– In his new feature film produced by Rosamont, the emerging Italian director tells a wry story about a flawed, arrogant migrant
Actor Andrea Pennacchi, director Duccio Chiarini and actor Enrico Tijani on the set of Un eroe italiano (© Marco Piovanotto)
Since 27 February, shooting has been underway in Turin on Duccio Chiarini’s new feature, Un eroe italiano. The Florence-born director’s third work of fiction after Short Skin [+see also:
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film profile] (screened in Venice’s Biennale College Cinema section and in the Berlinale’s Generation 14plus line-up) and The Guest [+see also:
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Written by Giulia Gianni (Attenti al gorilla [+see also:
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Un eroe italiano stars Enrico Tijani (of the TV series The Sea Beyond) and Andrea Pennacchi (The Last One For the Road [+see also:
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film profile]). Tijani plays Aigo, a young migrant who has been in Italy for a while and who dreams of leaving, just as soon as he obtains the necessary documentation. He’ll do anything he can to get hold of it, even carrying out a heroic act. Pennacchi steps into the shoes of Antonio, a retired Carabinieri colonel, a widower and a misanthrope who’s disappointed with life, angry at the world and at odds with his daughter. Leaning into the most obvious clichés, he’s constantly looking for someone to take it all out on. An unpredictable and madcap encounter between these two characters who are united by loneliness and anger, forces Aigo and Antonio to challenge the prejudices that have guided them thus far and to finally open their hearts to other people. The cast also includes Valentina Romani (A Brighter Tomorrow [+see also:
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interview: Gianni Di Gregorio
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“For Rosamont, bringing this comedy to life is like writing the happy ending to a fairy tale,” enthuses Marica Stocchi. “Yousuf Saeid’s desire to tell the story of an ill-behaved migrant springs from a wish to portray a fragile, flawed human being, without moralising, and with plenty of humour. No one is better equipped than Duccio Chiarini to elevate this delicate and entertaining tale through poetry, respect and intelligence”.
Un eroe italiano is being made with the support of the PR FESR Piemonte 2021-2027 – “Piemonte Film TV Fund” call for submissions, with backing from the Film Commission Torino Piemonte and the Fondo Regionale per l’Audiovisivo del FVG. Filming will take place in Turin over a total of seven weeks.
(Translated from Italian)
