People

The Oscar-winning actress Helen Hunt stars in and directs Then She Found Me, based on the novel by Elinor Lipman about how a woman's life changes when her birth mother finds her.

Was this film a labor of love for you?

Yes, or else why would I have spent 10 years working on it, banging my head against the wall? I wanted to make a movie in which I would be the only person who could tell it.

You did some directing for Mad About You. What was different about directing this film?

When I was directing Mad About You and also had an acting scene, I didn't want to be in the scene — I just wanted to direct. I was wearing different hats. For the film, I just threw all the hats in the garbage and told the story.

Are you anything like your character?

On the surface, it's not at all autobiographical. But one tiny layer below the surface, it's 100% autobiographical, except I'm not just her; I'm the characters played by [co-stars] Colin Firth, Matthew Broderick, Bette Midler. The whole movie is a naked X-ray of what's important to me.

Will you direct again?

I wrote another movie that I would direct and act in, so unless someone jumps in and gives me a part I can't resist — which I would really love — I will be going back to work to try and get [that] one made.