Angelina Jolie and her kids were spotted at the Toronto Film Festival this past weekend. The celebrity mom and her kids were in full support of the animated movie, The Breadwinner, which is based on the hit book by Deborah Ellis.
The Breadwinner is a story that centers around an 11-year-old Afghan girl named Parvana who passes as a boy to make ends meet for her family. Parvana becomes the breadwinner and, through her, viewers are reminded of how much girls and women in Afghanistan endure because of cultural customs.
“A lot of people in the Afghan refugee camps in Pakistan, including folks who were related to kids who had [disguised the fact that they were girls],” Deborah told Publisher’s Weekly during an interview in 2012. “The characters are composites,” she added.
Ellis went on to explain how she became interested in Afghanistan. “When the Taliban took over in 1996, the news of their crimes hit the Toronto papers,” she explained. “As a feminist and as an anti-war activist, I heard about what was happening to women and I wanted to do something to support those folks. I thought if I went over and gathered together people’s stories of how they had survived and what they’d been through, who they were, we [Canadian women] would have a better sense of how we could be useful.”
Angelina Jolie, like Deborah Ellis, is also an activist. She, too, sheds light on social struggles in a different region of the world that has experienced much devastation because of societal issues. “I never thought I could make a movie or write one, it was never part of my plan,” Jolie told media of her Netflix film, First They Killed My Father.
“For me, it wasn’t just about becoming a director,” Jolie continued. “I believe our world is stronger for diversity and I love to learn about cultures and I love to work with artists from other parts of the world. It’s the greatest way to deeply learn and know each other is to create together. In my humanitarian work, I’m passionate about that. They’re my heroes, the people I’m involved with. They’ve taught me to be a better person, a better mother, what to live by, what to value. If I can do films that bring their stories to life, I think those are important stories.”
Angelina Jolie is the proud mom of six children. Check out the trailer for The Breadwinner below!
Photo: Wireimage
