One of the big reasons why Angelina Jolie’s longtime fans are so excited about Pablo Larrain’s Maria is because we hope that this will mark Angelina’s return to acting consistently. She had a lengthy “wilderness” period where she was focused on her family and doing smaller projects close to home. But even before Angelina left Brad Pitt, she had already spent years avoiding acting gigs like the plague. There was a hope that working with Pablo Larrain somehow made Angelina realize that she could have a lot of fun if she simply took more acting work. Well, it’s all happening. Angelina has signed on to another film, set in Paris. More specifically, set at Paris Fashion Week. Angelina will be working with acclaimed French director Alice Winocour.

Following her critically acclaimed turn as legendary opera singer Maria Callas in Pablo Larraín’s “Maria,” Angelina Jolie will return to Paris to star in Alice Winocour‘s first English language directorial effort. The movie, titled “Stitches” (“Coutures”), is set in the world of high fashion and unfolds in Paris. Jolie stars in the movie as a filmmaker and is one of three women whose lives will collide during Fashion Week.

Filming is expected to begin at the start of next year with Charles Gillibert‘s Paris-based banner CG Cinema producing in partnership with Zhang Xin and William Horberg of Closer Media.

“Stitches” also reteams Winocour with French production-distribution powerhouse Pathé Films following her well-received movie “Paris Memories,” which world premiered at Cannes’ Directors Fortnight and earned its star Virginie Efira a Cesar Award (France’s equivalent to the Oscar) for her performance as a survivor of a brutal terrorist attack. Pathé Films will distribute “Stitches” in France. UTA Independent Film Group structured the financing for the film and is representing global and North American rights. Hanway Films is handling international sales.

The film will shoot in both French and English, in line with Winocour’s previous movie “Proxima.” The latter starred Eva Green as an astronaut preparing for a year-long stint on the International Space Station, coping with the guilt of leaving her young daughter and navigating a male-dominated environment. Green was nominated for Cesar Award for this role and the movie won the platform prize at Toronto, as well as the jury award at San Sebastian.

[From Variety]

Angelina does speak French at some capacity but I’m not sure if she’s fluent enough to pull off a role which is half in French? But you never know, maybe she’s more fluent than we know, or maybe the character mostly speaks English. While this sounds like a fantastic French art-house kind of film – and I love that for Angelina, truly – I do hope she’s also getting scripts from the Hollywood studios? I’m slightly worried about her financially, because Brad Pitt is going to keep financially abusing her for years longer. Mama needs to pick up some big paychecks.

Photos courtesy of Cover Images, Backgrid, Avalon Red.