FILM
Loris Giuseppe Nese
33' Venice International Film Critics' Week
Sic@Sic 2018
‘Quelle brutte cose
/ Those Bad Things’
ITALY 2018 / 11' / IN COMPETITION
You cannot choose your parents or the place where you are born. These are the thoughts of a daughter who cannot rebel. As a little girl, she spent a lot of time with her mother, a fervent Catholic woman.
She would have rather spent time with her father, but he was busy hiding an extra-marital affair everyone knew but kept quiet about. Today, time goes by slowly inside and outside their home. Family problems are silenced, the Campania region suburbs lie on the background.
Hey Loris, thanks for talking to TNC, how is everything going?
I’m fine! I'm seeing a lot of good movies here in Venice!
What does it mean for you to be screening Quelle brutte cose at the 2018 SIC@SIC?
In the past years I came to Venice as a spectator, now I present my film. Simply, it’s a dream come true.
Your film is being shown in competition, does that add any extra pressure on you?
The biggest satisfaction is being here. It’s a great responsibility. I have great expectations, great pressure.
Tell me a little bit about Quelle brutte cose, how did the film come about?
I wanted to make a film about the power relations existing between parents and sons, portraying the effects of the Fathers’ faults. This let me reflect on the author’s responsibility in telling stories and in creating characters (as a father). Did I have the right to tell this story and hide behind a character? It’s a moral problem.
What was the inspiration behind the screenplay?
For me and Chiara Marotta, story’s author of the film, the intention, the "what" we wanted to tell, came first. Later, we went in search of the subject. We are linked to our territory, it’s our main source of inspiration.
What has been the most challenging scene for you to film?
It was the scene before the end of the film, a long take with more movements and characters to coordinate, fairly elaborate. Meanwhile, we tried not to let the sun go away, because I prefer not to use artificial light. In the end, we managed to do it. The ironic thing is that we then decided to cut this scene.
Have you always had a passion for filmmaking?
I have always loved to draw. For a while, I designed comics. I wanted to tell stories, but drawing requires spending a lot of time in solitude. Then I discovered the cinema, which allowed me to work with a team. It was a natural passage.
What was the first film you saw that inspired you to become a director?
Godard, the Nouvelle Vague, the New Hollywood…The spirit of protest of these authors inspired me to begin, to experiment.
"...try to make films with sincerity."
How much as your style and approach to your films changed since your debut short?
This film is the result of a long work of editing, of reflection with Chiara Marotta, story’s author, assistant director, executive producer and editor of the film. Chiara and I come from the documentary cinema. Together we completely rewrote the film after the shooting. All dialogues have been deleted. Many scenes have been cut. I think a film must be vital, to be able to change with respect to the original idea, even in an extreme way, preserving only the main intention.
How would you describe Quelle brutte cose in three words?
Homely. Intimate. Experimental.
Do you have any advice for any fellow directors?
I'm not in a position to give advice. I only try to make films with sincerity.
And finally, what do you hope people will take away from this film?
We tried to make an original and strong film, we looked for not so soft solutions. I hope the public will be impressed by our choices.