Angelina Jolie remains awestruck by her late mother's "grace".

The 36-year-old actress' mother Marcheline Bertrand passed away from ovarian cancer in January 2007 at the age of 56.

Angelina, who cares for six children with her partner Brad Pitt, looks to her mother's memory for inspiration on parenthood.

"My mother was a full-time mother. She didn't have much of her own career, her own life, her own experiences... everything was for her children," Angelina explained in an interview on American news programme 60 Minutes on Sunday.

"I will never be as good a mother as she was. She was just grace incarnate. She was the most generous, loving she's better than me."

Angelina takes motherhood very seriously.

Although she and Brad have hectic professional schedules, the couple ensures their children are properly looked after at all times.

"We never work at the same time," she revealed.

"I enjoy it when I'm home with the kids."

Angelina is making her directorial debut next month with her film In the Land of Blood and Honey.

Shooting the love story set in the backdrop of the Bosnian War in the 1990s was a transformative experience for the star.

"I prefer directing. I love having the spotlight on someone else. It's nice for all of that not to matter," she added.