L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano bribery, rivalry and secret deals are not just the norm, they are endemic to it as jockeys and contrade try to control the fate of the race ; it almost seems like the race is not about being the best horse rider, but rather, the most astute. "For me, this film is a perfect microcosm of Italy," s a i d C o s i m a S p e n d e r , t h e Anglo-Italian director who co- wrote and directed "Palio". "It encapsulates beauty, tradition, h i s t o r y , b u t a l s o d e c e p t i o n , bribery and corruption." Winner in the Best Editing category at the Tribeca Film Festival, and recently nominated for Best Documentary at the B r i t i s h I n d e p e n d e n t F i l m A w a r d s , " P a l i o " w a s j u s t released on VOD in the U.S. and w i l l b e s h o w n a t s e l e c t screenings and film festivals across the country (check the website for updated information, h ttp ://u s . th ep alio . co m/f ilm) . Let's hear from Spender about how this project came about and why the Palio is so essential to the Sienese. What inspired you to make a documentary about the Palio di Siena? It's a film I've always wanted to make because I was born and grew up just outside Siena. My parents were English and even though I'd always seen the Palio and been part of it, I was always a bit of an outsider because I was the English foreign girl. I think because of that I'd always h a d t h i s d e s i r e t o r e a l l y understand it: what it was about, this passion. When you're at school, the first question anyone a s k s y o u i s , " w h a t ' s y o u r name?", and the second question I was always asked was, "which contrada [district of Siena] are y o u f r o m ? " . I d i d n ' t h a v e a contrada, so I felt like the odd one out and so going back there THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 12, 2015 www.italoamericano.org 4 to make this film was a chance for me to really understand what I hadn't understood as a child growing up there. T h e f i l m f o c u s e s o n t h e jockeys, who seem to arouse very strong and polarizing emotions in the Sienese – it's either love or hate. Why did you focus on them and can you describe their relationship to the city? The focus on the jockeys was such a natural choice for me because they are, in a way, the outsiders too. The jockeys are the mercenaries, they are guns for hire so they could go to any contrada they want. From the start, I wanted to focus on the jockeys as it all revolves around them. The relationship between t h e p e o p l e o f S i e n a a n d t h e jockeys is steeped in extreme e m o t i o n . J o c k e y s a r e l o v e d when they win and despised when they lose. And they're f a b u l o u s c h a r a c t e r s , t h e y ' r e r e a l l y g r e a t o u t - o f - t h e - b o x characters, and they can be very truthful and give you an insider view of what's behind the Palio. The city of Siena is divided i n t o 1 7 d i s t r i c t s , c a l l e d c o n t r a d e , w i t h a h o r s e a n d jockey representing each one. The relationship of a Sienese to his or her contrada is one of f i e r c e l o y a l t y a n d u n c o n d i t i o n a l b e l o n g i n g . W h a t a r e t h e r o o t s o f t h i s affiliation, which is so strong t h a t S i e n e s e t h i n k o f t h e m s e l v e s a s b e l o n g i n g t o their contrade first, then to Siena and then to Italy? In medieval times, the city w a s d i v i d e d i n t o d i f f e r e n t districts. Each district had a military battalion and it all goes back to their glory days in 1260 when Siena, this tiny city-state, m a n a g e d t o b e a t F l o r e n c e , which was much bigger, in the Battle of Montaperti. So the m i l i t a r y b a t t a l i o n s h a v e become, in a way, the contrade and they each have their own i d e n t i t y , t h e i r o w n l a w s , legislations, traditions. You're born into a contrada, you're baptized in a contrada, it's like t h e f a b r i c o f t h e c i t y a n d i f you're a teenager and you're having problems – for instance y o u ' r e g e t t i n g i n t o d r u g s o r something, the contrada will s a v e y o u . I t ' s k i n d o f t h e support system of the city. Each contrada collects blood in a blood bank in case people need blood. So the city of Siena is perhaps the only city that really doesn't need a state, they could j u s t f u n c t i o n b y t h e m s e l v e s completely. T h e f i r s t r e c o r d e d P a l i o was in the year 1238, but the race is probably even older. For more than 700 years, the P a l i o h a s r e m a i n e d a v i t a l component of the culture of Siena. In what ways do we see that today? S i e n a i s a p l a c e w h e r e p o l i t i c s a n d b a n k i n g w e r e invented – deals were invented t h e r e . T h e f i r s t b a n k i n t h e world started in Siena – they all know about deals and, in a way, our culture really comes from Siena. In some way, we can all f e e l a c o n n e c t i o n w i t h t h i s ancient world, it's like this little tiny medieval fragment that's still pulsating with life. What do you hope viewers will get from watching this film? For me, it's really important t o s h o w t h e d i v e r s i t y o f traditions and cultures, and to draw people in, to give them an insider view to the Palio. So it becomes more than a brutal race around the piazza, and I hope audiences can really understand the context, how much feeling is attached to it, and how people's identity is attached to it. NEWS & FEATURES TOP STORIES PEOPLE EVENTS Director Cosima Spender attends the premiere of "Palio" during the 2015 Tribeca Film Festival. Photo: Ben Gabbe/Getty Images Continued from page 1

• Cover