Travel
This is my favorite part of an experience: the journey, or the exit from the comfort zone, the “going towards” something new, the adventure within the adventure.
Destination: the Big Apple. I have vivid memories of the days spent in Union Square, in the historic New York Film Academy, and of those long after-dinners consumed in the lovely Brooklyn loft, preparing scenes and monologues for the following day. Around midnight, Lisa, my traveling companion, returned. Before going to sleep, she would hand me the lines of the various characters so that I could memorize mine.
It seemed more than natural to invite her to accompany me on the set of the first feature film by the Venetian director Massimo Libero Michieletto. The film, with the provisional title “Sola Nina”, was shot in the upper Marca Trevigiana, in the Prosecco di Valdobbiadene and surrounding area.
Alone Nina or solanine?
It is a word game that has more than one reading level.
Nina, the protagonist of the story, is a young woman left by her husband for another. Her is the painful loneliness of those who have suffered from a lack of welcome, recognition and love both in the family and in the marital sphere. A loneliness that, if not seen and faced with an open heart and a clear mind, can become, over time, a sneaky poison.
And this is where “Solanum Tuberosum” comes into play, the Latin name of the potato which, together with tomatoes and aubergines, is part of a family of vegetables which, to defend themselves from various predators, produce a highly toxic glycoalkaloid for humans: the ” solanine ”, in fact.
But at the root of Solanum there is “solanem”, a Latin word that stands for “consolation”, “comfort”, from which “cum solari”, “consolare” derives.
Nature is perfect and medicine hides in poison.
Eva
He is the character I play. Nina’s older sister and Evita’s mother, her purpose is to bring us to the root from which the protagonist’s pain-body draws nourishment. Around a bare table on which an embarrassing lunch is served, the diseased root of a sterile and dry plant is finally brought to light and offered to the empathic, merciful gaze of the spectator.
In fact, in Eva’s egocentrism, in her emotional dryness, in her ill-concealed rancor towards her younger sister – wrongly considered the most fortunate – the public can recognize the hidden wound of an ignored child, destined to become an unresolved, narcissistic and envious woman. .
We do not know if Eve will undertake the inner journey to discover the antidote to poison that still distorts the perception she has of herself and of life. The focus is on Nina and her personal “Call of the Hero” which, as the best narrative tradition dictates, is hidden in an apparently disastrous event: the betrayal and abandonment by her husband whom she believed she was love so much.
Screenplay and dialogues: the stylistic code of a brilliant director
I found the directorial choice in terms of screenplay and dialogues brilliant and courageous: a real challenge for actors like us accustomed to prepackaged stories and lines, to be memorized and “acted”.
To appreciate Michieletto’s stylistic code, it is first of all fundamental to understand that his is not a renunciation of the script and the partition of the dialogues, to rely on the improvisation of the actors.
Over time, the idea that the making of a film is a constant process and not a succession organized by phases has established itself in him. In this process, the choice of actors is the determining prerequisite, indeed, it is the only phase that precedes the process. First comes the understanding of the actor, of the person, in his intrinsic and extrinsic characteristics. Then comes the construction of the character. Trust is total. It takes faith.
The script, here, is contemplated as ars aruspicina *. Telling a story by a succession of images, in fact, is an inductive process, not a logical deductive one.
The script doesn’t seem to be there but it exists. Indeed, only in this way can it exist. There is no interpretation but direct action by the actors, to whom the director offers stimuli such as phrases, images, symbols, music, suggestions of any form.
For Michieletto, making a film is a growing abandonment of dowsing: his only task is to remain faithful to the story he wants to tell, to the most intimate aspiration and inspiration of himself and the actors. His watchword is “imagine”, not knowing.
As for the dialogues, the Director perceives them, in almost all films, forced, cumbersome and false. This is why the “reality”, the truth, must be built well before we speak! The truth does not say: speak! And the choice of words is crucial. The final sensation is one of lightness, and getting it takes effort.
Massimo’s choice, shared with the actors in a message a few weeks before going to the set, had in me the effect of a cool water balloon that, around the corner, rains down on you from above. With trembling I accepted the challenge and interrupted my re-reading of “How to stop acting”, a manual by the acting coach Harold Guskin dedicated to the actor who wishes to free himself from the temptation to “act”.
I no longer felt the need to seek the truth with all my strength and at all costs (which has always been my goal as a voice actress). Suddenly I was Eva, and like Eva I would have lived every single day of my adventure, right from before I arrived on set.
“Stop showing: just be!”
“Stop showing, just be who you are.” This is my mantra. It serves as a reminder that I have nothing to show or prove. Everything I do is a consequence of who I am.
I embraced Massimo Libero Michieletto’s Project with the childlike enthusiasm of someone who cries out for a miracle.
On Friday 22 July, upon our arrival, Lisa – Lisa Mazzotti: my friend actress, voice actress and dubbing director – and I were welcomed like Thelma and Louise, who survived the forty degrees of temperature on the highway. A refreshing shower and away, all for dinner in one of the best restaurants in Valdobbiadene.
The next day we dedicated it to… boh: any expression I choose to describe the wonderful time we spent together would not do justice to what we lived.
An apartment in the city center, equipped with every comfort and large terrace, hosted us actors, the director and the editing secretary for a whole day, from morning to late evening. Objective: to familiarize and get to know each other as individuals that are both “real” and imaginary.
To my surprise, I realized that I have in common with Eva, my character, many elements of my personal and family background. This would certainly have worked to my advantage. On the other hand, I felt… “sgamata”, exposed, vulnerable. Luckily, all the time I had beautiful people around me who were open to constructive confrontation.
Slowly slowly our characters, interacting with each other, took shape and life. This magic happened before our eyes in a completely spontaneous and natural way.
Thank you
I thank God and Life for having had this precious opportunity for spiritual and personal growth.
Moving on the set like Eva, breathing to the rhythm of her breath, going through the turbulence of her moods and her ancient pain, allowed me to take a look at my past and appreciate the long journey made, to become today the woman that I am.
I thank Massimo Libero Michieletto for the “maximum freedom” of which he has become the responsible messenger and advocate. Thanks to him I experienced the thrill of “real” life brought to the set.
A life that required hours of conversation, jokes, confessions, smiles and hugs on the part of the actors, sharing time, energy, food and glasses of excellent Prosecco.
Thanks to Carlotta Piraino (Nina my sister), Selene Demaria (my daughter Evita), David Ponzi (tattooed, mysterious friend) and all the other actors of the cast of “Sola Nina”.
Thanks to Eliana, editing secretary, our guardian angel on the set.
My last thanks go to Lisa Mazzotti, my travel companion.
Dear Lisa, It’s been seven years since our last New York experience. Still, sharing this adventure with you was the simplest and most natural thing. Thanks for your support, encouragement and love.
Next stop: Venice Film Festival
As already announced, Massimo will have time – about twenty minutes – to present his work in September, at the Venice Film Festival.
The film will not be ready yet, but the director will have a trailer and some significant clips. The release is scheduled for January 2023.
I sincerely wish Massimo all the success he deserves for the courage and generosity (professional and human) with which he accompanied us to live this incredible experience.
In September, therefore, for updates!
LOve,
Eva… Oooops! Jasmine
*L’haruspicina (from ar which means liver and spicio which means to look) was thedivination art which consisted ofbowel examination (mostly liver and intestine) of animals sacrificed to draw divine signs and rules of conduct. Who practiced haruspicina was called haruspex. (Source: Wikipedia)
