Covergirl: Jada Pinkett Smith For "Capitol File" Magazine


Covergirl: Jada Pinkett Smith For "Capitol File" Magazine



SHE’S GOT PLENTY TO DISCUSS WITH HER NEW FILM THE WOMEN OUT THIS FALL, BUT IT’S THE STATUS OF WOMEN AROUND THE WORLD THAT KEEPS BALTIMORE NATIVE JADA PINKETT SMITH ALL FIRED UP. SHE SITS DOWN WITH LISA LING FOR SOME SERIOUS GIRL TALK. 
LISA LING: I see that you’re reading Unbowed by Wangari Maathai.
JADA PINKETT SMITH: Yes, it’s such an amazing book and she’s such a phenomenal woman.

LL: Will you option Wangari’s story?
JPS: I’d consider it, definitely. I’m heading to Uganda and Rwanda on a seven-day trip for Malaria No More, so right now I’m just trying to stay focused on the mission and see what comes of that.

LL: Have you been to Africa before?
JPS: Yes, we went to South Africa and Mozambique to shoot Ali. Will and I loved Africa. We went to South Africa and almost moved there. I said, “Do you really want to do this now? We have the rest of our lives to do it.” Will and I always say, “God visits everywhere, but lives in Africa.” When you’re on safari and you see that African sky… it’s just such a spiritual place.

LL: I remember going to Rwanda and being amazed at the way the women of the country are rebuilding their lives. In 2005 Rwanda had more women in Parliament than any other country. Speaking of women, tell me about your latest film, The Women.
JPS: The material is great, but what I liked most about the film was that I had the opportunity to work with some extraordinary women. Diane [English] had been working on the project for 13 years. She was so passionate about it. Meeting Diane, talking to her, we just said, “We gotta do this because they’re trying to shut us out!”

LL: What was it like to work with such a large female cast?
JPS: It was interesting to be in this large group of women. It just worked. And to see how we all collaborated, what we brought individually to the film—I was elated. In all honesty, Annette Bening is brilliant. I was in awe of her. I had to catch myself; [I was] watching her like a student. Just her process… she’s a veteran. And then for all of us—Meg, Eva, Annette—to sit around and talk about our families, balancing our lives, husbands, divorce, boyfriends… you recognize how much you need to be in spaces like that with other women, you know? [It was the] kind of camaraderie that you didn’t need to explain every detail for them to get it. It’s like an unspoken language.
Visit Capitol File Magazine to read the rest of the interview

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