(continued)

You've been out of the limelight for a few years now. Does celebrity and tabloid culture seem crazier now than it used to be?
Yes, especially the TMZ stuff. I was followed by TMZ last night. But it doesn't really affect me. I'm not like those girls who have them following me home. I'm also responsible for them photographing me at all—I can take ownership for that. If I didn't go to these parties, nobody would write about me. I get it. I don't mean to be playing the game, but I guess I am.

That leads to things like the John Mayer hoopla that happened a few weeks ago, where everyone's writing about how you two might have a crush on each other.
There was nothing to talk about. Really, nothing. I'm more intimate with you than I was with him. Honestly. I wish my life was that interesting, but it's not.

After seeing the film, I felt like having a home birth is the only thing a self-respecting woman can do. The movie strongly suggests that women should have home births.
No, I'm not suggesting that at all. I'm suggesting they do their own homework. To be educated. To be an informed consumer. It is time that we have a movie on birth that's positive, not about horror stories. If we can get the general public to ask questions about the system we have in place, that's overall what I want to happen. We're not going to see a skyrocketing in home births, but that wasn't my goal. My goal was to educate and empower women.

Are you done with documentaries?
No. I want to do more. But I don't want to finance it. I want to get the financing from somebody else. Next time, I don't want to pay for it.

What would you like to work on next?
I want to do another one on birth—birth around the world, in different cultures. I have two children, so I don't know when that can happen. I want to make movies that interest me. I don't know what is going to spark me like this has.

What has the feedback been like so far?
It's been incredible. I'm sure the American Medical Association is going to say something. It's like McDonald's after Supersize Me—I'm just waiting for that to happen. I don't want people to feel judged at all about the choices they make. It's not about bashing women, bashing doctors. I'm not anti-hospital. I love drugs. I'm the daughter of a pharmacist. I'm the big believer of pain medication when needed. But birth is not an illness—it should not be numbed.

It's like the weight issue. People say that I'm against gastric bypass. Really, I'm not against any woman doing whatever she wants to do to her body. When people were first talking about my weight loss, they talked about Star Jones. She looked great. She did what's best for her. I didn't go that route. It was the right thing for me. I hope women don't feel bad about their experience. But I think it is possible for women to have a positive, empowering birthing experience in any way, whether it's adopting, whether it's having their C-section the way they want, having an epidural the way they want. Being informed is key.

This film is coming out amid what seems like a big focus on pregnancy, in the movies and among celebrities.
It's very timely, I think. We didn't even know when we started this movie that Michael Moore was making a movie on the health care system. And then there's Juno and Knocked Up and Jamie Lynn Spears—it feels like this is the zeitgeist. I hope that people see a little bit of a parallel. And with malpractice insurance and with health care system the way it is—it's all a bit fortuitous for us as a film, plus it being an election year. I'm really optimistic that this could have like a life, or a little bit of a life for a tiny movie. I wanted to create something important, and I feel like I am now. It just came from my babies being born. It's such a personal project for me. It's so personal.

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