Ziyi Zhang quotes:

There's nothing in Chinese culture that is an equivalent of the geisha. It's so different, so special to Japan.

I wanted to become a kindergarten teacher like my mother.

Whatever you see - any good results - are all from the pressure.

My profession has helped me to grow up.

In China, we don't consider someone truly beautiful until we have known them for a long time, and we know what's underneath the skin.

It's not that I wanted to be an actor; it's that I didn't want to be a dancer! I was trained in traditional Chinese dance, and after working so hard it seemed unfair to just disappear into a group.

Chinese women are much more modest than American women when it comes to clothes. We tend to show less flesh.

My parents sent me to a dance class, so it was a road chosen by them, not me. But I enjoyed it so much I knew I would become a performer.

For myself I don't like the geisha look. It's like a mask.

I want, through my roles, to express the parts in the hearts of Chinese women that they feel unable to let out.

Even though I've done Hollywood films, I still don't think of myself as a Hollywood actress.

I've discovered that I value simplicity above all in dressing. I don't like anything I wear to be too complicated or fussy.