TAKE #11 EN

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SOUTH TYROL

TA K E #11

#IDMFILMFUNDING

M A G A Z I N E F O R F I L M P R O F E S S I O N A LS 2 0 2 0

DOSSIER

Film for the Future Ideas and Initiatives for a Greener Film Industry

IN FOCUS

NEWS

Elena Goatelli’s My Upside Down World / Director Andrea De Sica on Filmmaking and Family

Covid-19 and the Fallout: How the Pandemic Impacted the Industry… and How to Move Forward

A magazine by

Issue – Year

IDM FILM FUND & COMMISSION

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Panalight Südtirol

Viale Druso, 313/b · 39100 Bolzano (Bz) MOB. +39 366.9509059 · TEL. +39 0471 539862 panalightsudtirol@panalight.it

www.panalight.it

distributore esclusivo per l’Italia

FOREWORD

DEAR FILM PROFESSIONALS,

A few months ago, we celebrated a decade of film funding in South Tyrol. You may remember the figures over the course of these ten years: 265 projects funded; over 3,770 days of shooting; 70 million euros in territorial effect, meaning added value for South Tyrol. Even in as difficult a year as 2020, IDM Südtirol – Alto Adige managed to fund a number of projects, including quite a few helmed by local production companies. Above and beyond funding films, IDM Film Fund & Commission has another important task: location development, i.e. supporting the local film industry. One way we work towards this goal is by offering a wide array of continuing education – for film professionals who want to specialize or are preparing for senior functions within their departments, as well as for young people, for example through workshops for schoolchildren. 475 people have taken advantage of training opportunities such as these over the last decade. The many local professionals mentioned in this issue of TAKE show that this development work helps to create a vibrant production environment. Directors such as Hannes Lang, Nancy Camaldo, Elena Goatelli and Ronny Trocker; producers like Moritz Bonatti; costume designer Katharina Forcher; actress

Penelope Frego; location scout and unit manager Daniel Defranceschi; as well as Helene Christanell, director of the Bolzano Film Festival Bozen, and our funding staff. They all are the film location. Another of South Tyrol’s great strengths as a filming location is its unique landscape – which makes this issue’s dossier on sustainability all the more topical. IDM has declared sustainability as one of its guiding principles, which also means harmonizing the needs of film productions with protecting our delicate alpine nature. Our goal is to live up to this responsibility in the coming months and years. Join us on this journey! Warmly,

TA K E #11

Welcome

Vera Leonardelli D I R E C T O R B U S I N E S S D E V E LO P M E N T I D M S Ü DT I R O L

IMPRINT

CO N T E N T S

MAGAZINE FOR FILM P R O F E S S I O N A LS # 1 1 2020

PUBLISHER IDM Südtirol – Alto Adige Film Fund & Commission Via Alto Adige 60 39100 Bolzano T +39 0471 094 274 film@idm-suedtirol.com film.idm-suedtirol.com Facebook: idmfilmfunding Instagram: idmfilmfunding

EXECUTIVE EDITOR Birgit Oberkofler MANAGING EDITORS Alessia De Paoli, Barbara Weithaler CONCEPT Ex Libris www.exlibris.bz.it EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Florian Krautkrämer EDITOR, PUBLISHING MANAGER Valeria Dejaco/Ex Libris EDITORIAL DESIGN Nina Ullrich www.designnomadin.com ART DIRECTION Philipp Aukenthaler www.hypemylimbus.com TRANSLATIONS & PROOFREADING Ex Libris (Claudia Amor, Valeria Dejaco, Cassandra Han, Federica Romanini, Helene Dorner, Milena Macaluso, Charlotte Marston) PHOTOS If not credited otherwise: IDM COVER ILLUSTRATION Oscar Diodoro ILLUSTRATIONS Oscar Diodoro (34-41), freund grafic design (57) PRINTER Dialog Spa Via A. Amonn, 29 39042 Bressanone www.dialog.bz

28 42

Three Perspectives on South Tyrol O N LO C AT I O N

NEWS Shot in South Tyrol / FINAL TOUCH #5 / Top 5 / Three Questions for… / Continuing Education / Facts & Figures / Rising Star / New Faces

PRODUCTION #2: MY UPSIDE DOWN WORLD

Elena Goatelli’s Cinematic Portrait of a World-Champion Climber GIULIA BIANCONI

LO C A L TA L E N T S

Attention to Detail: Costume Designer Katharina Forcher MARIANNA KASTLUNGER

INDUSTRY: COVID-19

The Coronavirus Crisis and the Film Industry: Aid Measures / A Discussion between Laura Delli Colli & Francesco Rutelli / The Red House: a Report

SET VISIT Location Scout, Unit Manager and Production Manager Daniel Defranceschi MARIANNA KASTLUNGER

PRODUCER TALKS

PRODUCTION #1: DON’T KILL ME Interview: Director

Ursula Wolschlager on Production Networks for Women

Andrea De Sica on Filmmaking and Family

SKADI LOIST

NICK VIVARELLI

DOSSIER

Film for the Future: Sustainability in the Film Industry / Interview: Philip Gassmann, an Expert on Shooting Green FLORIAN KRAUTKRÄMER

S P OT L I G H T

Moritz Bonatti C LO S I N G C R E D I T S

Piera Detassis Answers the TAKE Questionnaire / Coming Soon: TAKE #12

E D I TO R I A L

IDM

TAKE #11

Film Fund & Commission

When we gathered at the Berlinale in February to celebrate ten years of film funding in South Tyrol together, none of us could have imagined what the following months would bring. The Covid-19 crisis wreaked havoc on our society and subsequently, the economy; our own industry, too, was not spared. Most of the filming that had been scheduled in South Tyrol for the first half of the year did manage to take place in the summer months – thanks to gargantuan efforts on the part of everyone involved. Nevertheless, the crisis remains a challenge for the film industry. The only way to address it is together, through good networking and across international borders. Starting on p. 18, you can read about how various countries are mitigating the economic consequences of the virus, two Italian film-industry leaders’ take on the situation in that particularly hard-hit country, and the incredible story of an Italian documentary film crew’s experiences in Greenland due to the pandemic. In this issue, our TAKE dossier addresses sustainability in the film industry – a crucial topic, even though we are currently focusing

elsewhere. You’ll find ideas and initiatives for a greener film industry in South Tyrol, and beyond, starting on p. 34. The two protagonists of this issue are very different but similarly headstrong: Angelika Rainer, South Tyrol’s world champion in ice climbing, whom director Elena Goatelli followed for a year to create her documentary My Upside Down World (p. 42), and director Andrea De Sica, who talks about his new project and his illustrious cinema family in the Interview section, starting on p. 28. This edition of TAKE, like the last issue, has a new design and is available in German, Italian and English. And for the first time, a second edition of the year is being published in September, just in time for the Venice and Rome film festivals and the MIA film market. The fact that these major festivals will take place this year, despite everything, is a cause for optimism. And I look forward to meeting you there, in person once again. Warmly,

Birgit Oberkofler H E A D F I L M F U N D & CO M M I S S I O N

CONTACT IDM Südtirol – Alto Adige Film Fund & Commission BIRGIT OBERKOFLER Head Film Fund & Commission T +39 0471 094 277 birgit.oberkofler@idm-suedtirol.com RENATE RANZI Coordinator Film Location T +39 0471 094 252 renate.ranzi@idm-suedtirol.com

TA K E #11

DEAR READER,

EVA PERWANGER Film Funding T +39 0471 094 282 eva.perwanger@idm-suedtirol.com BEATRIX DALSASS Film Funding T +39 0471 094 272 beatrix.dalsass@idm-suedtirol.com ALESSIA DE PAOLI PR & Film Location T +39 0471 094 266 alessia.depaoli@idm-suedtirol.com BARBARA WEITHALER PR & Film Location T +39 0471 094 254 barbara.weithaler@idm-suedtirol.com SOPHY PIZZININI Film Location T +39 0471 094 279 sophy.pizzinini@idm-suedtirol.com

“The crisis can be managed only through good networking,” says Birgit Oberkofler.

LUISA GIULIANI Film Commission T +39 0471 094 294 luisa.giuliani@idm-suedtirol.com

O N LO C AT I O N

IDM TION LO C A TO U RE S # 9 PL AC BER O CTO 2020

LO C AT I O N TO U R

AREA

PLACES #9

Ulten Valley

LO C AT I O N

Anna M. Wenter

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Villa Hartungen, St. Nikolaus

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FILM

D I R E C TO R

Sprite Sisters (2020)

Sven Unterwaldt Jr.

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florian mohn / www.cinealp.com

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Giacomo Puccini Theater, Meran

O N LO C AT I O N

FILM

D I R E C TO R

Siberia (2020)

Abel Ferrara

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Talia Cooperativa

TA K E #11

Bunker H, Bolzano

NEWS

S H OT I N S O U T H T Y R O L

F I L M CO M M I S S I O N

Hidden Away (2020)

FINAL TOUCH #5

S H OT I N S O U T H T Y R O L

Elio Germano won the Silver Bear at the 2020 Berlinale for his role in the biopic Volevo nascondermi (Hidden Away). Germano plays Italian artist Antonio Ligabue, who endured great physical and psychological suffering throughout the whole of his life. An orphan, Ligabue was an outsider even as a child, gaining any access at all into society only through his art. Director Giorgio Diritti used South Tyrol as a backdrop for some scenes from the artist’s youth in the early twentieth century, including Fahlburg, a Renaissance palace in Prissian, and the Folklore Museum in Dietenheim near Bruneck.

C. De Luigi

Hidden Genius

F I N A L TO U C H # 5

Kill Your Darlings!

M. Tessaro

Awarding the FINAL TOUCH prizes at the 33rd Bolzano Film Festival Bozen (01); FINAL TOUCH # 4 experts Birgit Oberkofler, Sergio Fant, Marzia Mete, Catia Rossi, Nikolaj Nikitin and Florian Geiser (02, from left)

Do you really need to cut your favorite scene out of your documentary? Yes – if it doesn’t work dramaturgically. Honest feedback hurts, particularly after spending months working on a film. But in the final stages especially, much can be improved: fine-tuning the dramaturgy, making the right choices in the post-production and editing process, supplementing insufficient funding and planning sales. IDM and the Bolzano Film Festival Bozen (BFFB) offer young filmmakers the opportunity to perfect their projects and help ensure their success through the FINAL TOUCH program. The 2020 edition of FINAL TOUCH, which was supposed to have taken place in April as part of the festival, has been rescheduled to autumn and will form part of the BFFB’s alternative festival Intermezzo (► p. 14). The four project teams selected to participate will receive intensive feedback on their feature and documentary films at the headquarters of Cine Chromatix Italy, in Meran, on November 19 and 20. The team of experts will comprise: Nina Kusturica (editing), Nikolaj Nikitin and Christine Dollhofer (festivals), Gaetano Maiorino (True Colours, sales), Florian Geiser (Cine Chromatix Italy, post-production) and Birgit Oberkofler (IDM Film Fund & Commission, funding). The teams are eligible for prizes in the form of services for their projects: Cine Chromatix Italy awards the Post-Production Prize and True Colours bestows the International Distribution Prize. This year’s projects include three documentaries – Days of Destiny by director Emanuele Marini (production: Atacama Film), El Toro by Sebastiano Luca Insinga (Jump Cut), Südtirols hoher Norden by Jochen Hemmleb (Albolina Film) – and the feature film Erhart by Jan Březina (Xova Film) from the festival’s 2020 special guest country, the Czech Republic.

