Warbird Information Exchange

Inside a cavernous soundstage at Village Roadshow Studios near Australia's Gold Coast in January, scores of people looked on — costume designers, prop assistants, extras — as Jolie's production team prepared to re-create the crash of Zamperini's ungainly B-24, known to all the people who dreaded flying in it as the Green Hornet.

With Zamperini (newcomer Jack O'Connell) and crewmates Russell Allen "Phil" Phillips (Domhnall Gleeson) and Francis "Mac" McNamara (Finn Wittrock) braced for impact inside the mocked-up bomber, the "Unbroken" effects team rocked the plane violently, filling its fuselage with an explosion of seawater. After checking to make sure all of the cast members were uninjured, the cast and crew applauded loudly, Jolie accepted congratulations and an assistant director called for a lunch break. As everyone filed out, one straggler hung back, beaming. It was producer Matthew Baer, finally witnessing his dream materializing.