CINEMA IN THE SOUL
A journey with Piera Detassis around the Academy of Italian Cinema and its award, the David di Donatello
The David di Donatello is an iconic institution. Having entered Italy’s artistic identity, it has been awarded for cinematic achievements for over 65 years and during that time, has been collected by the most influential filmmakers and skilled workers in the industry. Let’s go back to the time when, in 1956, the first award ceremony took place at the Fiamma cinema in Rome. Italy was beginning to shake off the dark period of the war and about to be swept away by an economic boom. It was a time that, a few years later, Fellini defined as “dolce vita” (the ‘sweet life’). The goal was clear and simple, to reward the best of Italian cinema, taking a lead from foreign productions while following criteria similar to those of the US Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences. Once the objective was established, one of the essential elements of Italian cinema was born under the guidance of Italo Gemini, the first president of the David di Donatello organization later renamed the Academy of Italian Cinema.
It went on to become the historic organization tasked with promoting and advancing Italian cinema throughout Italy and the world. The years have passed, but the small and priceless statuette, a miniature homage to the bronze sculpture of the same name, created by the famous sculptor and painter Donatello, and preserved in the National Museum of Bergello in Florence, has never aged, and has survived despite the many changes and upheavals in Italian society over the years—changes reflected in the evolution of Italian cinema, such as Visconti’s decadence, Antonioni’s existentialism, the Italian comedy of Scola, Monicelli and Germi, and in the ideological conflicts of the political cinema of the 70s under the direction of Rosi, Petri and Pontecorvo. Finally, arriving at the cinema of modern times, we can see these same influences at work, continuing to drive the hearts and minds of artists who dedicate themselves to the invaluable and sublime artistry of moving pictures. Piera Detassis became president of the Academy of Italian Cinema in 2018. She believes in respect for the past, which she combines with a policy of renewal and regeneration, and there is no one better qualified than she to guide us on our tour of discovery through the cinematic nerve center that is the academy, and to explain the significance of an award as meaningful as the David. She is also an essayist, journalist and film critic, and is renowned for being tenacious and refusing to compromise her point of view.
“My objectives are the usual ones: to make the award even more authoritative, so that it remains representative of cinema and all the professions and trades that operate within it. And by authoritative, I also mean transparent.”
President Detassis, you are the first woman ever to hold the position of Artistic Director of the Academy of Italian Cinema, and, during your presidency, you intend to carry out a program of reform within this historic institution. What plans do you have for the academy’s future? What objectives have you set and what have you already achieved?
My objectives are the usual ones: to make the award ever more authoritative, so that it remains representative of cinema and all the professions and trades that operate within it. And by authoritative, I also mean transparent. Furthermore, we, as an institution are trying, as much as possible, to act on the issue of gender diversity. We’ve thinned out the jury somewhat because, over the years there had been a group division related to other professions and disciplines that, although not entirely redundant, could be described in this context as obsolete. Now there are 1,600 members among the candidates, the winners (who enter the commission automatically), and other members of culture and society, selected as the best in their respective fields of cinema, audiovisual and journalism etc. In addition, an award was introduced called, the spectator’s David, in recognition of the film that had the highest number of cinema viewings (not necessarily the highest grossing film), and this was very important to us because it was the Academy’s way of thanking members of the general public for their support.
Speaking of revamping. The academy has been involved in many new project and activities throughout Italy since 2019. A few months ago it was also involved in a project with the Italian Cinema CUNY at the City University of New York. Are there any more activities and collaborations with the United States in the pipeline?
As far as revamping is concerned, I decided to designate part of the David award to a new reform and innovation department headed by Massimo Mascolo. The mission of the ‘new’ David will be to enhance the academy; everyone thinks of David as the final evening, the awards ceremony, the glamour event. In reality David has the support of the academy and the academy is made up of all the voting members who are part of all the professions of the film associations. We, during the course of the year, try to enhance this professionalism.
“What do I expect from Italian cinema? Exactly what it delivers: excellence and the ability to reach the hearts of its audiences, especially right now, because well, I’m being interviewed at a difficult time. “
For example, with meetings at the Casa del Cinema in Rome, with the “Notti d’oro” (Golden Nights) where the most awarded short films from film academies all over the world are shown. We are in partnership with the Movies Commission, and throughout the year, together with the Ministry of Education, we have held four seminars in different venues, on a particular film, which was analyzed in detail by the entire film crew that shot it. In addition, we had two international events, the CUNY, an extraordinary encounter between three great costume designers, Carlo Poggioli, Anne Roth and Donna Zakowska. And then we began the Ateliers du Cinéma Italien at the Annecy Italian Film Festival, where four important meetings took place between actor Pierfrancesco Favino and the screenwriters, director, cast and crew of Sulla Mia Pelle, a film which tells the true story of Stefano Cucchi, an alleged drug-dealer who was arrested and died after seven days in custody. In short, our main objective is the promotion of Italian cinema and we are working very hard to succeed in this.