NEWS

TO P 5

Costume Dramas #shotinsouthtyrol TO P 5

Five Glances Backwards

FILM

Lou Andreas-Salomé, The Audacity to be Free (2016) Cordula Kablitz-Post PRODUCTION Avanti Media Fiction (DE), KGP Kranzelbinder Gabriele Production (AT), Tempest Film (DE) LOCATIONS Kaltern, Durnholz, Ritten, Penser Joch Pass, St. Pauls, Eppan STORY Biographical drama about the writer and psychoanalyst Lou Andreas-Salomé, who went her own way against all odds in the nineteenth century.

Wild Bunch

DIRECTOR

FILM

Maikäfer flieg – Fly Away Home (2016) Mirjam Unger PRODUCTION KGP Kranzelbinder Gabriele Production (AT) LOCATIONS Tscherms (Baslan Castle), Innichen, Ritten, Gasteig near Ratschings STORY After the end of the war in 1945, nine-year-old Christine and her family are bombed out and destitute, but find shelter in a posh Nazi villa.

O. Oppitz

DIRECTOR

FILM

Luis Trenker – Der schmale Grat der Wahrheit (2015) Wolfgang Murnberger PRODUCTION Roxy Film (DE), EPO Film (AT) LOCATIONS Bolzano, Gröden Valley, Mühlbach, Brixen, Meran, Würzjoch Pass STORY South Tyrol, 1924. Luis Trenker, a famed Alpinist and actor, meets young Leni Riefenstahl. Attraction quickly transforms into rivalry.

C. Hartmann

DIRECTOR

FILM

Anita B. (2014) Roberto Faenza PRODUCTION Jean Vigo Italia (IT) LOCATIONS Bolzano and environs STORY Hungary, 1945. Anita survives a concentration camp at the tender age of 16. But “normal” life presents the young woman with new challenges.

Jean Vigo Italia

DIRECTOR

FILM

Max & Hélène (2014) Giacomo Battiato PRODUCTION 11 Marzo Film (IT) LOCATIONS Bolzano, Prösels, Oberbozen, Brixen, Margreid, Missian, Meran, Franzensfeste STORY Based on the Simon Wiesenthal novel. In 1960, a Jewish man, Max Sereni, persecutes the war criminal who killed his wife Hélène.

F. Vagliati

DIRECTOR

NEWS

THREE QUESTIONS FOR…

F I L M LO C AT I O N

Helene Christanell

MOV!E IT!

M. Tessaro

Helene Christanell, Director of the Bolzano Film Festival Bozen

A. Cerrato

THREE QUESTIONS FOR…

The program was all set. The final phase of preparations was underway. Then came the lockdown. With her team, Helene Christanell is now planning a four-day event in November: not an alternative date for the long-standing April festival, but an interlude, an “Intermezzo” – which is, in fact, the name of the event.

What are you planning for November? At first, we were very optimistic about an alternative date in June, which we of course had to cancel. The new autumn event is not the Bolzano Film Festival Bozen, so it has a different name: Intermezzo. From 17 to 20 November we’ll screen an excerpt from the festival program, especially films related to South Tyrol. We’ll also award the UNESCO Dolomites Special Prize and the Golden Walther Award, screen independent local productions and organize the FINAL TOUCH #5 industry offering. It’s not the festival, but we will in fact be bringing guests to Bolzano. Festivals thrive on encounters between the audience and filmmakers. Wherever that isn’t possible, we’ll switch to a hybrid form, screening the film in the cinema and bringing in directors and others digitally.

How grave is the economic impact going to be? quite difficult. Even if we’d cancelled the festival completely, incurring expenses would have been unavoidable. This way, we’re showing a portion of the films, also in order to be accountable for our work and qualify for funding. We also must redo the financing plans we had drawn up, and make provisions for the coming year. HC It’s

What are your plans for April 2021?

HC Next year, we may pick up some highlights from this year;

it would have been an extremely interesting program. Our planned guest country, the Czech Republic, will return in 2021. And of course, there will be something new. Our goal is to come back even stronger. HELENE CHRISTANELL is the director of the Bolzano Film Festival Bozen, which has been held in South Tyrol’s provincial capital for 34 years.

E D U C AT I O N I N M OT I O N

Education is the best way to develop a film location: in accordance with this principle, IDM unites various educational initiatives under the MOV!E IT! umbrella. For professionals already active in the industry, there are mentoring programs in various departments ranging from production to directing, from camera to sound, from production design to make-up and costume design. The current program also offers webinars with insider tips from experts – whether on calculating budgets or covering the casting process – as well as a jour fixe event on the topic of presenting short films at festivals and an online workshop about film subtitling. IDM also supports newcomers to the industry: MOV!E IT! Young offers workshops in which, for example, schoolchildren shoot a short film in their classroom, with the guidance of a South Tyrolean film producer. There have also been three school workshops about editing videos with a smartphone. In September, ZeLIG Film School will begin a nine-month training course – in partnership with IDM – for assistant roles in the production department. It’s geared towards young people who are currently not employed but want to build a future in the film industry. Information & registration: film.idm-suedtirol.com

NEWS

FA C T S & F I G U R E S

R I S I N G S TA R

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Riafn (2019)

FA C T S & F I G U R E S

475 …participants have taken advantage of the further training offered locally in the ten years since the South Tyrolean Film Fund was founded. MOV!E IT! Professional includes workshops and seminars for established filmmakers; MOV!E IT! Scholarship enables professionals to train at renowned educational institutions. Under MOV!E IT! Mentoring, young South Tyrolean filmmakers benefit from the expertise of industry professionals who accompany them over longer periods of time. In the RACCONTI Script Labs, screenwriters work on their film or series material and during FINAL TOUCH, filmmakers receive detailed expert feedback in the final phase of their projects. Finally, the MOV!E IT! Young school workshops and summer programs allow teens to get to know film as a possible career field.

475 R I S I N G S TA R

The Call of the Mountains

Petrolio Film

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Director Hannes Lang has won multiple awards for the unusual documentary Riafn

For his film Riafn, South Tyrolean director Hannes Lang, 39, won the Franklin Humanities Institute Award at the Full Frame Documentary Film Festival in North Carolina in the spring of 2020. The award shines a spotlight on short documentaries that display particularly innovative cinematic achievement. The jury based its decision upon the film’s “moving and precise” synthesis of visuals and sound, through which Lang and his director of photography Jakob Stark blurred the boundaries between documenting reality and creating art. The 30-minute film, which has no dialogue, explores traditional songs, various shepherd calls and the sounds of nature in South Tyrol, Piedmont and the French and Swiss Alps, weaving them into a soundscape of the mountains and their inhabitants. The film, which was funded by IDM, has won a number of other awards at international festivals since its premiere at Visions du Réel 2019 in Nyon, ranging from the Trento Film Festival (Silver Gentian) to the Kurzfilmtage Oberhausen to the Rhode Island International Film Festival (Best Cinematography). Riafn was produced by Petrolio Film in Cologne, which Hannes Lang runs together with Carmen Losmann and Mareike Wegener.

NEWS

N E W FA C E S

Anika Kasoiz

Penelope Frego

Between two linguistic worlds: Penelope Frego, from Bolzano, mainly works in Germany – and dreams of a lead Italian role.

N E W FA C E S

Penelope Frego At the tender age of seven, Penelope Frego decided to become a figure skater. She trained fanatically daily and participated in competitions for nearly ten years. Today, with the very same ambition, the 28-year-old has dedicated herself to a promising acting career, which began eight years ago in the theater. That was followed by training at Der Keller, Cologne’s renowned drama school – not an easy undertaking for someone who hails from Bolzano and grew up speaking Italian. “When I started drama school, I didn’t speak German nearly as well as I do today. That was something I had to work hard for and wanted very much,” she says, thinking back. What was the source of her discipline? “I definitely got that from figure skating. The sport also helped me a lot in terms of controlling my body,” she adds. Frego landed her first big job right after she finished school: in 2018, the Wishlist series was nominated twice for the prestigious German Grimme Prize. “Through that, I made contacts, felt valued and gained confidence. Which led me to land small parts in larger and larger projects,” for example in the German teen film Sprite Sisters, which was partly shot in South Tyrol. In short, she’s headed in the right direction. Frego likes playing comedic roles because she does funny, exaggerated characters. Of course, she also plays more serious roles: “That’s just my job as an actress,” she says, smiling. Next she’d like to do a major Italian project: “I have a lot of experience on German sets. A great role in my mother tongue would be wonderful. I really do feel comfortable in both worlds.”

FILMOGRAPHY 2020: SOKO Köln TV series 2020: Vite in Fuga TV series 2020: Dunkelstadt TV series 2020: Sprite Sisters – Vier zauberhafte Schwestern feature film 2019: Klassentreffen – Die Hochzeit feature film 2019: Einstein TV series 2019: Heldt TV series 2018: Head Full of Honey feature film 2018: Wishlist/WISHLIST 2.0 web series

LO R E M I P S U M

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TA K E #11

LO R E M I P S U M

film production / location service / logistics / scenography

www.cinealp.com

ILO N DRUE SMT IRPYS U M

LO R CO V IEDM- 1I 9 PSUM

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Lorem The Coronavirus Ipsum Crisis and theLorem Film Industry Ipsum

After the Storm How the Coronavirus Crisis Impacted the Film Industry … and How to Move Forward

F LO R I A N K R A U T K R Ä M E R , L A U R A D E L L I CO L L I , V A L E R I A D E J A CO

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LO CO R V IEDM- 1I 9 PSUM

LO R E M I P S U M

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ILO N DRUE SMT IRPYS U M

Audiences liked them, but for the industry, drive-in cinemas and online festivals were just a drop in the ocean. Pictured: A drive-in theater at the BASIS Cultural Center at a former military barracks in Schlanders, South Tyrol.

