Angelina Jolie has rebuffed claims that a child was treated in a cruel manner while auditioning for her latest film. The actress was casting a role in her new movie, First They Killed My Father: A Daughter of Cambodia Remembers, with children who had experienced real life hardships.
In response to her critics, Jolie told the Huffington Post that all measures were taken to ensure child safety. ‘Every measure was taken to ensure the safety, comfort and well-being of the children on the film starting from the auditions through production to the present.’
It was claimed that the casting director set up a ‘game’ where they gave money to children, though to think of something they would buy with it before taking it away and judging their reactions. According to an interview that Jolie gave to Vanity Fair, only one child didn’t cry when the cash was taken away. She said of Sareum Srey Moch who eventually won the role in the film, ‘she was the only child that stared at the money for a very, very long time.’
The actress then revealed the devastating reality of what the girl was thinking when asked about what she would spend the money on. ‘When she was forced to give it back, she became overwhelmed with emotion” as “when she was asked later what the money was for, she said her grandfather had died, and they didn’t have enough money for a nice funeral.’