At Rome's MIA, Apulia confirms its role as an international cinema hub
- The speakers highlighted the great potential of the Italian region, able to attract a growing number of sets thanks to support offered by the film commission and local authorities
In the final day of this year’s MIA – International Audiovisual Market (14-18 October), the Barberini cinema hosted in the afternoon a panel titled “International Co-Productions in Apulia: a hub of creative synergy.”
After greetings from the President of the Apulia Film Commission (AFC) Anna Maria Tosto, moderator Martina Lovascio presented the speakers involved, namely producers Maurizio Antonini from Interlinea Film, Francesca Portalupi from Indyca, Claudio Esposito from The Piranesi Experience, and Giangi Foschini from Brandos Film.
Antonini initially talked about the first project shot in Apulia in 2012, the feature film House of Shadows [+see also:
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film profile] by Abel Ferrara (co-produced with Germany, the United Kingdom and the United States) and a more recent co-production with Mexico, Casi El Paraíso.
For Ferrara’s film, the crew shot in the winter between snow and ice in the Monte Sant-Angelo area, in the Foggia province. “It was a period film, set in the 1920s. With very little production effort, it wasn’t difficult to bring the village back to that time. It has areas, alleys and doorways that are still intact.”
Talking about Casi El Paraíso, Antonini explained that the plot follows an Italian crook from the Spanish Quarters of Naples, the latter of which are “not very different from Old Bari.” He highlighted the perfect atmosphere created on set, also thanks to the support of the local population which welcomed the production with enthusiasm. The film will be presented at the Festival of European Cinema in Lecce in November.
“Over the years, a group of productive resources difficult to find elsewhere has formed in Apulia. The Marches, for example, offer up to €500,000, but there isn’t anybody there: one has to bring crew from the other regions. Now, there are workers in Apulia. There are rental services, casting directors, schools… I will definitely keep knocking on the doors of the film commission,” concluded Antonini.
The floor was then given to Foschini, who agreed with Antonini on all the advantages offered by the territory. Foschini founded his new company in Apulia, with the goal of “putting down roots” and “bringing international co-productions”. He then cited recent work on the set of Under the Stars, directed by Michelle Donner and with stars of the calibre of Toni Collette and Andy Garcia. “The actors were impressed by the respect of the inhabitants. They felt free to shoot in a fantastic territory,” Foschini highlighted, adding that the film commission offered continued support – from location scouting to permits, up to accounting services – and its territorial deployment in the offices of Bari, Taranto and Lecce.
The producer from Brandos Film revealed that another American production is about to shoot in Apulia, thanks to a positive experience on Donner’s set.
Afterwards, Portalupi talked about Non dirmi che hai paura, a feature film for which the Turin outfit Indyca played the role of majority producer and which was co-produced with Germany and Belgium.
In this case as well, after evaluating the possibility of shooting in various parts of Italy, the choice fell on Apulia thanks to the ductility of its territory and the support of the AFC. In particular, scenes set in Mogadishu and in the open sea were recreated in Taranto.
Finally, Esposito talked about the two features that his company, based in Monopoli, is developing. The Piranesi Experience was the first outfit in the South of Italy to win the Creative Europe MEDIA Slate. The first project is Dreamcatchers, presented in the Wanna Taste IT? section of the MIA, written and directed by Daniela De Francesco and developed with the Biennale College and the MFI Script 2 Film lab. “We hope to enter production next year. [...] We’ve signed a memorandum of understanding with the Castellana Grotte municipality. The film is set in a clinic treating sleep disorders, which are even more widespread since the pandemic. It is inspired by current scientific research on lucid dreams, a new frontier for neuroscience. For the film, we plan to reuse a building in the historical centre, giving new life to this place.”
“The second project, Pinocchio Reborn by Matteo Cirillo, presents a very simple concept. It is a sequel to Pinocchio, a black comedy. For the director, Pinocchio is now 35, he’s inherited his father’s carpentry shop and, incapable of lying, he lives in our world in a rather complex way. In the pilot [Editor’s note: presented as a short film at Alice nella Città and shot between Rome and Taranto], Pinocchio sees a psychologist, looking to solve his issues.”
The next gathering for professionals interested in shooting in Apulia and collaborating with the AFC is the Apulia Film Forum, scheduled in Lecce for 9 and 10 November.
(Translated from Italian)
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