Actress Angelina Jolie is undoubtedly the most famous woman in Hollywood these days. Whether she’s making headlines because of her partner Brad Pitt, her six children or her films, she’s a constant spot on the A list. Recently in London promoting her new film, Changeling, Jolie took a few minutes to chat about working with Clint Eastwood, how her children have affected her film roles, and getting her skates on.

It's a very harrowing film to watch, does it follow that it was a very harrowing film to make?
Angelina Jolie (AJ): Yes, it was. It was a very hard film for all of us to make but at the same time because it was a true story, and because this woman went through so much, it was also very inspiring.

Was working with Clint Eastwood a long-held ambition?
AJ: I'd always wanted to work with him because I loved his work but I'd also read a few things, or seen different things, and he just seemed like such an interesting man. And he is... in person he's a really good man. He's very solid, very strong and has a great crew. He's very fair and a strong leader. He's just a really great director.

How, if at all, does Clint's working style differ from other directors you've worked with and how did that help during some of the more emotional scenes?
AJ: He's very decisive. He's famous for shooting just one or two takes, which does sound terrifying to an actress. But because of that you know he's not going to drain you emotionally. He will be prepared. He'll take more than one if he needs it. But he'll be very prepared from the moment you walk in the door and so you have this feeling of having to bring your all, but if you bring your all and give it everything you've got until you're emotionally drained he will capture it on film and he won't ask you to do it 20 times.

So, it does allow for you to really push yourself. And because he does do everything in one take, everything is very fresh. You don't have a lot of time to overthink things, which as actors we tend to do. You don't have time for that, so it keeps you very in the moment and very real.

As a mother yourself, was it very hard to get your head around what happened to the mother in this film?
AJ: It was very hard. I've said it before but when I first read the script I couldn't put it down but then I said "no" immediately. I didn't want to go into this project because it was too upsetting. But then afterwards I couldn't stop talking about her. I found myself sitting with people wanting them to know about this extraordinary woman and you wouldn't believe what happened to her, and what these people did to her in this time in our history. In the end, it became a story about democracy in action, about justice... even suffering a great loss and fighting through it and making a change for the future for other people, and questioning the government and the police. So, I found it very inspiring and really wanted people to know about her and felt like it was an extra piece of justice for her.

But as a mum it was horrible. I had my kids with me as much as possible at lunch and after a day at work I'd just run home. I just wanted to be silly. I was so emotional that I just found myself being very, very goofy with them. I was so happy that I knew where my kids were and that they were OK.

Code 12 [an actual law that allowed the police to institutionalise anyone they considered "difficult"] was a difficult subject matter in itself. Did you learn anything else that struck with you about that system during the course of your research?
AJ: No, not any specific type of case. I just followed the list of the types of women who were in there. But I'm sure you could look into it and there's a story. There's so many cases of the woman who was a prostitute, who was beaten up by the client and it turns out he was a cop so she was locked away forever; or the wife who stood up against her husband and it turned out he was a cop so she was suddenly in a mental institution for the rest of her life.

Have you ever rollerskated before Changeling?
AJ: I had to learn how to rollerblade for Hackers. For some reason I didn't get that description in the script. So, when my rollerskates arrived I didn't think it was serious. They're not only rollerskates, but they're all metal, so they have no rubber, and they have no brakes on them and you have to wear your heels on them. So, you have a 2-inch heel with a screw, so you're moving forward with no brakes! It was very funny and I spent quite a few days falling over!