I think that the Japanese culture is one of the very few cultures left that is its own entity. They're just so traditional and so specific in their ways. It's kind of untouched, it's not Americanized.
In a lot of films, forever it's been boy-meets-girl, and thank God for films like - I know it's going to sound ridiculous - 'Frozen.' I was so excited for my daughter to be able to watch a love story between two sisters instead of some stupid prince.
I just never want to repeat myself. I also don't want to be bored in life. The great luxury of being an actor is you get to be different people, and I would hate to be repetitive.
Being in the desert was brilliant and it was hard.
I find it strange that actors are on the covers of magazines.
I kind of realized I could sing, so I played around with that for a while. And that led me to acting in itself, which I came more passionate about by the age of 15.
I'm not Buddhist, but I am drawn to it because it seems the most beneficial of organised religions and the most compassionate.
I believe the more important thing is your mind and your heart. Those two things are the most ignored parts of our beings.
My plan is to have no plan. If you know what plan you have, life has its own ideas and will take you in any direction it pleases. So my idea about life is to just be open to it and to go with the flow and go with my gut.
I just want to find some inner peace, and I think I'm getting there, slowly but surely.
An accent in a way can be an entry into a character.
I love rides. I'm such an immature person.
I want variety. I want versatility. Otherwise, I'm wasting the opportunity of being an actor, which is all about variation and change.
I played a lot of mothers before I even became a mother. It wasn't like I set out to be some sort of mother crusader.
I don't mind where I work, it's really nice to be able to travel around and taste the flavours of different countries.
I can't imagine a world without music.
We were just covered in dirt the whole time. It was so hot - and that was in winter. I can not imagine what it's like in summer and how the people who actually live out there survive.
Mothers are so awesome. They do so much. They wear so many hats and have very passionate relationships with their kids, and with life, and I think it's a real balance having your own existence and then being this responsible, kind of loving person in someone else's life or several other people's lives.
Independent films have a certain freedom about them - there isn't so much at stake in terms of money. I think they're more interesting because they're not watered down to appeal to the masses. They tend to have a unique voice.
The way a character looks reflects what's on the inside. I can make myself look really bad, and I can make myself look kind of gorgeous. It's not about me; it's about the character.
I guess in Australia every film is sort of an indie film because there are no studios.
The people who are most attractive to me are those who feel most comfortable in their skin - there's a sense of self-acceptance.
My face moves, unlike some actors' do. I guess it's kind of a response to what's happening internally.
I think there's an inevitable fact that I somehow absorb part of what I'm doing, because that's what you're constantly thinking about, and that's what's in your veins, and that's what you get up at 4:30 in the morning for and fall into bed after.
I hate it when the mother is just the mother in movies.
I've been extremely happy and fortunate in terms of what I've achieved and the experiences I've been given.
Also, I think having a musicality about me that helps in identifying different things in languages and getting them right.
If I get dressed up, and my boyfriend says, 'You look gorgeous,' I kinda feel funny. I don't know if I'm particularly comfortable with being attractive.
Cameron and I actually do wear the same size. It made it very easy for the wardrobe department.
Sometimes it was so quiet, it's frightening. It really prioritizes things.
I wouldn't play glamour for glamour.
My 20s were totally bonkers. I was living out of a suitcase and burning the candle at both ends. But I tell you - I am totally over it.
I grew up watching a lot of American television and so the American sound has been in my psyche somehow for a long time and is quite familiar and so that does make it easier.
I love holidays. It's such a wonderful time for the whole family to be together and not have to worry about schedules and that kind of thing.
The better you know yourself, the better your relationship with the rest of the world.
My life is fancy dress, so I prefer not to do it in my spare time.
I prefer comedies when they come from a dark kind of place and have a reality to it.
Whether it's a movie I'm in or not, if there's a good movie, and it's low budget, and you know everyone's done it just because they were passionate about it and they cared for it, if it has any kind of audience, it's just a wonderful outcome.
When I look at a character, I never look at the size of the role. I always look at the whole person, no matter how much they're featured in the movie.
After 'Muriel's Wedding,' I first went to America, and I was sent all these scripts about fat girls overcoming hurdles. Something in me knew not to go down that road, even if it was a good script.
I think when I was younger, I used to sort of long to be a part of films that were really gritty and hardcore in a way.
I love working. I love it! It makes me feel awake and alive and appreciative, as does my family, but in a different way. If I was told I couldn't do it, I think I would wither and die.
I'm glad that it was so physical and so isolated.
I wish I had more patience.
To be able to create a character and tell a story is a crazy way to make a living. I feel so lucky to be able to do this.
Oh, I definitely want to direct. I have young children. My job is already big enough, and I imagine it will be even more so as a director, and I don't want to miss out on them growing up. I'm going to wait until they're a bit older before I leap into that seat.
I have to say, I feel really lucky. I've had a lot of great characters to play.
I'm starting to realise that there are certain themes that I return to, those being that there is no such thing as normal, and people finding their voice and living authentically. And also that you can be influenced and helped through an extended family.
If I hadn't had acting, I would probably have imploded.