INDUSTRY

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The Coronavirus Crisis and the Film Industry

The Shutdown and its Impact Aid Measures in Italy, Germany and Austria but those fears were not borne out: a century later, the film business was busier than ever on the production and distribution side – until Covid-19 slammed on the brakes. What impact does “our” pandemic have on the sector and how will the industry mitigate the damage? The coronavirus has deepened existing divides and exacerbated tensions within the film industry, as everywhere. While protective measures against the virus temporarily shuttered cinemas and productions everywhere, revenues for streaming services increased by up to 150 percent. (For articles on the relationship between the film industry and streaming services, see the TAKE #10 dossier.) German film-industry special-interest groups such as AG Dok, Bundesverband Regie and Hauptverband Cinephilie see this as unfair competition and call for a solidarity tax to be paid by streaming services and public broadcasters. This is despite the fact that in Germany’s industry, the

Getty Images/R. Vennenbernd

This shut-down has given everybody – producer and exhibitor – an opportunity to sit down and take a good, long think. The last year has been a strenuous one in the history of the motion picture industry. The producers have been working day and night putting out all sorts of pictures – short reelers, big features and serials; and everybody has been plunging along at break-neck speed trying to make the best of the situation. We haven’t had a chance to analyze things. Our noses have been too close to the grindstone. […] Now we have had the opportunity thrust upon us to sit up and take notice of where we are headed. These words could easily have been written in 2020. But they are part of an appeal from W. C. Patterson, the operator of the Criterion Theater in Atlanta, to his colleagues in the trade publication Motion Picture News, dated November 23, 1918. The film industry was fighting a pandemic a good hundred years ago as well: the Spanish Flu. Many saw this as the end of the fledgling industry,

INDUSTRY

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Aid Measures in the Film Industry

T H E A G E O F S O FA C I N E M A

Italy was the first and hardest-hit country in Europe, so it’s no wonder that the impact of coronavirus on the country’s film industry has been a serious one. The government issued two decrees, one in March and the other in July, making a total of 245 million euros available for emergency measures in the film and entertainment industry. A large portion of this goes into the national film-funding program and Tax Credit schemes. Cinema operators are also covered by the emergency fund, with one-time subsidies of 10,000 euros per cinema here as well. An important positive signal for the Italian – and international – film industry was the decision, after a long period of uncertainty, that the Venice Film Festival would indeed take place in September. With safety measures implemented, of course, but even in the strange year of 2020, the industry mustn’t forgo one of its most important events. For the general public, meanwhile, sofa cinema predominates. Italian cinemas reopened in mid-June, albeit with a limited number of people, safe distancing and face masks required on the way to being seated – all of which is why operators expected utilization of 10 to 20 percent

While film production has started up again – albeit with protective measures – now Europe’s filmmaking countries are fighting the shutdown’s financial consequences.

capacity this summer. In some regions in Germany, going to the movies has been possible since June as well, but the theaters were empty, sometimes with more staff present than audience members. H A R D T I M E S F O R T H E S E L F - E M P LO Y E D

For the interested public, the drive-in cinemas and online festivals that have popped up in the meantime may be a welcome change, but for the industry itself they represented little more than a drop in the ocean. Though the emergency subsidies arrived quickly, they hardly touch a major portion of the industry. Benefitting from subsidies is particularly difficult for the self-employed, as the funds are primarily set up to cushion operating expenses or are linked to specific projects. If the situation persists, a solution independent of the subsidies will probably have to be considered in order to compensate for individual loss of earnings – at least partially. And in this industry, money is important but not everything. Resuming production and getting back into the flow is difficult. It is not for nothing that the magazine of the American Society of Cinematographers published proposals in its June issue about how to stay in practice at home, for example by reconstructing famous settings from The Wizard of Oz or E. T. the Extra-Terrestrial in the living room, using modest means. W. C. Patterson, our Atlanta cinema operator, had a somewhat more positive outlook during the flu pandemic in 1918: Of course, the shut-down means loss of money to all of us, but it also means a gain in countless ways. Here is a chance to find out if we are on the right track. Have we gotten the most out of our opportunities? Have we given our patrons the sort of entertainment to which they are entitled and for which T # 11 they are willing to spend their money?

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first coronavirus aid programs were launched quite early in the pandemic. In March, the directors of the ARD broadcasting companies and ARD Degeto agreed to share additional production costs created by coronavirus. Film funds followed suit. The Federal Government Commissioner for Culture and the Media (BKM) announced a one-time special grant for art-house cinemas of up to 10,000 euros per screen, as a one-time payment. Streamlined grants for investments have also been made possible. The Neustart Kultur program, which was adopted in June, is providing 40 million euros to convert cinemas so that they comply with new protective measures. Meanwhile, in Austria, the Ministries of Economic Affairs and Culture granted a “comeback” subsidy for film and TV productions, in order to enable continued work on interrupted projects and to stimulate the start of new productions. The fund comprises 25 million euros. The Austrian Film Institute earmarked another million in aid in support of scriptwriting and project development.

▶ Covid-19 protection measures and on-set rules in South Tyrol and Italy: film.idm-suedtirol.com/en/covid-19

ALL AID MEASURES implemented by Europe’s film-funding agencies (EFAD – European Film Agencies) to mitigate damage from the Covid crisis, continuously updated

INDUSTRY

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The Coronavirus Crisis and the Film Industry

“Nothing will be the same as before.” Italian Cinema Faces the Pandemic A Conversation with Laura Delli Colli and Francesco Rutelli “We are wholly committed to recovery”: a conversation between industry giants Delli Colli and Rutelli in the offices of the film-industry organization ANICA in Rome

A whole filming season stopped dead in its tracks. Attempts to reopen after months of dramatic events. Inevitable optimism about recovery. But, first and foremost, the desire to overcome a challenge that has placed intense strain on the cinema industry. Covid-19 hit film professionals across the entire industry, from crews to cinema owners. It has created difficulties for everyone, from writers to producers to promoters and even the festival circuit, so vital to the industry. We still carry surface wounds that one summer hasn’t been enough to heal, with only one fundamental certainty: that the industry and entire cinema world is trying to demonstrate an ability to come together as never before, aware that nothing will be the same as before. Back when the alarm bell first sounded, movie theaters were finally full again, two Italian films – Volevo nascondermi (Hidden Away) and Favolacce (Bad Tales) – had just won prizes at the Berlinale and about 70 productions were about to return to the set. Now, the reset button must be pressed as we search for a new balance, from production to theaters to the way we consume cinema. Will coronavirus change the way we produce? Will storytelling itself be altered? What about set life and the ways cinemas operate? What will be the effect on audiences? Will we emerge from

this tunnel with cinematic exploitation completely transformed? There is one certainty: film remains a highly valuable industry, and is important to the wider production sector, of course – but also to Italian creativity and culture. How, then, are we to handle the coming months? How will we emerge from this? Dialogue is very much open at this point, and there are many ideas and points of view, as can be clearly seen in this conversation between Francesco Rutelli, the president of Italy’s largest industry association ANICA, and Laura Delli Colli, president of the Cinema Foundation for Rome (which is preparing the festival for October) and of the National Union of Italian Film Journalists, which has just produced the first big live event after reopening: the Nastri d’Argento awards. We confronted them with a series of questions. Here are their responses. Covid-19 forced us to live in absolute crisis for months, leaving wounds that are still open, including in the audiovisual world. How do you evaluate the situation today and what is the climate within Italy’s audiovisual sector? LAURA DELLI COLLI Since the beginning of this year, the

INDUSTRY

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TA K E #11

Riccardo Ghilardi

A Conversation with Laura Delli Colli & Francesco Rutelli

pandemic has indeed caused a devastating hemorrhaging of audience members that I believe is unprecedented in the history of our industry. As I have heard Francesco Rutelli say often, ours is an industry that represents a social form of entertainment, but also of cultural production that leans towards the popular and accessible. Even if we had no notion of the huge direct effects that the pandemic is capable of producing, looking at the film industryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s national data suffices: more than two thousand companies employ 250,000 people, including ancillary industries, in a sector that normally boasts a turnover of 4 billion euros and has recorded an average growth of more than 5 percent over the last six years. Am I wrong, Mr. Rutelli? I agree. The crisis is clear for all to see. We are far removed from where we were at the beginning of this year, which had kicked off extremely well and screeched to a standstill because of the pandemic. But we are wholly committed to recovery: Italian cinema, which had recorded an increase of 4 million admissions in January, lost 25 million over the course of just a few months. This crisis is global, obviously, which forebodes even more intense competition. Italy cannot afford to lose decisive

FRANCESCO RUTELLI

positioning, not only in terms of international prestige but also to maintain a sector that is of great productive and creative value and creates employment. Will these disturbing effects continue for a prolonged period of time? And what about audiences: will the public end up leaving the cinema for good? FR Cinema is pure creativity. Those who truly love it and feel its absence understand its value. They have demonstrated that fact by consuming it in every way that could possibly be found as an alternative to the movie theater. From our point of view, though, we are acutely aware that cinema is also a business, an industry which needs investments. The supply chain encompasses many small and medium-sized companies: from project development to production, from promotion to distribution and finally to theatrical screening. Every segment of the industry now stands before its own specific challenge. LDC On the production side, a cautious recovery is already palpable, albeit with obvious limits: on-set coronavirus testing, masks, regulations and precautions make the set safer. However, what happened is causing a change in our

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A Conversation with Laura Delli Colli & Francesco Rutelli

LAURA DELLI COLLI is a journalist and author, and has written numerous books dedicated to cinema and its main players. Since 2003, she has been the president of the National Union of Italian Film Journalists (SNGCI) which presents the Nastro d’Argento (Silver Ribbon) awards every year to films, actors, screenwriters and Italian cinema operators; Delli Colli also directs the event. She has also been the president of the Cinema Foundation for Rome, which organizes the Rome Film Festival, since 2019.

risk closure in the near future. Instead, the cinema must be transformed into a multifunctional venue where – in addition to the newest film by your favorite director – you can go see an away football game played by your favorite team, a La Scala theater opening or a Vasco Rossi rock concert if the Olimpico stadium is all sold out... in short, a neighborhood place that has autonomy but also follows its public-service calling. The scientific community is warning of the risk of new pandemic crises. How can we be better equipped as an industry, if this does come to pass? LDC In recent months, national and regional authorities have issued analyses and regulations that have become a road map to be followed. This guarantees the health and safety of every individual in the audiovisual world as well. We must hold out hope that it doesn’t happen. But if it does, it won’t take us by surprise like last time. It’s important to prepare now, looking for new productive assets and managing to compensate for corporate financial crises with a close eye on co-productions and international markets. Minister Franceschini is launching a new modification to the Tax Credit that facilitates solutions to various needs: financial support for companies, recovery of sets and mitigating the effects of higher production costs for compulsory insurance. We all have a heightened awareness that allows us to be better equipped in the face of harm, as well as risks. Ennio Flaiano once declared that cinema was dead. T#11 But we’ve always seen it rise again...

