“It just motivated me even more”

After nearly a decade of trying to tell the story of war correspondent Lee Miller, Kate Winslet's passion project, Lee, finally hits theaters on September 27th.

“I'm getting better at not taking 'no' for an answer,” the Oscar winner tells Yahoo Entertainment.

Winslet's nine-year journey hasn't been without bumps, as she recalls a revealing meeting with an unnamed male investor.

“I have met with many different potential investors over the years, and I once had a coffee meeting with a male investor. He sat down and asked, 'Why should I like this woman?' And I thought, “Ah, okay.”. “I’ll take that as a no,” she says.

“It was great because it motivated me even more to break away from this person because I knew there was no way I was going to do a film with him because he didn't understand what I was trying to do. He didn't understand. “I don’t understand who Lee was,” Winslet continues. “And that to me was like… 'This is why I have to make this movie, because people like you say stupid stuff.' So stupid. So stupid.

lee portrays a decade in the life of the American war correspondent and photographer during World War II. Winslet was fascinated by Miller's story because “it was somehow part of history that not only wasn't particularly talked about, but wasn't even talked about in an appropriate or appropriate way.”

“She was so viewed through the male gaze and described as a former muse, ex-lover of (artist) Man Ray, former Vogue cover girl. These labels we put on women are never assigned to men, and But who Lee Miller really was was a war correspondent who went to the front when women weren't allowed to go, and who fought for every single space she could get into , and for which she documented the atrocities of the Nazi regime for the female readers of British Vogue,” explains Winslet. “That's a story I want to see, and that's a story I want to tell.”

Winslet and her producing partner Kate Solomon were full of energy leeThe actress says it was difficult to switch off. When asked if she watches Bravo or counter-programs anything to unwind after a long day on set, she quickly replied, “No.”

“I’m not particularly good at switching off,” she says. “And further lee“I just couldn’t, I didn’t have time,” she says. “I got home, (Kate and I) thought, OK, take a quick shower, and then maybe we'll sit down with a little glass of red wine.” But we always had work to do.

Winslet admits: “I'm not very good at switching off and I don't really mind. It's okay. I switch off when I go to sleep. That's all. The rest is just being immersed in the work. And that’s exactly how I like to do it.”

lee is now in the cinema.