Angelina Jolie is on the cover of the Hollywood Reporter, along with Jennifer Yuh Nelson. Nelson directed the wildly successful Kung Fu Panda 2, in case you were wondering!
Inside the mag, Angie opens up about being a woman director for the first time with her debut In the Land of Blood and Honey, and the worries that come along with it.
Mainly, both Angelina and Jennifer are mystified as to why there aren’t more women directors, and how Kung Fu Panda 2 is only the second animated film to ever have been directed by a woman:
AJ:”Isn’t that crazy? Animated films are so family-oriented, you’d think that there would be women.”
JYN: “I don’t think about the gender thing very much. But when I speak at schools, I’ve had female students say to me afterwards, “I never envisioned myself being a director, since I’ve never seen women do it.” But after seeing me, they can picture themselves directing, so maybe we’ll see more female directors. And half of these kids in art and animation schools are girls.”
On role models:
Jolie: “I’ve had the fortunate experience of working with so many interesting directors, from Michael Winterbottom to Clint Eastwood. I tried to remember the experiences that were my best as an actor, and what a director did to give me comfort and confidence. And I tried to keep a happy crew, which I learned a lot about from Clint and Jen.”
Nelson: “I remember being in the middle of Kung Fu Panda, which took three years, and everyone was upset and tired and wondering if we were ever going to see the light at the end of the tunnel, and Guillermo del Toro stopped by and gave me the “man” speech. He said, “You’ve gotta man up and take this, and don’t be scared of making bold choices.” He was such a great supporter.”
When did she have the time to write:
I wrote whenever I could, when the kids were asleep or in their classes. Halfway through some of the most horrific scenes, I’d hear, “Mommy, I need another story, I can’t go to sleep,” and so I’d pause what I was doing and go tell happy stories about bunny villages. I studied a lot about the war, and watched a lot of documentaries. They won’t see this movie. They know that mommy, on occasion, goes off to Libya or other places. I make them very conscious of the fact that there are a lot of people struggling through different things, and I don’t protect them from the fact that war isn’t a video game, it’s a very, very horrible thing.
Wow!
We understand that getting a movie made and off the ground is hard no matter what, but it sounds like it’s an extra struggle for women. Luckily, Angelina and Jennifer are there to prove that sticking to your art and your passion, and having the guts to move forward (and the time), ladies can have just as much success out there as guys. KP2 made $663 million world wide!!
So if you’re a woman out there and you have a dream, go to it! It’s waiting for you to give it a shot, not to just fall in your lap!
Can’t wait to see Land, Angelina!
[Image via WENN.]
-
Categories
