-- Paula David - Fourth Estate Cooperative Reporter

Los Angeles, CA, United States (4E) - The first official photo of Disney's "Maleficent" starring Angelina Jolie has been released Tuesday along with Walt Disney Studios' announcement that production has begun.

The film, which started production on June 13, is directed by Oscar-winner Robert Stromberg ("Alice in Wonderland", "Avatar"), and produced by Joe Roth, with executive producers Angelina Jolie, Don Hahn, Matt Smith and Palak Patel. "Maleficent" is written by Linda Woolverton ("Beauty and the Beast", "Alice in Wonderland")

Jolie plays the title character, and starts alongside Sharlto Copley, Elle Fanning, Sam Riley, Imelda Staunton, Miranda Richardson, Juno Temple and Lesley Manville.

According to a press release, "Maleficent" is "the untold story of Disney's most beloved villain, Maleficent, from the 1959 classic 'Sleeping Beauty.' The film reveals the events that hardened her heart and drove her to curse the baby, Aurora."

The 37-year-old actress, in a recent interview with Entertainment Weekly, said that Maleficent's character is both good and bad, but it is "not anti-princess." The audience, she said, "have to figure out the puzzle of what [Maleficent] is."

The film, which is Jolie's first acting gig in two years since "In the Land of Blood and Honey", is set to hit theaters in 3-D on March 14, 2014.

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