"CODA" is the story of a high school girl who is the child of deaf adults, which is what CODA stands for.

The film took last year's Sundance Film Festival by storm, and it's now up for three Oscars, including Best Picture. "CODA" stars Academy Award winner Marlee Matlin.

In an interview for LA Times Today, Matlin joined host Lisa McRee to talk about this very personal film along with her real-life daughter Sarah Grandalski and her business partner Jack Jason.

It has been a long time since audiences have seen a good portrayal of a deaf family onscreen. Matlin said it might not have happened since she won her Oscar for the film, "Children of a Lesser God.”

"We've seen a lot of appearances of deaf actors in television and perhaps in some feature films, but not to the level that you see in this film. [‘CODA’] really focuses on family life, a family that happens to be deaf and we get to see their daily activities and the culture," Matlin said. "It really focuses on universal themes. I am really excited that the audience gets the opportunity to see this. It's one of many, many universal stories that we have to tell and hope we can share on the screen."

Screenwriter Sian Heder wanted to get her portrayal of the deaf community right. She worked closely with Matlin to shape the characters and the story.

"She took the time to study deaf culture," Matlin shared. "She took the time to learn American Sign Language. She hung out with many deaf people in the community, and she really focused on talking with us as actors about the characters that we were playing, the scenes we were involved in, about our signs, about our language choices. She really talked to us one on one as actors, which usually doesn't happen. She put her trust in us, and in turn, we put our trust in her. There was no ego involved."

When Matlin's daughter, Sarah Grandalski, watched the film for the first time, she got emotional.

"Growing up, I did have the opportunity to go on set with [Matlin] a lot, so when I did go on set, it wasn't anything new to me," Grandalski said. "I didn't pay as much attention as much as I feel like I should have. That's what made me watching the movie with her when it was done so much better. I was really able to see the whole story that was told, and things that I could have related to as I was growing up with my mom being deaf. It really touched me in a way that leaves me speechless. I cry honestly every time I talk about it. I tell everybody to watch it. It truly puts you in perspective. Not a lot of people understand. So it really makes you open your eyes to appreciate what you have because you know, it's not the same for everybody, and it's a beautiful story."

For Matlin, appearing in a film that reflects her kids' experiences was also special and emotional.

"As a mom of four hearing kids and with a husband, who's also hearing, it was exciting to be able to represent this film, bringing a lot of experiences in my life as a mom of a CODA," Matlin explained. "Jackie Rossi, the character that I played, and I shared a lot of things. Although we are different in many respects with how we treat our kids, it really resonated with me to be able to watch it with my kids. Because first of all, it's our perspective and yet it's a different perspective. And I wanted them to know that not all families are like our families. We are all different families. I know that my kids know at the same time watched it and identified with it."

At the 2021 Sundance Film Festival, “CODA” was sold for a record-breaking $25 million. Matlin explained that despite that success, it can be hard to get financing for a film that centers around deaf characters. 

"I understand that this is based on a traditional model of Hollywood where you finance based on box office or who can greenlight a film or who you cast. What this film did instead was to show that you can, on the creative side and on the financial side, create a happy medium where you can hire actors who are deaf, who can carry a film and who can create financial success, as well as work the same way with behind the camera. Hopefully, the model that we have here in this film, where deaf actors were leading, will open the eyes to people who finance films and you can do it and do it financially and successfully."

For Matlin, it is time for hearing actors to stop playing deaf actors on screen.

"It's not a costume that a hearing actor can put on and pickup," Matlin said. "You're not clued into what it's like to be deaf, you don't live deaf as we do. We're the ones who live it. We're the ones you can portray it. And that includes the disabled community as well."

Filming "CODA" was an emotional experience for Matlin's co-stars as well. On the last day of filming, Daniel Durant, who plays Matlin's son in the film, became emotional thinking of what they had created and how many doors it would open for him.

"CODA" is currently available to stream on Apple TV+.

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