... working on a movie... leading acting workshops all over the world... and hosting 'My Black Is Beautiful,' an empowerment TV show I'm doing on BET for women.

As women, we are constantly criticising and judging ourselves in terms of our body, how we dress, what profession we take up, how we fare in that. Indian women are gifted with certain body types and features, which is healthy, and we should accept that.

My birth sign is Scorpio and they eat themselves up and burn themselves out. I swing between happiness and misery. I am part prude and part nonconformist. I say what I think and I don't pretend and I am prepared to accept the consequences of my actions.

'Mr Selfridge' is a lot more accessible than shows like 'Downton.' Everyone knows the store, but not everyone knows the story. Having this store as the backdrop with all of society working under one roof, I think it really captures people's imagination.

It's a bloody shame that all the video stores have gone, I'll tell you. Everything's so mechanical now. It's all so if-you-liked-this-then-you'll-like-this. There's no picking something out, or finding some brilliant person to open up new worlds for you.

If I have anything to say against Obama it's not because I'm a racist, it's because I don't like what he's doing as President and anybody should be able to feel that way, but what I find now is that if you say anything against him you're called a racist.

I've been poked fun of throughout my career by fellow actors for my notes that I take. I have spiral notebooks that I carry with me on every project I do, and I take notes just so that if I have to relive a scene, if I have to go back, I know what I did.

Even in the very beginning when she would bump into George Valentine and people would start taking pictures of her, she never thought "I'm with George Valentine. I need to get a picture with him." She's like "oh that's funny. Everyone's taking pictures!"

My daughter is just as obsessed with playing in my makeup as everyone's daughter is. She paints our walls and herself and clothes and me. So I have to do makeup in 30 seconds or my whole house is covered in my makeup, because she'll just take it and run.

I want to get involved in causes I believe in, and I know so many others that want to also get involved, but it's hard to know how. Often, it's through big organisations, and you don't know exactly where your money is going or what effect you are having.

Share This Page