SPECIAL AMIDEI AWARD: INVERTED TO SERGIO STIVALETTI AND ANTONIO TENTORI

The prestigious Amidei award took place in Gorizia from 11 to 17 July. 
I attended the day of the 15th, attracted by guests of the caliber of Sergio Stivaletti and Antonio Tentori.

Laughter, curious anecdotes, fascinating stories that make you dream. Because that's what cinema does. With its red armchairs (in my head, this and only this is the color in which to sink into the magic room), the enormous screen, the darkness, the shadows of the spectators, the telephone ringtone turned off (finally!), the buckets of popcorn, and a couple of hours to travel far away.

At 2pm it was shown: " M.D.C", based on a drama by Gaston Leroux reworked in a horror style. It was the first film directed by Sergio, which we also discussed in our interview, and in the speech by him and Tentori which was held at 6.00 pm in the Kinemax room. 

We discover that his passion is fantasy, and that he was fascinated by the feature film: "A million years ago", even if he then found an outlet in horror. He also tells us that he is absolutely not an enemy of digital effects, on the contrary, he uses them where necessary. He tells us how M.D.C was initially supposed to be directed by Fulci, and illustrates how an event should have been, given that it was somewhat known that there wasn't a great friendship between the two directors. 

(Usually when you are great at something, that healthy feeling of competition arises a bit, it's human nature). So much so that Stivaletti sympathetically reveals to us rumors that said: if you collaborate with Lucio, then you don't work with Dario and vice versa. It was not possible to see this partnership due to the tragic death of Fulci, and Argento called Sergio, who hilariously described to us how the phone call took place. To the director's incredible offer he replied: "I'll think about it for a moment", but then, reflecting on some rumours, (it seems that if you say to Dario: I'll think about it for a moment, you're already out), he immediately recovered by saying: "No no, but yes, of course I do."

At 4pm: "A cat in the brain", starring Lucio Fulci, was broadcast in the role of himself. An essentially work of assembly, as Antonio clarifies. Subsequently, answering some questions during the meeting with the authors, Antonio revealed interesting details to us. We learn first of all that he is a great imitator of Fulci's lines, that he has an incredible memory, and that he is able to answer any question about genre films, starting with the names of the costume designers. He then tells us how he initially thought of a little-known actor to play the role of Fulci, and how the initial script did not convince the director. 

he also explains to us that it was precisely thanks to his acquaintance with Fulci that he had the opportunity to enter the world of the cinema. I must say that it is truly beautiful to imagine the scene. You go in front of Lucio Fulci, you tell him that you want to work with him, and the dream comes true.
Nowadays, you go in front of someone, you tell him that you want to work for him, and he answers you : pay me. And I chatted about this separately with Antonio. It would be nice to have the old days back, when talent seriously had value.

To the last question asked, namely: what scares you most? Sergio responded, the supernatural, also telling that he had met Father Amorth and witnessed an exorcism. And this is a topic that fascinates me, which we could talk about for hours. Antonio, on the other hand, pleasantly replied: everything. Of meetings, of people, of reality. To be able to do something that arouses fear in the best possible way, you have to try it. This explanation wins everything.
Perhaps this is precisely the fundamental point of horror. If we didn't experience the feeling of fear, horror films wouldn't exist.