LOVE ANGELES

The Best Education is Not School?

Via USA TODAY 

Brangelina argue that the traditional outdated public educational system (at least currently in the USA) is not what they prefer for their kids. Rather, they have a vision for homeschooling coupled with real life experience. I get it, I support it and I couldn't agree with them more. Obviously, most people cannot a) bring their kids with them to work and b) afford the private and/or home schooling options. So what are some other options for the everyday family out there, assuming a revolution within the public system is still way off? What do you think?   

Tree of Life

Photography is not used to illustrate dialogue or a performance,” Chivo said. “We’re using it to capture emotion so that the movie is very experiential. It’s meant to trigger tons of memories, like a scent or a perfume.” ~ Emmanuel “Chivo” Lubezki
 

How Did Brad and Angelina Ring in the New Year?

Source: DoSomethingGood - Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie are not only known as superstar A-list actors, but also as two of the biggest philanthropists in Tinseltown. The couple and their children spent Christmas in Namibia (the birthplace of their daughter Shiloh!) and rounded out 2010 with a partnership with the N/a'an ku sê Lodge and Wildlife Sanctuary, a $2 million donation on behalf of the Jolie-Pitt Foundation, and a very CGG-esque start to the new year.

Founded in 2007, the N/a'an ku sê Lodge & Wildlife Sanctuary is dedicated to conserving Namibian wildlife and rescuing threatened species; it provides a safe haven for orphaned and injured animals to be cared for while they cannot survive on their own in the wild. The Jolie-Pitt Foundation's donation will help maintain a clinic that offers free medical care, in addition to being used for large-scale animal conservation projects.

Mom and Dad weren't the only ones doing some good – during their stay at the lodge, Shiloh and her siblings even helped feed orphaned baby baboons and foxes. Talk about getting up close and personal!

Angelina Jolie Defends Bosnian Directorial Debut

Source: Reuters - Hollywood star Angelina Jolie has hit back at criticism of her directorial debut, saying most people back her portrayal of a love story between a Serbian man and Bosnian woman on the eve of the 1992-95 Balkans conflict.

Speaking in Paris ahead of next week's premiere of a very different film -- romantic action comedy "The Tourist" in which she stars with Johnny Depp -- Jolie said her intention had never been to stoke controversy with her movie set in wartime Bosnia.
Bosnian victims of sexual violence during the 1990s have written to the United Nations, for which the Oscar-winning actress is a goodwill ambassador, saying she didn't deserve the position and did not know enough about the ethnic conflict.

"There's one person who has a gripe," Jolie said.

"The absolute majority of the people, population, the cast, prime minister, president have been extremely supportive," she said, adding that 95 percent of the film's cast had lived through the war.

Jolie has described her movie, which is still untitled, as a love story between a Serbian man and a Bosnian Muslim woman on the eve of the 1992-95 war in which 100,000 people died.

The production team has cut back on filming plans in Bosnia, however, moving some scenes from Sarajevo to be shot in Budapest, after a Bosnian minister canceled the filming permit in October, citing incomplete paperwork.

The move came after the minister met with female victims of the Bosnian war who said they objected to details of the plot.

Jolie, who also wrote the screenplay, said she had initially set out to just write to express her frustrations over how long the international community took to intervene in conflicts.

"It kept leaning toward Yugoslavia at the time, I wanted to learn more about it and the people, the more I read and learnt I was drawn to that part of the world," she said.
"I met artists from that part of the world and found they were extraordinary for what they'd gone through, so I wanted to give them a platform."

The "Tomb Raider" star has asked women war victims in a letter to hold judgment until they have seen the film in which she said "there are many twists in the plot that address the sensitive nature of the relationship between the main characters."

Angelina Jolie And Brad Pitt Score Housing For Bosnian Refugees

Source: Ecorazzi - For anybody who doesn’t believe that celebrities have the power to create serious change, let this story prove you wrong!

The last 15 people living in a Bosnian refugee camp will now receive proper housing thanks to Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt. A recent visit by the famous Hollywood couple helped draw attention to the indigent refugees, causing the U.S. government to donate $500,000 for the construction of an apartment building.

Radomir Jovicic, mayor of the eastern Bosnian town of Rogatica, claims he had spent years lobbying for the refugees, but that it was the visit by Jolie and Pitt that ultimately caused the government to take action.

“I will tattoo her name here,” said camp resident Goran Markovic, 47. After the April visit, camp residents referred to Jolie as their “beauty.” Once they learned about the donation, however, she became “our saint,” said Markovic.

Although Jolie’s name does not appear in the contract for the new apartment building, residents are convinced that it was indeed her who helped solidify the deal.
We love it when celebs use their power for something awesome. Keep up the great work!

Jolie, Pitt Visit People Displaced by Bosnian War

Source: Yahoo (SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina) – Angelina Jolie and Brad Pitt visited Bosnia on Monday, intending to spotlight the plight of 117,000 people who have not able to return to their homes, even though the Bosnia war ended 15 years ago.

But they tried to do so while evading the spotlight themselves: There were no reported media sightings of the celebrity couple.

The two arrived Sunday evening, said Aida Prljaca, the spokeswoman for the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Sarajevo.

Jolie, who has been a UNHCR ambassador since 2001, will visit projects meant to help Bosnians who cannot return home, either because their homes have not been rebuilt or the infrastructure in their villages has not been repaired.

Some 7,000 people live in dozens of refugee centers throughout the country. The other 110,000 live primarily with relatives or in rented housing.

Jolie is currently filming "The Tourist" with Johnny Depp in Italy.

Architecture In Times Of Need: Brad Pitt’s Make It Right Launches New Book

Ecorazzi - "Make It Right NOLA has a new website and now a new book too. The green building organization founded by Brad Pitt is currently helping to rebuild New Orleans’ Lower 9th Ward and the book, titled “Architecture in Times of Need”, documents that process. From the synopsis,

This book which was sponsored and assembled by [architecture firm] Graft, features essays on the history and people of the Lower 9th Ward, the hurricane and its impact, and tracks the development and progress of the Make It Right project. But the primary focus of the book is on the design process and designs. The contributions to the project from Adjaye Associates, GRAFT, Gehry Partners and Shigeru Ban, among others, are shown in numerous photographs and renderings with sketches, building plans, and informative commentary. The book also describes the sustainable Cradle to CradleSM approach, which seeks to maximize economic, ecological, and social value by following principles inspired by nature.

In addition, Brad Pitt also adds his commentary to the pages. Sounds like a pretty solid read for anyone interested in green building and/or inspiring feats of charity."

“Architecture in Times of Need” is available now for $28.