The first clapperboard slams in New York on Ferrante Fever
- From America to the alleyways of Naples, Giacomo Durzi’s documentary looks at the work of the mysterious writer who Time magazine has included in its list of 100 most influential people in the world
Just as the true identity of bestselling writer Elena Ferrante was being revealed, filming started in New York on Ferrante Fever [+see also:
film review
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film profile] by Giacomo Durzi, and will continue on into December in San Francisco, Naples, Florence and Turin.
With a screenplay written by Giacomo Durzi and Laura Buffoni, the documentary takes the viewer on a journey starting in America and reaching to the alleyways of Naples through Elena Ferrante’s work, the locations of her books and the perspectives of great characters and exceptional accounts. Highly acclaimed abroad, particularly in the United States, in 2016 the writer made it onto Time magazine’s list of 100 most influential people in the world.
"My interest in the project – says the director – was born from my overwhelming passion for Ferrante’s books and the desire to explore the narrative in all its complexities. It is a production that touches on highly topical issues, not least the meaning of choosing to remain anonymous that sparked unprecedented cultural debate. What I am attempting to do is provide food for thought on the specific reasons for Ferrante’s success, and I refuse to succumb to the temptation of making a ‘gossipy’ documentary about the writer’s secret identity or leading an investigation into this that runs out of steam by revealing ‘documentary evidence’. The challenge is to tell a story that perhaps doesn’t want to be told”.
Ferrante Fever is being produced by Malia Film and Rai Cinema in partnership with QMI. The film will be released in 2017 and screened as a special event at the QMI/Stardust cinema.
(Translated from Italian)
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