When Kiwi stunt double, actress and newbie director Zoe Bell crossed paths with
scandal-engulfed Hollywood movie mogul Harvey Weinstein it was "seldom pleasant".
But it was never sexual.
"I don't think I'm really his type, possibly."
But the 38-year-old, once described in the Observer as the "the female Rambo and the Steve McQueen of female actresses" after her many roles as stunt doubles for Hollywood heavy-hitters such as Lucy Lawless and Uma Thurman, told the Herald on Sunday this week she couldn't be more proud of the women with the "gumption and courage to come forward" about sexual harassment in the entertainment industry.
"I'm proud of those women and I'm proud of the support they're getting. I just want it to rip away the unspoken element. Because I think it's the unspoken element that acts as a shadow. It's a shadow that people can hide in. It's a shadow that people feel shameful of.
"Shine a light on the thing. It gets harder to get away with it. It gets harder to romanticise it, minimalise it. So I'm really down with the groundswell of what that means."
Bell's credits as a stuntwoman and actress include Thor, The Hateful Eight, Iron Man 3, Inglourious Basterds and Kill Bill.
She had not been personally affected, but sexual harassment and violence in the entertainment industry, and other industries with powerful figures, has hit the headlines with many women, and some men, coming forward to say they have been victims.
The finger has been pointed at Hollywood heavyweights such as Kevin Spacey, Steven Seagal and Dustin Hoffman, but it is producer Harvey Weinstein who has sparked the highest number of accusations, with dozens of women claiming he sexually harassed or assaulted them.
Yesterday, Kiwi actress Anna Paquin supported Ellen Page's account of allegedly being outed by Brett Ratner.
Page has accused Ratner of "outing" her by asking an older woman to sleep with her in order to help her "realise she's gay".
Anna Paquin took to social media to back up her colleague's comments, saying she was there when the comment was passed.
"If you can't think of the glaringly obvious reason I remained silent then perhaps you've forgotten that I've been in this victim grooming industry since before I hit puberty," Paquin tweeted.
Bell, who has extended her career into acting, producing and, most recently, directing All Black coach Steve Hansen in the Armageddon-style Arnott's commercials and short film, lives in Los Angeles but will soon return briefly to New Zealand.
The reason is as important as her work flipping through the air, dangling off the bonnets of speeding cars or being flung into walls.
Bell has been invited to help lead a large, free, female-only, self-defence class at Shed 10 in downtown Auckland on the evening of November 23, two days before White Ribbon Day, an annual campaign that raises awareness of violence towards women.
Reebok Confidence Unleashed will be open to more than 100 women and will include a body combat warm up and workout and self-defence training, such as blocking and getting out of shoulder and clothing grabs.
Registrations for the event have closed after all the spots were snapped up.
She loved that there were women who already wanted to "kick a**" in life, but hoped those who felt they didn't have the right to would come along.
"Have a watch, have a play. This is a safe place to learn."
It wasn't just about being safer in the world, but also being more confident in life, she said.
"Even if it's just saying yes to a job promotion or asking for a job promotion. Just that sense of entitlement to confidence that we often second guess ... for the record, I do constantly.
"I'm not immune to a lack of confidence or the recognition that I haven't asked for what I deserve or stated what I want ... maybe me sharing that with other people might help me with my own s*** as well."
She had missed directing opportunities earlier in her career because it had not occurred to her that she could do it, a feeling her male colleagues did not necessarily share.
"Whether I'm more or less qualified than my male counterparts, there's a willingness or a readiness or an expectation that it's normal that they would step in for that role ... for females there's a sense of being apologetic about it or hesitant or you have to explain why you're deserving of it rather than just feeling like you're deserving of it."
Now the Arnott's project was finished, she had signed up for her next commercial, although she could not talk details.
She also hoped to get into a directing course next year, Bell said.
"It's scary but I'm really enjoying it. I'm enjoying being scared. I'm out of my comfort zone, but that's where you learn, isn't it?"