Brad Pitt 'tricky' to direct, says Angelina Jolie

GOZO, Malta, Nov. 20 (UPI) -- Angelina Jolie says it has been tricky to direct husband Brad Pitt in By the Sea.

The 39-year-old actress admitted as much in an interview for Du Jour's winter issue. Jolie will write, direct and star in the romantic drama, and told the magazine the film has presented different challenges from her other projects.

"The tricky thing is directing myself and directing Brad," she shared. "It's hard, dramatic material, and we're balancing. It's a heavy film, and it's not easy for us. But even as you struggle through it, you're in the trenches together and you don't expect it to be easy. We're challenging each other, and that's a really good thing."

By the Sea marks the couple's first on-screen collaboration since Mr. & Mrs. Smith (2005). The feature is set in 1970s France, and stars Jolie and Pitt as married couple Vanessa and Roland. The pair deal with their marital issues as they travel and establish relationships with the town locals.

Jolie and Pitt have been together since 2005, and married in August 2014. The couple have six children together, whose ages range from six to 13. The actress declared she "absolutely" plans to give up acting for directing in the interview, and will next release Unbroken on Dec. 25.