Mia Kirshner | Quotes

“I was always pushing and encouraging for more truth, which would mean that the sex would be darker, painful, and sometimes not so pretty to watch.” – the Daily News (2004)

“Often, what you see with Jenny is not pretty. She’s in love with two people at the same time. She’s one of those people who will just grab experiences because of the holes inside her, and with that, she will leave the casualties in the wake behind her.” – the Daily News, on her character in The L Word (2004)

“I couldn’t imagine doing a sexy sex scene. I hate to shatter the illusion. It’s still a job. … It depends who you’re working with. Sometimes there’s a great deal of intimacy, sometimes I am thinking about doing my laundry or calling my friends.” – the Daily News (2004)

“I never wanted to be apart of a show that was about gay women, because I think that marginalizes the women. I want to do a show about people’s relationships with one another. – “The L Word Defined” (2004)

“I love being in front of the still camera…Something just opens up inside of me.” – Modern Woman (1998)

“I was always acting at school, which was why I was considered a weirdo. I was exactly the way I am now, but back then nobody knew quite what to make of me.” – Modern Woman (1998)

“If you want something badly enough and you hold onto it, you can make it happen. Believe in yourself regardless of what other people say.” – Modern Woman (1998)

“For so many years I’ve been told ‘too pretty, too ugly, too short, too fat, not talented enough, too talented’ – it can drive you crazy. At some point, I realized it’s important to find something within me.” – Modern Woman (1998)

“I didn’t know I was going to meet anybody so I wore these dirty clothes. I had rips in my jeans in all the wrong places. My T-shirt was pulled up , and my pants were falling down. I couldn’t even look John and Dustin in the eyes. I just sat there, playing with a rip in my jeans, making it bigger and bigger.” – Toronto Sun about her audition for Mad City (1997)

“To be a good actress, you have to have a normal life. It’s not real to stay in beautiful hotels, getting your hair and makeup done. My life is riding a bus, papers and exams. I want to strike a balance between two lives.” – Toronto Sun (1997)

“The professor wanted to organize a trip to see (Anna Karenina)… I was really embarrassed because I don’t like people to know what I do. I usually tell them I don’t know what I want to do with my life yet.” – Roughcut (1997)

“I am not interested in marketing my body or my sexuality. For me it is performance first. I don’t believe in that kind of career. I’m not saying I look down on those women who take off their clothes. If it’s necessary in a film, do it — but only if you’re comfortable with it.” – Roughcut (1997)

“Then there’s doing nude scenes. “It’s sort of gross, having your dad watch that stuff with you.” – Allure (1997)

“First of all, I’ve said this before, so we’ll just get it out of the way right away. I think people are misusing that name completely, and it bothers me. It’s rather thoughtless and naive to label someone a ‘Lolita.’ And it’s boring.” – Detour (1996)

“I don’t want to work with people who are mediocre and doing mediocre work. That’s why no concessions should ever be made with anything, from how I’m photographed to who photographs me, to who interviews me, to what publication it is, to what film I do.” – Detour (1996)

“The other thing that really attracted me was my character, Sarah. She’s so different from what you normally see in female characters in this type of film. Normally these women are strong, tough, machete-toting women who make no sense at all. But Sarah’s written like Ophelia. She’s this really delicate, fragile girl. She’s so smart and so sad and so spiritual at the same time.” – Detour (1996)