Amy Heckerling

It definitely sharpened my interest in language, the way people used language, slang words, speech patterns. There's a big advantage to being the outsider. ”

There are a lot of people in Beverly Hills who come from the Middle East, who are very much a part of the Beverly Hills fabric, and their kids grew up with the privileges of Beverly Hills. And yet they still have to deal with a lot of the prejudice against them for being foreign-born. ”

Body image - what we're supposed to look like - is made so unattainable that all girls are put in this position of feeling inferior. That's a horrible thing. ”

I'm just not happy with Hollywood. ”

I wasted most of my 20s being so frustrated I forgot to have fun. I was so concentrated on one thing - 'Must make movie.' ”

Some women are great, and you wouldn't have been able to get to where you are without them, and others are doing what they can to undermine you. ”

When you have somebody writing or acting for you, you have to be free to have them hate you so you can get your ideas across without worrying. ”

I'm obsessed with history, especially WWII and the Jews in Europe during the Holocaust. ”

In one respect, I like the freedom of using all the people that I love instead of being dictated by the studio to use the hot person of the moment. ”

Over-the-knee socks remind me of the 1920s, silent films, and the stars of the era who wore the rolled-down stockings. They sort of referenced that in 'Cabaret,' when Liza Minnelli was singing 'Mein Herr,' and I love the way she looks in that scene. ”