Movies

Angelina Jolie directorial debut given US release

Published Sunday, May 15 2011, 17:34 BST | By Simon Reynolds | Add comment

Angelina Jolie will release her feature directorial debut in the US this December, it has been announced.

The film, a love story that takes place during the Bosnian Civil War in the '90s, will be titled In the Land of Blood and Honey and is due to open Stateside on December 23 through distributors FilmDistrict. The firm is a new arm of Oscar winner Graham King's GK Films, which also produced Jolie's film.

The FilmDistrict aquisition and theatrical release was announced today at the Cannes Film Festival.

"The film is specific to the Bosnian War, but it's also universal," said Jolie, who wrote the script for the film. "I wanted to tell a story of how human relationships and behaviour are deeply affected by living inside a war."

Jolie shot the movie in both Serbo-Croatian, which was spoken at the time of the war, and English. The cast includes local actors Zana Marjanovic, Goran Kostic and Rade Serbedzija.

"The former Yugoslavia has a rich history of dramatic arts," Jolie commented. "The cast was extraordinary. I was privileged and honoured to work with them and I am very excited for everyone to see their immense talent."

Producer King said that he is "extremely proud of this film", adding: "The filmmaking is impeccable, and signals the arrival of a visceral and compelling storyteller."

Jolie previously directed the the 2007 documentary A Place in Time.