Angelina Jolie film in Bosnia to be scaled back

SARAJEVO, Bosnia - Actress and director Angelina Jolie is set to make an 'exit' from her Bosnian war movie, as it starts to shoot in Sarajevo

Jolie won't appear behind the camera nor will any of the cast's main actors be present in the city, which will now be shot entirely by a 2nd unit director. Those close to the film have cited several reasons according to the latimes including politics, which was an issue before the film started shooting in Hungary.

A protest erupted before the shooting of the controversial film because of women who had suffered the torments till this day of having been raped during the 1990s conflict, and that the film would involve a love story between a rape victim and her attacker.

The moving of the shoot could also implicate the sensitive nature of Jolie's film on a national scale, and is therefore more likely to play a smaller role in the country.

"Jolie has resisted divulging specifics about her movie's plot, but she said she was aware of the still-raw emotions and was taking them into account." - Nola.com

What went wrong for Angelina Jolie? : Analysis

The troubling dilemma for the Hollywood actress is that if she were to have a strong presence in the capital it could undermine her efforts on other important humanitarian   issues as the backlash for protests could damage her reputation in the country as the UN's Goodwill Ambassador.

Despite the calls for the film to be boycotted, local film industry figures praised her and encourage the country to be more open to the shoot, as it was a tremendous opportunity for the city of Sarajevo.

Local filmmaker Nened Dizdarevic, the director of Sarajevo's film Academy told reporters : "What has happened has been a crime against Bosnia-Herzegovina and its film industry," says Dizdarevic, who was one of the first to go on television at his own insistence, he says to defend the film project. "I am ashamed  of what has happened and the potential damage it has done to film-making here." - Guardian.co.uk

The film's production has not given further information as to why the shoot was 'downgraded', but there has plenty of difficulty for the film since the start despite local support for it.

film industry network members