SAG-Nominated Hilary Swank Talks "Conviction," Upcoming Projects

It was a crowded field for actresses this awards season -- in a different year, Hilary Swank might have expected a Golden Globe or Oscar nomination for her portrayal of Betty Anne Waters in Conviction, the story of a woman determined to free her brother from prison. But any awards nomination is gold for Swank, so long as it gets the word out about the film and its message.

"The more recognition and talk that it gets, the more people see it," Swank said. "It's a movie close to my heart and a labor of love for all of us. Betty Anne Waters is my real life hero. Betty Anne is who I want to be when I grow up."

A waitress, Waters went from being a high school dropout to becoming a lawyer (getting her GED, going to college, then law school) so she could represent and exonerate her brother Kenny, who was wrongfully convicted of a murder and robbery he didn't commit. He served 18 years of that sentence, and was released in 2001 after DNA evidence was found and witnesses admitted that they lied under police pressure. Waters was aided in her struggle by lawyer Barry Sheck and the Innocence Project.

"He's virtually saving lives," Swank said. "He really led her down the path so she could help her brother. And hopefully the movie will shed a light on the issues we have in our judicial system and help free another person who is in prison now but is not guilty. Some people have been in prison for years, and that's time that will never come back."

Swank's next few projects aren't quite as heavy on the drama, although they do revolve around the theme of love in its many forms. Her next film -- as a producer -- is an adaptation of the book Something Borrowed, starring Ginnifer Goodwin and Kate Hudson as best friends, at least until one sleeps with the other's fiancé. Swank's also attached as an actress to star in a Gabriele Muccino movie called What I Know About Love, about a family collapsing. And she's currently filming New Year's Eve, which revolves around a series of singles and couples on that holiday. What's not on her slate, despite reports? The John Carpenter vampire film Fangland.

"I'm not doing that," she laughed. "That's just one of the things that's talked about that's not real. It's like when they said I was going to be in Iron Man 2!"