R. Ghilardi

own audience habits: Covid-19 is forcing us to rethink our relationship with cinema, from theaters to festival formats and markets. Just think about the fact that it shut down Cannes and forced Venice – and other important international festivals – into a hybrid formula. On the other hand, it has also pushed all of us unthinkably quickly into using cutting-edge technology to dialogue with each other. Let’s talk about measures necessary to counter the effects of the crisis within the industry. Which ones are most urgent? LDC I’m not a politician, but I believe that it’s necessary to extend the social safety nets and allowances already ensured by institutional decree, primarily through the measures proposed by Culture Minister Dario Franceschini in favor of industry workers and entertainment companies. I also imagine that a fund earmarked for renovation and technological adaptation of cinemas would be useful. But President Rutelli should be the one to speak about that. That’s right. It has already become clear that monitoring and government intervention are indispensable. We’re also talking about block grants, in part, to fuel a system-wide transformation in order to prevent the risk of a true production-industry desertification: more than half of cinemas

R. Ghilardi

FRANCESCO RUTELLI was the mayor of Rome from 1993 to 2001. From 2006 to 2008 he served as vice-president of the Italian Council of Ministers and as Minister of Cultural Heritage and Activities. He has founded several environmental and cultural organizations, including the Center for a Sustainable Future. Since 2016, he has been the president of the National Association of Audiovisual and Multimedia Film Industries (ANICA), Italy’s largest trade association, which brings together producers, distributors and the technical industries.

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The Coronavirus Crisis and the Film Industry

“The virus was altering reality before our camera lenses.” The Red House: a Report

“We made our way to Greenland on February 24, just before the Covid-19 crisis broke out in Europe. Nobody knew what was on the horizon; we only saw a few protective masks at the airport in Italy. After a two-day trip via Copenhagen and Reykjavik, comprising three flights and a helicopter ride, we reached our remote location: the village of Tasiilaq. For pre-production, it was only the director Francesco Catarinolo and I who went to Greenland. After a few days, the consequences of news coming out of Italy became apparent: our country had become the hotspot of the pandemic. The local people, quite an isolated community with a relatively low level of education, reacted negatively to say the least. We had already begun preliminary talks with a school principal, a social worker and at some other institutions when, unbeknownst to us, fake news began circulating in a local Facebook group: the Italian filmmakers were infected with the coronavirus and lying in bed sick. The school children wouldn’t speak to us anymore. They were absolutely convinced that we had the virus. They pulled their sweaters over their mouths when they saw us at the school playground, during recess. The teachers were even more scared, and the villagers avoided us. FA K E N E W S O N FA C E B O O K

All of this worried us a lot. The film had been in development for four years and our production company had borne high costs: travel, helicopter flights, snowmobile rides and lodging. Places to stay are few and far between there, and there’s not much tourism. Our protagonist Robert Peroni’s Red House is one of only two hotels. In order to help us out, one of Robert’s employees clarified on Facebook that the posts about us were not true. When the remaining crew members finally arrived, we were thus able to begin work. Unfortunately, a new problem arrived along with them: a group of about 25 German tourists. They were all healthy, but nobody could be sure that they were not asymptomatic carriers of the virus. So the Facebook rumors started up again. I do understand why the locals were so distrustful, though. They live in such isolation that their immune systems are weaker; often over the years, foreigners have indeed introduced diseases. To top it off, there’s no real hospital and thus no intensive-care unit or even Covid-19 tests.

Producer Gianluca De Angelis

THE RED HOUSE is a documentary about Robert Peroni, a former alpinist and explorer from Bolzano who moved to the remote Greenland region of Ammassalik in the 1990s. His Red House, in the village of Tasiilaq, is a small tourist hotel as well as a meeting place for the local Inuit community. Since the sealskin trade was banned, the Ivi ethnic group has suffered from high unemployment, which is in turn associated with alcohol abuse and suicide. Robert, who himself suffers from a serious illness, has dedicated his life to these people. The film by director Francesco Catarinolo is co-produced by Turin-based Tekla and Hamburg-based Vidicom Media. IDM funded the development with 18,000 euros and the production phase with 60,000 euros.

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The Red House: a Report

Filming of a documentary about Robert Peroni and his Red House in Greenland (01, 02) came to a very abrupt end; producer De Angelis tried everything to get his crew (03) home despite the lockdown.

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In view of the situation, which was now escalating globally, they shut down the schools and community center; we were thus not able to continue working there. We wrapped up the shoot inside the Red House… and then the hotel’s story ended right before our eyes: Robert had to close down because all future guests canceled their bookings, of course. So, even though the virus barely touched Greenland, the country is still suffering from the effects of the pandemic: isolation, lockdown and economic damage. Another addition to the long list of evils that the West has brought upon the Inuit. In our film, we had planned to address precisely these imported problems, which can be traced back to Western colonization: the ban on seal hunting, for example. And so, the coronavirus became part of our storyline, because it was altering the reality we wanted to depict – right before our camera lenses. STRANDED IN GREENLAND

Tekla

As soon as we finished shooting, our next problem was already waiting: how to get back to Italy. By now, the panic was full scale: it was March 15 and Italy was in the midst of the crisis. I did make it back – just barely and with great difficulty, because Greenland had canceled all flights. But the rest of the crew had remained in Tasiilaq with the director and we couldn’t get them back. They continued to work – completely isolated, under the suspicious gaze of the local population and with the fear of being stuck in Greenland for months. We appealed to the Italian ambassador in Denmark for help, placed two articles in major Italian daily newspapers, called the completely overwhelmed Italian crisis department and even reached out to the foreign minister personally through a Turin MP. Meanwhile, I tried to phone Greenland’s Covid-19 operations center, but nobody there spoke English. In the end, I don’t know if it was the Danes, the crisis team, the foreign minister, or the very friendly lady at the Greenland Covid-19 headquarters who made it happen, but the crew made it home – in a five-day trip, with a number of detours. Now we can finally finish our work on the film. Originally, we wanted to shoot with the protagonist in Bolzano as well, since he returns every year, but given the situation, of course he will stay in Tasiilaq. Nevertheless, I’m satisfied with the end result because our film gained a new dimension. After all, the best thing about the world of documentary is that film must adapt to reality. Documentary is the only genre that manages to be present in an historical moment and capture it so spontaneously.” Gianluca De Angelis, producer of The Red House

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Non mi uccidere (2021)

Andrea De Sica

Andrea De Sica’s Gothic Streak The director, who is returning to South Tyrol for his second feature Non mi uccidere (Don’t Kill Me), sat down with TAKE in Rome to chat about adolescence, his famous family and a genre film in the vein of auteur cinema

Interview by

NICK VIVARELLI Photos

R I CC A R D O G H I L A R D I

Andrea De Sica was born into the world of cinema. But he represents an anomaly in Italian film in that he combines the strong mark of an auteur with the stylistic features of genre film. We met up in Rome’s Monteverde Vecchio neighborhood, where we both live, to discuss his next project, Non mi uccidere (Don’t Kill Me), a horror/fantasy film that combines coming-of-age with “strong romanticism,” as he defines it. Produced by Warner Bros. Entertainment Italia and Vivo film, it stars Alice Pagani of Baby, De Sica’s Netflix series. The plot of his new feature revolves around an inseparable couple, Mirta and Robin, and spins a tale of love and death, rebirth and growing up. For De Sica, it marks the return to South Tyrol after his debut film, I figli della notte (Children of the Night), which was filmed with the support of IDM Film Fund as well.

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Coming of age is a central theme in De Sica’s films. “I belong to a generation of Italians who grew up in turbulent times.”

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Non mi uccidere (2021)

Andrea De Sica

“The fact that I shot my first feature at 35 can certainly be traced to coming from such a cinematic family: I felt a duty to be perfectly prepared.” Andrea De Sica photographed for TAKE at his house in Rome

ANDREA DE SICA was born in Rome in 1981. After studying philosophy, he graduated from the Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia in directing. He collaborated in the direction of the animated series Mia and Me in 2013, then shot his first documentary Città dell’uomo (City of Man). He was awarded the Best New Director Nastro d’Argento for his debut feature film Children of the Night (2016), which was set at a boarding school and shot in South Tyrol. Baby, a teen series for Netflix about the lives of two very young Roman call girls, followed in 2018 and has been seen by more than 10 million subscribers worldwide. Born into one of the most important dynasties of Italian cinema – his grandfather was Vittorio De Sica and his uncle is actor and director Christian De Sica – he shot his second feature film Don’t Kill Me, which again addresses a teenage audience, in 2020. De Sica lives in Rome.

After working your way up on other people’s sets, at the age of 35 you made your directorial debut with a film that I believe represents you very well. I have the impression that it is rooted in your own world, but with the audience always in mind – your generation, in particular. How was Children of the Night born? ANDREA DE SICA I sat down and tried to figure out the best way to make my debut. It seemed to me that basing a first film entirely upon one specific place could have some potential when it came to pitching to a producer. Because that way I could put all my experiences to good use, without needing much money. There was a high level of distrust regarding first films at the time, and I had already tried pitching to a good number of producers and had gotten nowhere. Starting out, I had two ideas in mind: Children of the Night and Don’t Kill Me. I had done a short in 2012, which I produced myself. It was a sequence from Don’t Kill Me, and I showed it to lots of producers. Gregorio Paonessa of Vivo film saw it and decided to make a feature with me.

PRODUCTION

Warner Bros. Entertainment Italia & Vivo film

And what inspired the film’s narrative? That came out of something that I didn’t experience directly, but rather through my cousins: they attended boarding school, which I found fascinating. To me, it seemed an ancient practice, something straight out of The Confusions of Young Törless. But there really is this sort of underworld of wealthy families from all over Italy, from great industrial dynasties, who send the family’s hot heads to study at elite boarding schools, protected by the silence guaranteed by these institutions. It’s a bit like locking them away. That turned on a light bulb for me; I liked the idea immediately, primarily because it speaks to a sort of protected adolescence similar to mine. ADS

