Julie Delpy Quotes

The last thing you want to do when you are about to film a scene is think, 'Oh my God, so many people are going to watch this.'

Acting is really about having the courage to fail in front of people.

Whenever there's a camera in my face, that's when I feel vulnerable, and then it turns into a little bit of being self-conscious, which I think is the worst kind of vulnerability.

Comedy is frightening at first because you're opening yourself up. When it's just you and people hate it, you're like, "Oh God. Do they hate me?"

I was terrorized by the emotional requirements of being an actor. Acting is like letting your pants down; you're exposed.

It's different when you're an actor and playing a part, but when it's just you, you feel immensely vulnerable have strangers prodding and prying.

You're used to having a camera in your face when you're playing a character - it's like having a mask on. But when you have to be you, you're so worried you'll make an idiot of yourself. Acting is a kind of escapism.

I say I'm not shy, but... Acting is a very vulnerable experience, and you've got to be really confident to put yourself out there to be judged.

I think maybe even one of the reasons I became an actor was actually to hide. I mean, it sounds paradoxical because, of course, people are standing up in a public place and encouraging other people to look at them. So that's not the conventional definition of hiding.

When you're on stage singing, you're naked. Your voice is something very intimate, and that's why I'm scared every time before I perform. It doesn't matter if I'm singing for a king or a queen or the Pope, it's enough to be in front of anybody. I suffer, but I can't do anything about it.

When I show a film at a festival, I am showing myself. Everything is at stake for me.

When you stand up acoustic in front of an audience, you really are a man without any clothes on. And that can be fun - it depends how much of an exhibitionist you are, I suppose. I quite enjoy it.

As an actor, you put yourself out there. You put yourself in the arena as an easy target.

I think I'm actually much too shy to do any performance art. I admire the big swings those guys take, but I'm not a one-man band.

I'm not used to people watching the stuff that I do.

Being an actor is just kind of embarrassing.

Actors are very demanding because they have nowhere to hide. If I write a scene, it doesn't turn out very well, I don't ever have to show it to anyone; when you turn the camera on, or when you walk on stage, they have to feel like what's happening is real.

Actors, by very definition, we want people to pay attention to us, and so usually, that comes in the package of insecurity. So if we're not comfortable, we don't really show you a lot.

There's something so naked about being on stage as a musician. I think about that even with standup comedy or something - like, 'This is it, this is what I got.'

I did musicals. It's funny, because I can hide behind a character and a voice, but when I have to bring myself and my own voice to it, it's very nerve-wracking.

In general, I probably have a shy nature. So the idea of poking out with my music is probably not something I want to do.

Personally, I have a hard time playing live. A big part of it is because the lyrics are really private.

I'd rather go on stage and talk or do public speaking than sing. Singing is very scary. It's very exposing.

Obviously when I'm put in a situation where there is a lot of attention on me, it's this weird dichotomy - I like it, because I feel like I'm a natural born performer. But I do feel the most vulnerable.

I was vulnerable every day. Every night that I stepped on stage I was laying myself open.