"Women Talking" writer-director Sarah Polley: "I approach filmmaking with a lot of gratitude now"

In Sarah Polley's film "Women Talking," the women in a cloistered religious community have been sexually abused. They decide to vote on whether to leave. "What these women are talking about is literally breaking down one world and building a next," Polley said. Follow Sarah Polley on Instagram

The Oscar-nominated screenplay, adapted from a book by Miriam Toews, was written by Polley, who's also the film's director. She told Mason she was initially reluctant to direct herself: "I have three little kids."

Polley told Frances McDormand, who co-stars in the film and co-produced it, that she couldn't handle the long, grueling days away from her children. "There was this little pause, and then Frances McDormand just kind of went, 'Well, men have written the rules of this industry, and this movie's called "Women Talking," so we're gonna change the rules. Amen, sister. We're just going to do it!'"