A bit superficially, schools for rich kids play a fairly major role in your work. There’s a common thread there, in some way: the school in your first TV show, the animated children’s series Mia and Me; the boarding school of Children of the Night; and the high school in the Netflix series Baby – with that of Children of the Night being the most cinematic, in my opinion. ADS We actually decided to go to South Tyrol because the boarding school played such a central role in the story. Finding it was like a real casting process, we scouted locations far and wide. And the place we eventually selected, the Grand Hotel Dobbiaco, is undoubtedly one of the protagonists, with the surrounding woods and mountains setting the tone for the film. Baby was born from one of the ribs of Children of the Night. The difference is that the film was an expression of my desire to be different, to shoot in a remote place in South Tyrol and lock myself up there, absorbed in my work like a monk. Far away from Rome, from my parents and relatives. Baby, meanwhile, was like a homecoming: a series set in Rome, my city, about my high school years. Also, Children of the Night was filtered through my cinephilia and the cinematic education I got from my parents [film composer Manuel De Sica and producer Tilde Corsi]. Baby, on the other hand, was shot with little planning, faster, more instinctively. Because that’s television. Now I hope to take a step forward from there with Don’t Kill Me. Tell us about the new film. Non mi uccidere is a novel I discovered at the age of 25, back when I was studying at the National School of Cinema in Rome. I fell in love with it immediately. It’s a story of teen disillusionment: because of love, an adolescent conquers death, but then comes to understand that she is completely different from who she thought she was. It’s a ADS

coming-of-age tale, once again, but much darker and suspenseful. I’ve always had a shadowy, Gothic streak. This time I really wanted to ride it all the way to its endpoint with an absolute genre film. But despite your genre storytelling, you remain an auteur. ADS I think so. Consider the French – Jacques Audiard is a good example – who are auteurs but are open to genre, to entertainment. This may sound controversial, if you will, because their films are never particularly light or reassuring. Yet they are auteurs who love their audience. Or think about Hitchcock. During the lockdown, I read Donald Spoto’s 800-page book on Hitchcock and saw his films: here, too, you find a truly personal vision of an auteur, but within films that are very much geared towards the public. And this vision inspires you? Yes, I do like it very much. If you think about Bicycle Thieves and Sciuscià (Shoeshine) [directed by his grandfather, Vittorio De Sica], they were far ahead conceptually for that time, in part due to the image they projected of Italy. But they were written and conceived in a non-punitive way; auteur cinema can be a bit punitive sometimes. Meanwhile, with these films there is an openness towards the audience. I really believe in that and hope that I’ll be able to accomplish the same in Don’t Kill Me – but in a completely different genre. For me, the fundamental thing in a project is always a core idea that has not yet been committed to film. And then I try to understand what’s at the bottom of it, at the core: Don’t Kill Me is a metaphor for teenagers, in a universal sense, who lose the reassuring vestiges of ADS

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A. De Sica, G. Romoli, Grams collective

SCRIPT

NON MI UCCIDERE (Don’t Kill Me) by Andrea De Sica is a horror film based upon the bestselling novel of the same name by Chiara Palazzolo. De Sica wrote the screenplay together with writer/producer Gianni Romoli and Grams, the screenwriter collective with whom he collaborated for Baby: Antonio Le Fosse, Giacomo Mazzariol, Marco Raspanti, Romulo Emmanuel Salvador and Eleonora Trucchi. Don’t Kill Me is produced by Warner Bros. Entertainment Italia and the Rome-based Vivo film and distributed by Warner Bros. Pictures. Filming in South Tyrol took place in August, in various locations throughout the province. IDM Film Fund & Commission awarded the project 450,000 euros in funding.

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Non mi uccidere (2021)

Andrea De Sica

childhood, who find themselves catapulted into the violent world of adults and discover violence even within themselves. Let’s talk about your family for a moment. How do you experience being part of a veritable dynasty of Italian cinema? ADS The fact that I shot my first feature at 35 can certainly be traced to my provenance in such a purely cinematic family. I felt a sense of duty to walk onto my first set as a director as prepared as I could possibly be, and thus I worked my way up for a long time. That has given me a certain sense of ease. If I had been younger while shooting my first feature, I would’ve been much more scared and insecure. But I’m at the right age now to enjoy what I do. I derive a great sense of peace from the fact that I managed to detach myself from my family’s legacy right from the start, with Children of the Night. And that I’m just… me. Was there a moment during the Covid-19 lockdown when you questioned whether a project like Don’t Kill Me would still have meaning, with all the real-life horror going on in the world right now? ADS I did ask myself that, yes. But I think it does retain meaning. Because the films I imagine are always parallel worlds with a strong symbolic value: they’re not really about concrete necessities, about nipping down to the tobacconist or going to the supermarket. I think the fundamental themes of cinema never change. However, my generation did live through the Berlusconi years and the 2008 financial crisis; our wages are the lowest in two decades, I believe. We were finally in the midst of a recovery – and then Covid-19 happened! So I do feel part of a generation that has taken a few hits. But at the same time, we’re still young enough and strong enough. We will be the generation of rebuilding, of new beginnings. T#11

“I wanted to ride my gothic streak all the way to its endpoint with an utterly genre film” – De Sica on his new project Don’t Kill Me.

A. De Sica, G. Romoli, A. Le Fosse, G. Mazzariol, M. Raspanti, R. E. Salvador, E. Trucchi

PRODUCTION

Vivo film

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NATURE IS OUR FILMSET CONTACT US: SCHNALSTAL.IT/SENALES.IT CREDIT & Â© : PATRICK STEGER - VIDEOMETRIXS.COM

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GREEN SETS

Sustainable Film Production

The Fridays for Future movement has spurred the film industry to further deepen its sense of responsibility about making film sets more environmentally friendly. How can we green our sector? Sustainable Film Production By

F LO R I A N K R A U T K R Ä M E R Illustrations

OSCAR DIODORO

DEAR READER,

When we planned this dossier back in 2019, we were certain that by focusing on sustainable film production we would not only be addressing one of our top issues, but – through writing about energy conservation and environmental protection – also be contributing to a debate that has been ongoing in the industry for a few years now. Even if coronavirus and the interruptions and restrictions it brings are more likely to be concerns this year and next, initiatives for responsible use of resources in film production remain

highly relevant. On the following pages, we present several green initiatives and film folks who are committed to rethinking our industry. With Covid-19 in mind, this dossier becomes not only a stocktaking but also, once we return to normal, a plea for preserving and building upon the hardwon results achieved thus far. Florian Krautkrämer TAKE #11 Editor-in-Chief

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Sustainable Film Production

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DOSSIER

GREEN SETS

Sustainable Film Production

New technologies, paperless production offices, locally sourced catering: shooting green allows for – and elicits – creativity.

Film for the Future. Ideas and Initiatives for a Greener Film Industry

Just a few short years ago, the phrase “sustainable film shoot” would have brought to mind a documentary film on the topic of environmentalism. Or how solar power and planting trees can compensate for a carbon footprint. But numerous concrete measures now exist that can be used to produce films in a way that conserves resources. First and foremost, there has been a change in awareness in the industry. Studies exist that show, for example, that in 2016 the Los Angeles film industry had higher carbon emissions than any other sector. The film industry has long recognized that it is a relevant cause of global warming; within the industry, there is an increasing desire to rethink things generally. Thanks to Fridays for Future and Greta Thunberg’s popularity, this issue is more topical than ever. Discussions about CO2 consumption and potential savings now go beyond experts; these days, ordinary people are talking about how much CO2 they create by streaming Netflix for an hour. Even though data about this vary widely, it’s telling that everyday activities are now being correlated to protecting the environment. As always, it’s the numbers that put things in perspective: film scientist Laura Marks has calculated that in ten days of streaming the new Netflix series Tiger King, the U.S. alone consumed as much electricity as the entire country of Rwanda did during the year 2016.

On the production side, meanwhile, it’s difficult to determine the carbon footprint of a given film without detailed knowledge of the (post)-production process or to calculate exact savings, as the current CineRegio Green Report shows using the paperless office concept as an example. I T ’ S N OT E A S Y B E I N G G R E E N

In order to illuminate how content is produced and how climate-neutral the technology that allows for its viewing really is, Europe launched initiatives for more environmentally friendly production in the film industry more than ten years ago. One of the first initiatives was a special CO2 calculator for film and television productions, which could measure the production’s ecological footprint and facilitate effective reduction. Regional funding bodies have also adopted these types of initiatives. MFG Baden-Württemberg, a state-level German cultural entity which has already been committed to the issue for a few years, has developed its own CO2 calculator and placed it on its website as part of its green-shooting project. From 2020 all funding applicants must submit their carbon footprint to the regional body after completion of post-production. Maria Dehmelt, who heads the MFG project, expects that this measure will

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GREEN SETS

Sustainable Film Production

“You don’t have to forgo anything in order to go green!” South Tyrolean director RONNY TROCKER made his second feature, Zorro, in compliance with sustainable production criteria and was awarded the Green Film Pass by the Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein Film Fund.

What role did your green consultant play? He was involved in the production from the outset, and was with us throughout the planning phase. That’s the most important thing. He contacted each department separately and worked out measures together with them. RT

provide additional data that can be used to systematically analyze both consumption and potential savings. Dehmelt wrote her thesis on green production and has been advocating the project since she started working at MFG in 2015. In addition to educational work and sparking change, one of the most important tasks is ensuring that producers don’t experience sustainability as something that limits them. “Going green invites creativity and even boosts it,” declares Dehmelt. In addition to informative material and numerous workshops, one of the main instruments for change is the green consultant: a person who advises all departments about how to save energy effectively during prepping of the shoot. Armed with specific practical knowledge, green consultants ensure that the commitment to shooting green is maintained, with advance measures specifically tailored to the given production. The MFG awards funds of up to 5,000 euros to productions that employ a green consultant. R E G I O N A L F U N D S’ S U S TA I N A B I L I T Y E F F O R T S

This type of consultancy is already mandatory for the Green Shooting working group, a 2017 sustainability initiative founded by the MFG, which brings together various funding bodies, production companies and broadcasters. In order to

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What made you commit to a green production when you were shooting Zorro? RONNY TROCKER That was something in which my producer Susanne Mann was very engaged. If someone cares deeply about sustainability in their private life, like we do, you can’t just suddenly close your eyes to it in your professional life.

Which changes were most noticeable on set? The paperless office! There were hardly any printed scripts or call sheets. It’s only when they’re gone that you notice how much paper there used to be. Also, the catering company didn’t use any disposable tableware and served only vegetarian food once a week; I found both changes very good. RT

What did you take away from the experience? You don’t have to forgo anything in order to go green! There were really no restrictions; we didn’t have to change anything we’d been planning to do as a result of the compliance. I believe too that engagement in sustainability is ongoing for the other crew members, both professionally and privately. RT

Will you go green again on your next production? We’ll certainly continue certain things, such as the paperless office. And now we’re highly sensitized, even without the certification; we know what’s good and what works. But formalization of the Green Film Pass also makes sense because you get a detailed final report, which allows you to T#11 see what you’ve achieved in black and white. RT

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GREEN SETS

Sustainable Film Production

respond to future demand for such experts, the MFG has developed a training program for certification of green consultants, which is set to commence in 2020 and will be carried out in cooperation with the Hochschule der Medien. In Italy, it is likewise primarily regional funding bodies that stand out when it comes to initiatives for sustainable production. The film commissions of Trentino and Sardinia, for example, have both adopted green protocols in which productions that work in a sustainable way are certified and, as a result, earn additional points during evaluation of their submitted projects. The five categories taken into consideration are: efficient energy sources, sustainable mobility, environmentally friendly materials, consumption of local food and proper waste recycling. The Edison Green Movie program, through which the energy company Edison has been providing advice for greening sets since 2011, is an innovative combination of sustainability and budget friendliness. It consists of easy-to-implement guidelines that can be integrated into the production process and, according to the initiators, make them more efficient when used correctly, which translates into financial savings. The company has been working with the Piedmont Film Commission since 2016; down the road, the initiative will be extended to other Italian regions as well. Sustainability is also a top priority for South Tyrol’s film funding body, with IDM offering workshops on becoming a green consultant. Philip Gassmann, who

advises television broadcasters, film productions and film-funding bodies on how to green production (see interview), held a multi-day course for IDM in May 2020 – via webinar, due to coronavirus restrictions. Perhaps the fact that so many productions were interrupted played a role in so many taking advantage of the opportunity. T H E R E ’ S S T I L L A LO N G W A Y TO G O

Jonathan Rinn, who works in South Tyrol as a lighting technician and cameraman, registered for the workshop because he’s highly engaged personally in sustainability. “The workshop was especially helpful for me in terms of convincing productions to make improvements within my department,” he says. Film professionals working across various departments took part in the workshop, creating specific work groups to address the topic expressly for their individual area of work, writing fact sheets and gaining practical knowledge. Kathy Leonelli from Bolzano is now a member of one of the working groups: “As a location manager, I have to take particular care of the environment before, during and after the shoot,” she comments. Leonelli also used the course primarily with regard to her own professional development. It’s advantageous that these workshops are designed across departments. Because during a process as complex as film production, only one’s own motivation – combined with in-depth knowledge of the various relationships – can lead to real and sensible energy savings.

