Angelina Jolie will be on the other side of the camera for the upcoming film Unbroken.

Universal Pictures announced on Wednesday that the movie will come to theaters on Dec. 25, 2014, and will be directed by the mother of six.

The film is based on The New York Times best-selling novel by Laura Hillenbrand titled Unbroken: A World War II Story of Survival, Resilience, and Redemption. The book tells the story of an Olympian and war hero named Lou Zamperini.

As a part of the U.S. team, Zamperini raced in the 1936 Berlin Olympics. In 1943, during World War II, he and two other crewmen survived a plane crash in the Pacific without food and water for 47 days. After washing ashore on enemy lines on a Japanese island, they were taken and sent to a prison camp. As a prisoner, Zamperini was tortured.

Actor Jack O'Connell is in talks to play Zamperini, according to Variety. The 22-year-old starred in the TV series Skins from 2009 to 2013.

"I've had the privilege of spending a great deal of time with Louie Zamperini, who is a hero of mine, and now-I am proud to say-a dear friend," said Jolie in a statement, according to Deadline. "I am deeply honored to be telling his extraordinary story, and I will do my absolute best to give him the film he deserves".

This will be the second movie Jolie will direct. Her first was 2011's In The Land of Blood And Honey, which earned her a Golden Globe nomination. Jolie is working with Matthew Baer, who produced 1988's Jack Frost, and Erwin Stoff who produced 2011's Water for Elephants. Roger Deakins, a 10-time Oscar nominee, is the movie's cinematographer. He has worked on 69 films to date.

Production of the movie is set to start in September, according to CBS News.

Tags: Angelina Jolie