One measure of your success will be the degree to which you build up others who work with you. While building up others, you will build up yourself.

Mike Leigh taught me about making choices - as an actor, you choose between being honest and clever, and with Mike, it's always about being honest. I learned how to behave on a film set from Jim Broadbent. He was a great example of someone with a fantastic career who kept his feet on the ground.

If you look at anyone's career, there are times when you have hard times. Even the best players have to struggle through things.

It was always something I knew I was capable of and from an early age my mother was involved in the film industry. She used to work at a production company. So I was exposed to a renaissance period of films in New Zealand back in the early 80's.

Throughout my career I've fought for the rights of women as full and equal members of society.