Green consultants and mandatory certifications speak to a commitment to a greener future among film professionals that transcends the industry.

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GREEN SETS

Sustainable Film Production

Green Production in South Tyrol Sustainable production measures implemented by the South Tyrolean Film Fund (IDM) “South Tyrol’s scenic beauty is one important reason why so many productions come here. And one of the things that make our locations so popular is that authentic, unspoiled nature can still be found in many places. The Film Fund & Commission shares responsibility for protecting our unique landscape, while at the same time sharing it with a broad audience via film and television productions. That’s why IDM has been increasingly committed to sustainable film productions over the last two years. In addition to joining the Green Regio network, we rely heavily on continuing education, offering regular workshops on sustainable production and green-consultancy training. Another important measure is to create and implement a criteria catalog. In the future, productions will submit a sustainability plan with their application. Together with local filmmakers, we are developing a great deal of informative material, which should make green production easier. The ultimate goal is for all film productions shooting in South Tyrol to achieve external certification.”

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Thus, there is a good foundation upon which to build. Because with climate change, you can’t afford to lean back. That’s why an important next step is to introduce binding certifications that communicate commitment and standards compliance outside of the industry as well. This type of seal has existed for several years: the Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein Film Fund has its Green Film Pass (see interview with Ronny Trocker) and the German Federal Film Board (FFA) is also developing a corresponding certificate. However, there’s still a long way to go before a Europe-wide seal can be developed – in part because the situation in the individual countries is quite different. Great Britain still has the most experience with sustainable production. Thanks to standards developed by the British Film Institute (BFI) and albert, an industrial consortium active since 2011 that unites broadcasters and studios, a great deal of data has been collected. This is critical for better understanding differences, savings potential and developments. In the rest of Europe, regional film funds have been the drivers carrying the topic forward – and they are often able to move faster than national ones. The important issue of sustainability evidences that the role of film-funding bodies is no longer just to make productions financially possible, but that their central position also makes them pivotal for social change, creating structures and setting standards that will allow us to T#11 produce films well and responsibly in the future.

Birgit Oberkofler Head Film Fund & Commission

DOSSIER

GREEN SETS

Interview with Philip Gassmann

“To me, it’s all about improving, not reducing.” Interview with Philip Gassmann, an Expert in Sustainable Production Philip Gassmann is a director and producer, as well as an international specialist in green production for the last several years. He advises production companies, television broadcasters, funds and political bodies on switching to sustainable practices. He has also given two green-consultancy courses for the South Tyrolean Film Fund (IDM). Mr. Gassmann, how does one become an internationally sought-after expert for sustainable film production? PHILIP GASSMANN Already back in my student days, I was very interested in environmental protection. After studying film in Paris and initially working in television, I quickly realized just how bad the environmental problem is in our industry. The initial spark came a good ten years ago during a meeting with Christiane Dopp from the Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein Film Fund, who had initiated the Green Film Pass already way back then. I started giving lectures to various departments and it gradually grew from there. How did the film industry react? There was demand right from the start, but interest has grown massively in the past couple of years. All of my multi-day courses are fully booked. Of course, that’s related to the Fridays for Future movement and the fact that more and more people are becoming engaged. But it has to be

said that the industry is more than ready right now. More than 100 people per individual department have registered for the German Film Commission’s Keen to Be Green events, which take place as webinars. Do people have concerns that work will become much more complicated? PG Rethinking operations is always an opportunity to take a really good look at everything, including processes that have become engrained over the years. You soon realize that it’s an enormously creative process, and it’s actually fun! We also observe that sustainability measures suddenly make the teams communicate much more. You can tell that people are coming up with ideas themselves – and are listened to – so they can identify with their job again. How do you deal with the fact that you always have to rely on existing structures that may not change so quickly, especially when it comes to film – for example, that rentals may not offer an energy-saving generator? PG I recommend that you keep asking and asking, even if you’ve already received a negative response. Include it as standard in inquiries for hotel bookings and technology rentals. We’ve already noted that these requests alone actually lead to change. The sum and substance is to communicate the topic constantly, thereby creating

DOSSIER

GREEN SETS

Interview with Philip Gassmann

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“Right now the industry is more than ready to make the switch to sustainable production,” says Philip Gassmann.

incentives and sharing knowledge. The CO2 calculator is also an important tool here, since it allows you to actually visualize and compare effects. It’s quite a different thing if I can say right here, in this moment, that the studio’s electricity consumes as much CO2 as 47 flights. FURTHER READING

And what about structural funding – motivating rental houses to buy technology that conserves energy, for example? PG The technology is there. The demand is there. And you could make a lasting difference right now with targeted funding. Completely different systems, which no one here has even seen before, such as solar generators that align themselves with the sun, are already being used abroad. Incidentally, Jason Bateman’s film Bad Words was made entirely with solar power back in 2013. What are the next steps then? It would be important to analyze the potential and challenges in finer detail. In order to do so, having data is crucial. That allows you to scrutinize whether the size of a particular production is really justified. From a sustainability perspective, can you do it any differently? How do you reach a reasonable level without sacrificing creativity? To T#11 me, it’s all about improving, not reducing.

GREEN FILM SHOOTING: a platform

for a sustainable media industry, which publishes an annual magazine of the same name

GREEN REGIO: a working group of CineRegio, Europe’s network of regional film funding bodies, which published the 2020 Green Report, among other things LAURA MARKS: STREAMING VIDEO, a

link between pandemic and climate crisis

www.philipgassmann.de

PRODUCTION #2

FILM

My Upside Down World (2020)

My Upside

Down

World

G I U L I A B I A N CO N I Photos

ALBOLINA FILM

Jonathan White

D I R E C TO R

PRODUCTION

Elena Goatelli

Albolina Film

TA K E #11

Doggedness, skill and endurance: in her documentary, Elena Goatelli addresses the travels and challenges of climbing champion Angelika Rainer

Rainer climbing through the Tomorrow’s World route in the Dolomites. “Athletes like Angelika break all the clichés about women,” says director Elena Goatelli.

PRODUCTION #2

FILM

My Upside Down World (2020)

A female-centric cinematic portrait: Angelika Rainer on a climbing trip on the Greek island of Kalymnos

For twenty years, Angelika Rainer was a competitive ice climber – one of the best in the world. But at the age of 32, the three-time world champion decided to leave the competition circuit. She chose a new, equally challenging, professional path: travel the world, be the first woman to climb fiendishly difficult routes, open up new ones, and meet other courageous women along the way, while committing all these adventures to film in a documentary. This documentary is My Upside Down World. Directed by Elena Goatelli and produced by Roberto Cavallini of Bolzano-based Albolina Film with the support of South Tyrol’s audiovisual fund, it focuses on the career turning point of this determined and tenacious athlete who, attached to crampons and ice axes, observes the world upside down – literally. The film is both an intimate portrait of a woman and a reflection on the personal growth of the climber, who was born in Meran in 1986. It covers a nearly year-long journey through very different places: from the craggy peaks of the Dolomites to the fiery cliffs of the sweltering Greek island Kalymnos all the way to the glaciers of Iceland. A U N I V E R S A L S TO R Y

Elena Goatelli first met Angelika Rainer five years ago, while prepping a documentary about British mountaineer Tom Ballard. Some time later, she discovered while reading an article about the athlete that Angelika was preparing for a trip to Iran, where she would teach local women to climb. “The idea for the film was born out of that. In the end, we were unfortunately unable to follow her on that particular project because we weren’t able to start shooting in time. But together we designed a full year of travel and projects, during which Angelika put herself through the wringer,” explains the 45-year-old Bolzano-born director who, like the subject of her documentary, has nature and mountains in her DNA. A love that prompted her to return to live in Italy after a few years in Madrid, together with her partner Angel Esteban, who is also a director. “I’ve always been a big fan of courageous women,” Goatelli says. She had wanted to make her first female-centric film (though she had already dealt with a topic related to the world of women, endometriosis, in the past). “All of my female friends approach life in a powerful and courageous way,” she says. “Female athletes, especially, have a fiercely competitive spirit. They break all the clichés associated with women, confronting challenges in a different way and thinking outside of the box.” The director specifically chose Rainer’s universe in order to take an in-depth look at how a professional female athlete lives even outside of the pressure of competition. “I was interested in finding out what motivates someone to engage in a sport like climbing, where you continually come upon a new limit that must be overcome. How do you manage to hold onto the tension,

PRODUCTION

Elena Goatelli

Albolina Film

Filming in Iceland: â&#x20AC;&#x153;We followed Angelika as she prepared, and experienced her uncertainty with her,â&#x20AC;? says director Goatelli.

