This is Fresh Air. I'm David B. and Cooley, professor of television studies at Rowan University in New Jersey, Infra Terry Gross.

Penelope Cruz is nominated for an Oscar for her starring role in parallel mothers, the latest movie written and directed by Pedro Almodovar.

She's at the emotional center of several of Almodovar films, including all about my mother, broken embraces, and pain and glory.

She became the first Spanish actress to win an Oscar when she won Best Supporting Actress for her performance in the 2008 film, Vicki Christina Barcelona.

We're going to listen to Terry's interview with Cruz, recorded last December.

Parallel mothers is set in Madrid and revolves around two women who accidentally become pregnant.

Cruz plays Janice, a professional photographer around 40 years old, who is thrilled to be pregnant, although she's no longer with the father.

Her roommate in the maternity wing is a teenager named Anna, who is filled with regret about having become pregnant.

Their lives intertwine in increasingly surprising ways.

The movie, in addition to telling their stories, finds the parallels between the pain and necessity of being honest about your own past and your country's dark past.

Penelope Cruz, welcome to Fresh Air. I love this film. I love your performance in it and your performance in so many other films as well.

So thank you for coming on our show.

Thank you so much.

You have two children. What did you discuss with Elma Dovar about how to portray the birth scene at the beginning of the film?

Which is such an important scene that kind of sets the tone for the rest of the film.

Well, we discussed a lot about it because it's true that Pedro is very open to the process being a collaboration.

Especially in that case, since he has never given birth, he was asking questions to all of us, to the women around that have given birth.

So he wanted to know all the details about the different ways that it could happen, different things that could go wrong.

In my mind, you know, I needed to be really clear about what moment of the process I was in.

When the contractions are still happening every few minutes, it's not like when they happen very, very, like one after another, when you are closer to the time where you have to push.

So yeah, there were a lot of conversations about that.

The movie also portrays just like the physical bond between mother and her child.

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