I've often felt unattractive or different looking. As I've grown up, I've felt more comfortable in my own skin. It may sound cliche, but when you feel beautiful and strong on the inside, it shows on the outside.

My earliest memories are of my brother, pointing the home video camera at me and saying, "C'mon, Ange, give us a show!" Neither of my parents ever said, "Be quiet! Stop talking!" I remember my father looking me in the eye and asking, "What are you thinking? What are you feeling?" That's what I do in my job now - I say. "OK, how do I feel about this?" And I immediately know, because that's how I grew up.

I'm shy to call myself a director still. When someone says, 'What do you do for a living?' I don't know if I've earned that.

I'm trying to find things that are extremely challenging or mean something to me deeply.

I do not feel any less of a woman. I feel empowered that I made a strong choice that in no way diminishes my femininity.

I'm happy being myself, which I've never been before. I always hid in other people, or tried to find myself through the characters, or live out their lives, but I didn't have those things in mine.

We cannot close ourselves off to information and ignore the fact that millions of people are out there suffering. I honestly want to help. I don't believe I feel differently from other people. I think we all want justice and equality, a chance for a life with meaning. All of us would like to believe that if we were in a bad situation someone would help us.