Maggie Gyllenhaal wins the Oscar for her debut film script ‘The Lost Daughter’

Actress, screenwriter and director Maggie Gyllenhaal heads to the Oscars on Sunday as a nominee for her adapted screenplay for “The Lost Daughter.”

The last time she was nominated was for her work in front of the camera, for her supporting role opposite Jeff Bridges in the 2009 film “Crazy Heart.”

Now, more than a decade later, she’s a writer, director, and one of the producers of the drama “The Lost Daughter.” The film and Gyllenhaal won big prizes at the Independent Spirit Awards and the Gotham Awards – prizes for best picture, director and screenplay. Now she’s honored to be nominated for an Oscar for her screenplay adapted from the novel.

This is actually Gyllenhaal’s feature debut as a director and her first film script.

“I’ve been making movies for 20 years. I know, I mean, sometimes you make movies that just don’t work at all. Sometimes you make movies that you love that no one else cares about. And having the two come together I know is very, very special,” Gyllenhaal said.

In the film, Best Actress nominee Olivia Colman embarks on a beach vacation that takes a dark turn.

But… the location!

“It’s Greece. It’s Spetses, this island, Spetses, which is actually lovely. You don’t have to have, like, the darkest times of your life there. You can go and have a good time,” Gyllenhaal said.

Gyllenhaal says she likes non-formal films, like hers, that engage an audience.

“I like when I’m out in the public to be respected, to be challenged, to be made to think of myself in ways that I’m not used to thinking about. So I just guess, like , let’s go and have the most interesting conversation we can have,” Gyllenhaal said. “I made the kind of movie I like to watch, you know?

FULL LIST: 2022 Oscar Nominations