Deborah Mailman Quotes

#1. When I see a role I want, I fight for it.

Deborah Mailman

#2. About Grade 9 and Grade 10, I had a fantastic drama teacher, and it was one of the first subjects I actually felt that I was good at. I wasn't a mathematician. Didn't like science, any of those subjects. English and Drama were the two subjects that I loved and felt that I was good at.

Deborah Mailman

#3. My school friends thought I was outgoing and bubbly, but that masked a lot of insecurities, and maybe that's the reason I chose drama - to build a bit of self-confidence. I had a great teacher, and I won a few speech and drama competitions and just fell in love with it.

Deborah Mailman

#4. If I look at the one thorn that is in my side, of all my life, it is my weight. I fret about it, I'm anxious about it, being an actor on television - it drives me insane. It just seems to be something that plays a central part in waking up in the morning and thinking, 'How am I with myself today?'

Deborah Mailman

#5. Both 'Mabo' and 'The Sapphires' have been significant roles because it's about my people. They are celebratory stories, on top of allowing people to understand our history.

Deborah Mailman

#6. If there's one thing I could wish for right now, it would be to have one of those horses from the merry-go-round - they were the most exciting thing to go on as a kid.

Deborah Mailman

#7. I grew up with horses and cattle, running around on dirt hills with this real sense of space. We didn't have neighbours - well, the nearest ones were kilometres away.

Deborah Mailman

#8. I'm not a hugely social person. Obviously there's a big part of the job that requires that as actors, but it's not the most comfortable for me. I'm a homebody. I don't go out. My life is work and family. There's not a lot in between. That's how I like it.

Deborah Mailman

#9. I'm not a girly girl, never have been. I really admire those who love to frock up.

Deborah Mailman

#10. Motherhood is wonderful, but it's also hard work. It's the logistics more than anything. You discover you have reserves of energy you didn't know you had.

Deborah Mailman

#11. I never get used to the red carpets and premieres, to be honest, but when you're walking down the red carpet promoting stories such as 'Mabo,' it means everything to me.

Deborah Mailman

#12. I was big as a kid, very overweight. That caused a lot of insecurities for me growing up, and on top of that, I didn't like the idea of big crowds. I found it quite frightening. I enjoy the company of people who I know, and I'm probably still like that today.

Deborah Mailman

#13. Some people think that there aren't many Aboriginal actors around, and if there are, they're not that good. It's stupid. There's such an incredible pool of talent out there, and they're still coming out of drama schools. People just need to take a leap of faith.

Deborah Mailman

#14. There is that idea of seeming crazy when you're seeing spirits or you're seeing dead people, you know what I mean? There's a certain sort of stigma, a sort of kookiness, when it comes to that.

Deborah Mailman

#15. People understand about family; people understand about being in situations where you have to be brave. People get falling in love.

Deborah Mailman

#16. The Australian film industry is a small industry, so you have to really be flexible within working in different mediums. A lot of actors work in theater, film, and television, because there's not much opportunity in terms of employment there.

Deborah Mailman