If a young woman is looking at the landscape of Hollywood, what she sees is almost only challenges.

Confidence lets you pull anything off, even Tevas with socks.

I'm really lucky because I surround myself onset with people who I really trust to give me feedback, so I'm directing myself.

It's very easy for me to say what success is. I think success is connecting with an audience who understands you and having a dialogue with them. I think success is continuing to push yourself forward creatively and not sort of becoming a caricature of yourself.

The idea of being a feminist-so many women have come to this idea of it being anti-male and not able to connect with the opposite sex-but what feminism is about is equality and human rights. For me that is just an essential part of my identity. I hope [Girls] contributes to a continuance of feminist dialogue

Katherine Heiny's work does something magical: elevates the mundane so that it has the stakes of a mystery novel, gives women's interior lives the gravity they so richly deserve -- and makes you laugh along the way.

Throughout the day I often ask myself, Could I fall asleep right now? and the answer is always a resounding yes.