'Angelina's a human dynamo!' War veteran Louis Zamperini praises director Jolie as pair pose in first official image from Unbroken

She said earlier this year she was going to do everything within her power to tell his story in the best way she can.
And it seems that while Angelina Jolie worked with war veteran Louis Zamperini on upcoming movie Unbroken, the pair have become firm friends.
The first official image from the film shows mother-of-six Angelina with her eyes closed as she rests her head on Louis' shoulder.

'Human dynamo!' War veteran Louis Zamperini poses with Angelina Jolie in the first image from upcoming movie Unbroken

Louis, 96, meanwhile, stares straight into the camera with a slight smile on his face.

Inspirational: Zamperini was an Olympic athlete who survived a plane crash during the war and floated on a raft for 47 days before being picked up by the Japanese and sent to a prisoner of war camp

Angelina and Louis, who live near to each other in the Hollywood Hills, have formed a close friendship while working together on the project, with the former Olympic athlete even giving Angelina a golden running shoe pendant, which he won on one of the earliest races in his career, as a gift while she shoots the movie in Australia.
Unbroken is an adaptation of Laura Hillenbrand's 2010 best-selling book that spent 108 weeks on the New York Times bestseller list and 14 of those weeks at No. 1.
It tells the story of the life of Zamperini, an Olympic athlete and war veteran who survived a plane crash during the war and floated on a raft for 47 days before being picked up by the Japanese and sent to a prisoner of war camp.
Track prodigy Zamperini performed in the 1936 Berlin Olympics at age 19 and even though he didn't win a medal his excellence in the final lap of the 5,000 meter race impressed Adolf Hitler so much that the dictator insisted on meeting the runner personally.
Angelina, 37, spoke previously about how the plight of Zamperini affected her.
She said: 'It will be hard to make a film worthy of this great man. I am deeply honoured to have the chance and will do all I can to bring Louie’s inspiring story to life.
'Everyone involved in the film shares this deep responsibility. Like all readers of Laura’s book and all people who love and admire Louie, I am a fan who has learned so much. He has made me a better person.'
And Louis added: 'Angelina is a human dynamo, and I know she will tell this story in the right way.  I’ve received so many letters and talked to so many people who say that Laura’s book has helped them when they were going through hard times.

Life story: Louis is seen being hugged by parents Louise and Anthony as he arrives back in America at the end of the war

'I believe the movie will reach even more people with that message.'
Angelina's first directorial debut was 2011's In the Land of Blood and Honey, a love story set in the midst of the 1990s Bosnian war.
As her directorial role for Unbroken was announced earlier this year, Universal Pictures chairman Adam Fogelson and co-chairman Donna Langley said in a joint statement: 'In her life and in her work, Angelina has embraced stories and causes involving great struggle and triumph over tremendous odds and the basic human condition.
'She has a real ability to illustrate the strength in human spirit which will be essential in telling Lou’s story of survival and great heroism.'
Unbroken arrives in cinemas on January 16th 2015.

Lead role: Jack O'Connell, seen here as Bobby Charlton in TV series United, will be playing Zamperini in the film