Monday 31 March saw shooting begin in Naples on Je so’ pazzo, a film directed by Nicola Prosatore which will bring the life and music of Pino Daniele to the big screen, looking back over the difficult years spent in the narrow streets of Naples right up to the artistic triumph which lent him legendary status. Filming will unfold over seven weeks in Naples and the surrounds.

Massimiliano Caiazzo is playing the famous singer-songwriter who died in 2015, an actor very well known to Italian audiences for the hit TV series The Sea Beyond and who also starred in Prosatore’s debut feature Piano piano [+lee también:
crítica
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ficha de la película], which was presented in Locarno’s Piazza Grande in 2022, earning the young actor a Nastro d’Argento/Nobis Foundation award.

Je so’ pazzo (a title borrowed from one of the musician’s famous songs) is loosely based on the book about Pino Daniele, Tutto quello che mi ha dato emozione viene alla luce, by Alessandro Daniele who’s the eldest son of the Neapolitan singer-songwriter and guitar player who revolutionised Italian music by blending blues, jazz, world music Neapolitan traditions, who collaborated with international artists along the lines of Wayne Shorter, Gato Barbieri, Chick Corea, Steve Gadd, Nana Vasconcelos and Pat Metheny, and who held concerts at the Apollo Theatre in New York and in The Olympia in Paris. “Je so’ pazzo is an intense portrait of Pino Daniele, a rebellious soul born in the narrow streets of Naples”, reads a statement released by the production team. The film charts his rise, from his difficult childhood years marked by abandonment to the legendary concert he gave in 1981 to 200,000 fans. Between family conflicts, personal weaknesses and deep loves, Pino finds a language in music to express what he cannot say. But success brings fresh challenges, namely his unreconciled relationship with his father, the weight of expectation, and the risk of repeating the same old mistakes. This isn’t just the story of an extraordinary musician, it’s also that of a man at war with himself, looking to make peace with his roots and with the love of a city which always awaited his return.

Je so’ pazzo is being produced by Tartare Film and Camfilm in league with RAI Cinema, and with backing from the Film and Audiovisual Investment Development Fund run by the Italian Ministry for Culture’s Film and Audiovisual Department. Camfilm is adhering to Green Film protocol in order to reduce the film’s environmental impact.