The David statuettes, annually awarded by the Academy, have always rewarded the quality of Italian cinema. This year, on first showing, the excellence of the candidates is evident; are you satisfied with the work done to confirm the very high standards of the award? What do you hope for and what can we expect from Italian cinema this year and in the years to come?
Yes, I am satisfied with the work done, certainly this year, it seems to me an especially important cuvée for the David di Donatello with such strong contenders, both films and actors. What do I expect from Italian cinema? Exactly what it delivers: excellence and the ability to reach the hearts of its audiences, especially right now, because well, I’m being interviewed at a difficult time, it’s hard to be optimistic.
I was optimistic, until the coronavirus emergency exploded. Because recently the popularity of Italian cinema had increased a lot; the early months of 2019 saw box-office takings soar, and not only because of the film Tolo Tolo. New audiences discovering cinema marked the entire second quarter. I think that now we are reaching a balance between quality and popularity, we have great screenwriters and above all great actors—the latest successes at the Berlin Film Festival of Elio Germano and the D’innocenzo brothers demonstrate this as well. Logically, each interview is linked with the moment in which it is conducted, we want to remain optimistic and imagine that the cinema should not suffer any more than it is at the moment, and we rely on this emergency coming to an end. Obviously, the lines at the ticket offices will take time to recover but the important thing is that people do not become disenchanted with the medium. We must always hang on to optimism and trust in the quality of our cinema.
Recently, especially in English-language cinema, we have seen the rapid growth of the #Metoo movement. How do you stand on this? What effect do you think it will have on cinema in general, on Italian cinema in particular, and on the vision of women within it?
I think that #Metoo was a real revolution, and like all revolutions it probably had a justicialist drift, but frankly I think it was an absolutely necessary revolution. Necessary and fundamental, but not yet fully effective. The #Metoo movement in Italy, which gave massive exposure to Asia Argento, who was very courageous but also very controversial (she was treated as a guilty party), has shown that its power to bring about change has been very short-lived, to the detriment of all women working in the industry. Unfortunately, in Italy, male dominance is deeply ingrained. When a group of men closes ranks, it is very difficult to break through. This year I have called out this situation, however, as president I am in a very difficult position, I must remain completely impartial, but it does seem to me that this has been a real year of male stories — just look at the titles: The Immortal, The First King, The Traitor, The Champion… they are all heroes, while evidently the ‘pink’ share of women’s cinema has been in short supply. There is still no trust in the female product at the production level and perhaps also at the distribution level, there are few female directors who manage to establish themselves and unfortunately there are still few leading roles written for women in Italy. My hope is that all this will pass and that Italy will understand that without a strong female voice a country does not exist, it is destined to remain one step behind, always.
Lately, many great directors have signed contracts and made films for Netflix. A few months ago Scorsese’s latest work, The Irishman, came out on this platform. I remember the controversy that was created in 2017 in Cannes when Pedro Almodovar (jury president of that year) declared that “films are made for the cinema.” Since last year at David, the film Sulla mia Pelle , produced by Netflix Italia, finished the evening with several awards, I would like to know: what is the general opinion of this controversial but at the same time, fascinating and innovative giant of streaming?
I think that Netflix, like all platforms and like Amazon in particular, has been important in changing our view of things. That’s where women and many female roles become protagonists, through the work of platforms that are informed about social trends and not desperate to just carry on making money from their superhero franchises. It was the innovation, not just of streaming services, or the way they were offered, but also the nature of what was offered that is important. Having said that, I still think that a picture house is essential, without a cinema, a film remains indistinct, in some way losing its focus; it lacks the launching force, affirmation and brand. Without in-house promotion I think the vision is different, people say how happy they are that their film is on release in 180 countries simultaneously, but the questions are: with what success, with what level of attendance? From an economic point of view this all works. We as a prizegiving institution are absolutely on the side of the theaters; article 2 of the regulation that establishes the eligibility of films for the competition remains linked to the ministerial decrees that determine the distribution windows. We monitor their evolution because the existence of these platforms cannot be ignored, and it is necessary to abide by the rules. In fact, last year we were able to reward Netflix as one of its productions was released in cinemas. The appearance of a streaming platform at a sacred David awards ceremony was very distasteful to some, but one cannot remain completely oblivious to what is happening around us.
We monitor their evolution because the existence of these streaming platforms cannot be ignored, and it is necessary to abide by the rules.
In conclusion: what was, if we can define it this way, your first cinematic love-at-first-sight moment? The spark that made you decide to devote yourself to this lifetime’s vocation?
There were certainly two. In particular, a scene I saw as a child, that of the battle of the skeletons, created by Ray Harryhausen for the film, Jason and the Argonauts, that is the first thing; my dad had brought me to a cinema in Trento on that occasion. Then while studying in Paris, I discovered French New Wave Cinema. But the film that determined my passion for the job was Bellocchio’s Fists in the Pocket, which I saw some time after release as I was a young child when it first came out; for me that was a revelation and it is ironic to remember it now, because this year Bellocchio’s film The Traitor is a prime candidate to win an award at the ceremony.