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D I R E C TO R

PRODUCTION #2

FILM

My Upside Down World (2020)

Director Elena Goatelli

ELENA GOATELLI was born in Bolzano in 1975. She graduated with a degree in foreign languages and literature from Ca’ Foscari University in Venice; she lives in Trentino. She worked in the documentary department of Canal+ Spain before directing the television documentary Endometriosis, the Tip of the Iceberg in 2012 for Spanish public broadcaster TVE, the first film on endometriosis ever produced. After the documentary One Minute for Conductors (2013), which she made together with Angel Esteban and which was shown at the International Documentary Film Festival in Amsterdam (IDFA), she and Esteban shot a feature film entitled TOM (2015) about the English mountaineer Tom Ballard, which won a series of international awards, followed by the documentary Malditos in 2017. Her new film My Upside Down World was produced by the Bolzano-based company Albolina Film, and received 110,000 euros of production funding from IDM Film Fund & Commission.

even when there are no more judges or time trials?” In order to round out the portrait, Goatelli identified additional female characters in each location, ranging from the legendary women of Kalymnos, who held the economic and social power of the island in their hands because their husbands were always at sea, to Icelandic tales of fairies and goblins who live in a natural world that is both pristine and powerful. Angelika Rainer’s story also fascinated Albolina Film’s Roberto Cavallini, who had returned to Italy in 2016 after twelve years abroad and decided to dedicate himself wholly to producing, documentaries in particular. “For us producers, curiosity is an absolute necessity these days,” says Cavallini, who was nominated and selected for the illustrious Emerging Producers program this year. “When Elena recounted Angelika’s story to me a couple of years ago, I put myself in the shoes of the audience to understand whom she might be able to address. Mountain-themed documentaries have a loyal audience, but in this case our intention was to delve into a world that has a great potential to fascinate a broader public,” explains Cavallini, who also produced Malditos, which was directed by Goatelli and Esteban. My Upside Down World is therefore not a documentary aimed only at climbing and mountain enthusiasts. “It is a female story about doggedness, skill and endurance,” underlines Cavallini. “It has multiple interesting levels of interpretation that touch on everyday life. Angelika’s story is universal,” adds Goatelli. “Taking this journey with her caused us to reflect upon the extent to which life continuously tests us. If Angelika’s challenge is to climb ever more complex mountain faces, mine is being able to faithfully encapsulate who she is, never losing sight of her true nature.” A H Y M N TO F R E E D O M

Filming for My Upside Down World began in June of 2019 in Meran, where Angelika lives and trains with her partner Marco Servalli, before continuing on the Greek island of Kalymnos, which is located in the Aegean Sea and considered a paradise for climbers. Angelika travels there every year. After that, they filmed for a week in South Tyrol and Trentino, both in Ceniga and at Maso Naranch on the north shore of Lake Garda. At the end of 2019, the production traveled with Angelika to Eptingen, Switzerland, where she had long wanted to take on the Ironman chain, a dry-tooling route (a climbing technique with crampons and ice axes but on rock). Filming then moved to Iceland for a week between late February and early March, but a blizzard surprised the crew and disrupted the shooting plan. “The wonder of documentary filmmaking is exactly that: you never know what might be around the corner,” explains Elena Goatelli. “In Iceland, we had to adapt. But everything you’ll see is real. We didn’t shoot anything by design. We went to the sites and experienced Angelika’s preparations, her uncertainty, even the risk of not being able to achieve what we had planned. This is what gives the film its unique vibe, what makes it more real and powerful.” Producer Cavallini traveled with the production on all the trips. “I wanted to follow the filming closely. I like being there, in the field, as my projects are shooting,” he explains. The group managed to return from Iceland just in time before the Covid-19 lockdown; though they had to interrupt their last week of filming in South Tyrol. But the director wants to stress that this forced pause will

PRODUCTION

Elena Goatelli

Albolina Film

not be part of the documentary. “We thought about whether or not to insert it,” she says. “But we decided not to. Angelika’s story is timeless: it’s a hymn to freedom and nature, and it would be unfair to shift the attention to this stage of constraint that we all experienced.” My Upside Down World finished up in July 2020 between Meran and Rosskopf Mountain in Sterzing, where Rainer had taken her first walks and hikes with her mother, so as to “retrace Angelika’s memories live,” explains Cavallini. The documentary closed with a final interview with the protagonist, focusing on her closing thoughts and feelings about the year-long filmmaking journey. The film will be released in Italian cinemas in the spring of 2021, and on television and probably streaming platforms after that. But first, it will be presented at national T # 11 and international festivals.

“We wanted to tell Angelika’s story in such a way as to engage a broad audience,” says producer Roberto Cavallini.

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D I R E C TO R

Scrupulousness and attention to detail: costume designer Katharina Forcher photographed in the garden of the Hotel Laurin in Bolzano

LO C A L TA L E N T S

CO S T U M E D E S I G N E R

Katharina Forcher

WINDSTILL is the first feature by director and screenwriter Nancy Camaldo, who was born in Bolzano in 1992. Her film is a drama about a young woman and mother who wants to break out of her routine and returns to her parents’ farm, where her sister still lives. Windstill is produced by Munich company Elfenholz Film in co-production with Bayerischer Rundfunk and in collaboration with HFF Munich. It was filmed in Munich and South Tyrol during the summer of 2019. IDM awarded the production 140,000 euros in funding.

Photo

M A R I A N N A K A S T LU N G E R

MICHAEL PEZZEI

Walnut or plastic buttons? Linen or cotton? What works better in front of the camera – gray or black? Katharina Forcher’s greatest joy is achieving a sizable effect out of small details. The South Tyrolean is placid and deliberate when she speaks. But her sureness of style jumps right out at you: simple yet confident. This particular talent may be part of what led Forcher, a trained goldsmith, to work as a costume designer in the film industry. “A dream job,” she says. “I find the collaborative work that happens between the costume and directing departments very exciting; our approaches are very different.” Even when weeks of preparation are sometimes rejected because a color concept doesn’t work on the actor cast, Forcher remains unfazed: her ability to compromise is part of her pragmatic approach to the job. “Actually, the very fact that costume design is often unpredictable is what makes it so interesting to me.” After her first on-set experience in 2015 as a dresser for the feature film Die Einsiedler (The Eremites) by South Tyrolean director Ronny Trocker, Forcher has managed to gain experience across the entire costume department. In 2019, she assisted Tanja Hausner on Philipp Stölzl’s film adaptation of Schachnovelle, with Oliver Masucci in the leading role. “I like to see actors slip into a role wearing my costumes,” she says. They sometimes put on their primary costumes even though they aren’t shooting on a given day – just to settle into the character. “It’s wonderful that I can give them this skin which helps them feel comfortable,” says the Vienna-based designer. Windstill (2020), the debut feature of 28-year-old Bolzano-born director Nancy Camaldo, is the first feature film for which Forcher was the head costume designer. “I had previously only designed costumes for short films. The effort and preparation are different, of course, but the work remains the same: it requires conscientiousness,” she says. And a love for fabrics, cuts and details. Her favorite character is Berta, a supporting role played by South Tyrolean actress Eva Kuen. “I was unable to grab ahold of that role for a long time; I didn’t really know what to do with it. But then, when Eva stood in front of me, everything suddenly became clear.” Together with Brigitta Fink, another South Tyrolean based in Vienna, Forcher runs Bolzano’s “Kostüm Moidele” costume fund, which boasts clothing that spans the entire 20th century. A vintage clothing enthusiast, Forcher also T # 11 takes great pleasure in wearing some of the pieces herself.

TA K E #11

Elfenholz Film

Windstill marked the first time that Katharina Forcher was responsible for the costume design of a feature film. In doing so, she proved her stylistic assurance Eye on Talent

SET VISIT

SERVICE PROVIDERS IN SOUTH TYROL

Daniel Defranceschi

He oversees international productions in South Tyrol, working as a location scout, unit manager and production manager – and thinks like a chess player On the Road with… Daniel Defranceschi

M A R I A N N A K A S T LU N G E R

Photos

MICHAEL PEZZEI

When Daniel Defranceschi travels around South Tyrol as a location scout, he spends a lot of time alone. Today he’s looking for an old farmhouse on a rural plot of land – a motif that isn’t too hard to find around these parts. When he hits the jackpot, he introduces himself to the owner in a friendly manner, chats for a while and explains his request. The farmer quickly grants his permission to take a few pictures of the desired location, after which they part while joking with each other like friends. It’s clear that Defranceschi has a knack for this job. No wonder: the Bolzano native is very fond of people, as he says himself. “First and foremost, I enjoy working on equal footing with

FILM

PRODUCTION

Il Pastore (in production)

good friends Filmproduktion & Satel Film

TA K E #11

everyone involved, from the director to the locals who provide the locations,” says Defranceschi. And working, for him, means finding solutions. “In order to allow a film production to have creative freedom, very complex planning must first take place – and there can be a lot of surprises,” says the 38-year-old. He’s been in the industry for a good ten years, but his path was serpentine: he first underwent post-production and VFX training in Berlin, then moved to Rome to study directing at the NUCT (today the Roma Film Academy). In 2006, he made his own 35-mm short, Nevedimka. It was back then, while shooting his film, that he noticed he particularly enjoyed the organizational tasks: “I like that you have to be efficient and clever, as well as extremely communicative,” he says. Since then, Defranceschi has employed this talent working on dozens of local and international shoots in South Tyrol, from Olivier Assayas’ Clouds of Sils Maria to Amelie rennt (Mountain Miracle – An Unexpected Friendship) by Tobias Wiemann. Initially working primarily as a location scout, he has increasingly worked as a unit manager and, most recently, a production manager. “I owe that progression to Ammira Film in particular, as the company’s founder, Wolfgang Fliri, put blind trust in me,” says Defranceschi. “I really appreciated his courage. He was a mover and shaker and did great things for the local industry,” he says, fondly recalling the producer who died much too early in 2018. A CO N S TA N T B A L A N C I N G A C T

Most recently, Defranceschi served as production manager for the Italian winter shoot of Evi Romen’s Why Not You and scouted a planned South Tyrol special of Die Bergretter, a series for German production company NDF about Alpine rescue teams. When we met up with him, he had just wrapped work on a commercial for a well-known food brand on the Karer Pass, at the foot of the imposing Latemar Mountains. What’s up next? Defranceschi will slip back into the role of location manager for the German crime-drama Il Pastore in the wine-growing area to the south of Bolzano. Defranceschi’s experience as a location scout gives him many advantages in all of his professional roles: “If the project allows for it, I always like to find the locations myself, even if I’m the unit manager or production manager. It creates a synergy which can be very useful.” Establishing personal relationships as he scouts builds a foundation of trust for the production. It’s an extremely important factor in a small region like South Tyrol, where you find yourself working with the same people over and over. Also, as an

Defranceschi will serve as location manager on his next project, but he’s also scouting that one himself – currently in the vineyards around Kalterer See lake.

