Angelina Jolie receives honorary citizen of Sarajevo prize

The 37-year-old actress-turned-director stepped behind the camera last year to make "In the Land of Blood and Honey", about a romance between a Serbian soldier and a Bosnian woman during the 1990s war in the troubled region.

Angelina Jolie. Pic/Santa Banta

Her efforts were praised by government officials at the Assembly of Sarajevo Canton Parliament for drawing attention to the area and they decided to award her with a special citizenship prize.

Jolie flew into the country this week and she stepped onstage during the 18th Sarajevo Film Festival on July 7 to officially accept her honour. "The time I spent and the people I met in Bosnia have changed me forever.

I can't tell you how much it means to me to be named an honorary citizen of Sarajevo, a city so dear to my heart," she said.