SET VISIT

SERVICE PROVIDERS IN SOUTH TYROL

Daniel Defranceschi

experienced location manager, he only recommends sites that are logistically feasible. And he knows the local customs, such as when it’ll save money to contact a partner and how best to do so. The common denomiScouting at nator for Defranceschi – in addition Penser Joch Pass in the to striving for the best possible result Sarntal Valley: Defranceschi cares deeply for a film’s production – is building about balancing the long-term relationships: “I care deeply needs of the production about showing respect for filming with protecting Alpine nature. locations and property, as well as maintaining trust in personal relationships with public bodies, those who give us locations and other stakeholders. Sustainability in that sense is often underestimated, yet it’s extremely important.” The ecological meaning of the word “sustainability” is also close to his heart. It’s a constant balancing act to make South Tyrol’s popular mountain motifs – a fundamental asset for the film location – accessible to international productions, without endangering the fragile Alpine nature. Defranceschi advocates setting very clear guidelines by marking off a few specially protected zones, for example. It becomes clear while talking to Defranceschi that his true passion is serving as a mediator between sometimes opposing fronts. “Exactly. Communicating and finding solutions are the things I love most about my job,” he says. Here too, experience gleaned from playing three different roles during his career helps. “The better I understand the needs of everyone involved, the easier it is to ask all the right questions soon enough, anticipate the moves others might make and think through alternative scenarios in the event of a problem,” he explains. That kind of sounds like playing chess. Defranceschi pulls his smartphone out of his pocket with a grin, taps around and shortly afterwards IL PASTORE is a TV two-parter based on a screenplay T # 11 shows the display: a chess app.

by Ben Braeunlich, Grzegorz Muskala and Max Gruber and is co-produced by the Berlin-based good friends Filmproduktion and Satel Film from Vienna. In the crime drama set in South Tyrol, Commissioner Erlacher starts an investigation into human trafficking. The clues lead to the winery of local Winemaker of the Year, Matteo Trojer. Because of his dark past, Trojer is being blackmailed by the mafia and is forced to produce counterfeit wine. When Erlacher suddenly disappears, prosecutor Christina Melauer takes over the case – and Trojer comes under increasing pressure. The production will shoot 21 of its 42 days in South Tyrol, with locations including Bolzano and the South Tyrolean Wine Route. IDM awarded 300,000 euros of production funding.

LO R E M I P S U M

Lorem Ipsum

P R O D U C E R TA L K S

PRODUCER

Ursula Wolschlager

“No longer going into battle alone is one of the most wonderful experiences these past few years have brought.” A Chat with Ursula Wolschlager

Interview by

S K A D I LO I S T

She’s a producer, dramaturg and screenwriter: Ursula Wolschlager has worked in the film industry for years. In 2008, she founded her own production company in Vienna, Witcraft, and has since developed, written and produced major feature films, international co-productions, documentaries and series. She is a member of various juries and selection committees and is involved in women’s networks within the film industry, as a board member of FC Gloria and a co-founder of Pro-Pro, a program for emerging female producers, among others.

as well. When I called, they said, “Sure you can register, but only in the producing department – and the entrance exam is tomorrow.” I called the only filmmaker I knew at the time, Peter Zach, and asked whether he thought production would be something for me, and what I should tell them at the exam. He said: “Well, you’re very pragmatic and lived in Russia for years – maybe you could tell them that you’re planning to oversee projects in Russia for Western production companies?” That sounded like a good idea.

Ursula, as a successful producer yourself, you are now active mentoring and supporting up-and-coming female producers. What were the most important phases along the way that brought you to this point in your career? URSULA WOLSCHLAGER I studied film sciences for a while, and decided to attend lectures at the Film Academy in Vienna

Did that in fact happen? Yes! After that I actually did work on co-productions in Russia for years, initially as an interpreter, then as an assistant director, production manager and eventually as a producer. It was a very important stage in my life. Being at the film academy was another. I met people there who became very important to me, such as the directors Barbara Albert and Kathrin Resetarits.

P R O D U C E R TA L K S

PRODUCER

Ursula Wolschlager

Stefanie Freynschlag

Wolschlager and director Barbara Albert (r.) were invited to pitch their series Schnee at the 2020 Berlinale Co-Production Market.

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Lukas Beck

URSULA WOLSCHLAGER is committed to strengthening production networks for women – and has gained close confidantes along the way.

Film school was an important entry point into a professional network, then? UW The production program itself was not exceptionally fruitful, but I had the opportunity to produce short films with directors whom – and whose stories – I found incredibly exciting. They needed someone like me, and I was able to get things moving relatively quickly. It was months and years of unpaid work, of course, but I wouldn’t change a thing about it. Then I got my first paid work in production; back then you could get ahead quickly if you did a good job. How does one, then, establish their own production company? UW Many years went by in between. I worked a lot as a production manager and line producer. Then I had my son in 1999, and it was no longer possible to work 80 hours a week for three months straight while being on standby 24/7. I reoriented myself, creating a new business model. Luckily

P R O D U C E R TA L K S

PRODUCER

Ursula Wolschlager

unsplash/A. Kosobokov

The series Schnee is in development: “I like to navigate where narrative forms can go to a deeper place,” says Ursula Wolschlager.

support for me as a young mother existed at that time, and that financed continuing education. I then began concentrating on development and started writing. You went from the organizational side to the more creative, then? UW It was in essence an actualization of my original impetus for going into film: to be more involved in content and at the core of the creative process. I worked as a development producer at Lotus Film for years. Then I founded my own production company in 2008, which focuses on development and production alike. Does Witcraft lean towards specific themes, genres or formats? UW One focal point is that I’ve worked with women a lot from the very beginning – for the simple reason that I’m more interested in their stories. On the other hand, it’s always been important to me to potentially bring stories with great socio-political relevance to a broader public. That’s why I’ve also produced comedies and, in recent years, a number of series. With everyone complaining that the cinema market is flooded, I like to navigate where narrative forms can go to a deeper place. And then there were also individual talents that interested me very much: we

SCHNEE (Snow) is a mystery drama comprising six 45-minute episodes. The series project produced by Wolschlager‘s company Witcraft was invited to the Co-Pro Series pitch at the 2020 Berlinale Co-Production Market. The script was written by Michaela Taschek; Barbara Albert (Northern Skirts) and Sandra Wollner (The Impossible Picture) will direct. The series is about the fictional mountain village of Rotten, which has lived from winter tourism for a long time but is now struggling due to climate change. When the body of a young woman comes to light as the snows melt, village secrets also come to the surface – and the new village doctor Lucia Salinger becomes involved in the case. IDM provided 50,000 euros of development funding.

P R O D U C E R TA L K S

PRODUCER

S P OT L I G H T

Ursula Wolschlager

Moritz Bonatti

developed and co-produced Marie Kreutzer’s debut feature Die Vaterlosen (The Fatherless). Debut films are important to me: someone has a voice and I want to help give resonance to that voice.

You’ve also run pretty much the whole gamut with director Barbara Albert – from short films to features to development of the series Schnee. UW Yes, exactly. I had made a few short films with Barbara Albert. When we developed Nordrand, I had the feeling that I wasn’t ready to start a production company and produce feature films. I just didn’t dare do that at the time. Maybe one reason was that, in my day, we didn’t have women producers as role models in Austria. It wasn’t easy to just make up my mind and say now I’m going to start a production company. Things don’t seem that much different today. The ProPro women’s producer program has a whole list of mentors but, at the same time, setting up such a program still does seem a real necessity. UW One of the reasons I launched this program, together with Esther Krausz and Iris Zappe-Heller from the Austrian Film Institute, was to support female producers in positioning themselves better economically. Most tend to work on underfunded, sometimes precarious projects. In the end, you can only run an economically sustainable company if you aren’t trying to make a living solely from publicly funded feature films, but also have other income streams. Television is essential in that respect, of course. And exchange within a network of women plays an important role in this? UW Exactly. That’s resulted in a wonderful collaboration for me: Gabriela Bacher, a ProPro mentor who has worked a lot internationally, has become a close confidante and producing colleague. For me, no longer going into battle alone is one of the most wonderful experiences these past few years T #11 have brought.

33, was selected as a participant in the 2020 EAVE Producers Workshop. The workshop is spread out over three sessions and offers the South Tyrolean producer the opportunity to work with director and author Georg Zeller on their documentary Souvenirs of War, as well as exchange ideas with seasoned producers. In the first workshop, they focused on story, synopsis and logline as well as marketing and financing strategies. Souvenirs of War is Bonatti’s first film as a producer, after having worked as a production assistant and co-author. The workshop was a great help, as he says: “I feel I have no more unanswered questions – and you tend to have a lot of questions on your first project...” The two remaining sessions will take place in October and December. Bonatti: “Until then, it would have been important to gather new research and materials; for our project as well as the others.” But as with many other productions, coronavirus disrupted these plans and the team had to postpone a planned research trip to Srebrenica on the 25th anniversary of the genocide. (The documentary is set in Bosnia and deals with the local people’s conflict about the heritage of war.) But Bonatti remains optimistic about being able to start filming in the summer of 2021.

MORITZ BONATTI,

TA K E #11

Has this resulted in more films together with the same directors? UW Almost always. We also produced Marie Kreutzer’s film Was hat uns bloß so ruiniert (We Used to Be Cool) and did early development on Der Boden unter den Füßen (The Ground Beneath My Feet). Right now, I’m developing Nathalie Borgers’s narrative feature debut, which will address Belgian colonial history, having already produced two large-scale documentaries with her.

C LO S I N G C R E D I T S

QUESTIONNAIRE

Piera Detassis QUESTIONNAIRE

Piera Detassis Answers the TAKE Film Questionnaire

WHAT’S THE LAST FILM YOU’VE SEEN?

At the cinema: Volevo nascondermi (Hidden Away) by Giorgio Diritti, just before the lockdown. Feels like an indelible memory from a past life. Since then, I’ve been streaming films daily: new and beautiful ones, useless and futuristic ones. A relentlessly flowing river, an implosion and therefore nothing that’s really stuck in my memory. WHICH SERIES IMPRESSED YOU MOST?

Normal People. A sentimental yet cruel masterpiece. WHAT FILM HASN’T BEEN MADE THAT YOU THINK SHOULD BE?

Any film directed by a woman. Written and produced by women. In which women are protagonists, and no longer just sidekicks, F. Cestari

background, decorative or objectified. WHAT WOULD YOU NOT SPEND ANY MORE MONEY ON?

On the brazen marketing of anti-germ, anti-virus, anti-everything super cleaners, at insane prices. Alcohol, baking soda and A. Mignogna

vinegar do the trick just as well, as my Grandma used to say. Less plastic, less pollution.

PIERA DETASSIS, from Trentino, studied history and cinema criticism. She has written essays and articles for the major industry trades, both Italian and foreign. She was the director of the monthly cinema magazine Ciak from 1997 to 2019 and has been the editor-at-large for cinema and entertainment at Elle since 2019. She is the artistic director of the One Night in Italy film festival, which takes place on the island of Tavolara in Sardinia. She co-founded the Rome Film Festival in 2006, which she directed for four years; she was president of the Fondazione Cinema per Roma from 2015 to 2018. She has been president and artistic director of the Academy of Italian Cinema, which presents the David di Donatello awards, since 2018.

WHAT’S THE LAST PHOTO YOU TOOK?

The reopening of the open-air cinema on the island of Tavolara, for the 30th anniversary of the festival. It’s the most beautiful seaside arena in the world. With the necessary social distancing, of course. I had chosen to program Hidden Away, as sort of a symbol after the lockdown. Ever since the lockdown ended, I’ve been photographing only nature, sunsets and thunderstorms. And I practically live outdoors. The return of the savage.

#12 M A G A Z I N E F O R F I L M P R O F E S S I O N A LS

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TA K E #11

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