L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 3, 2020 www.italoamericano.org 18 L'Italo-Americano I t's the divas chosen b y p h o t o g r a p h e r A n d r e a P a t t a r o w h o a r e g o i n g t o decorate and illumi- nate the spaces at Locanda La Fenice, where the exhi- bition Le Dive, organized by the Bacardi & Martini Group, will take place on occasion of the 77th Interna- t i o n a l F i l m F e s t i v a l i n Venice. T h e f a c e s a r e t h o s e o f Monica Bellucci, Lady Gaga, S c a r l e t t J o h a n s s o n , Penelope Cruz, as well as Madonna, Kristen Stewart, G i o v a n n a M e z z o g i o r n o , K a t e B l a n c h e t , C h i a r a Ferragni, Milla Jovovich, Nicole Kidman and Natalie Portman. The ability to cap- ture moments, to show the essence of a character inside a magical and sacred context such as that of the Festival d e l C i n e m a , i n t h e m o s t beautiful city in the world, is that of Andrea Pattaro, a photographer who has been covering the festival since 1 9 8 4 . " I c a n s a y t h a t t h e idea was born at the bar" he t e l l s m e , e x p l a i n i n g h o w important it is choosing the location for Le Dive exhibi- tion, which started on the 29 th of August. "Locanda La F e n i c e i s a v e r y p o p u l a r place among Venetians, and it is adjacent to the theater. I t ' s a l e g e n d a r y p l a c e because it's a hotel and it hosted Callas, Pavarotti, all t h e g r e a t o p e r a s i n g e r s . While you drink a cocktail you can hear rehearsal from the theater." W h a t g o a l d i d y o u h a v e i n m i n d f o r t h e exhibition? We didn't want to do the usual celebration of the past, b u t r a t h e r a t r i b u t e t o w o m e n , a t a t i m e w h e n there is so much talk about their rights. We wanted to bring out all their simplicity, in a moment of difficulty like the one we are experi- encing. We wanted to take the opportunity of the film festival to give a sense of restart, considering that this is the first major post-Covid event. How did you choose your shots? I t w a s n o t e a s y f o r m e because I have an immense archive, I have followed the f e s t i v a l s i n c e 1 9 8 4 , a n d therefore I have shots that g o b a c k t o t h e b l a c k a n d white negative, to the color negative, and to digital in all its nuances. I had to make some tough choices, 12 pic- t u r e s o u t o f a m i l l i o n ! I chose to focus on the last t w e n t y y e a r s ; t h e o l d e s t photo is in fact Giovanna M e z z o g i o r n o ' s w i t h t h e Volpi cup, it was 2005. The divas are all caught in vari- ous situations. I n f a c t , I w a s v e r y i m p r e s s e d b y N i c o l e Kidman's photo. Yes, she was immortal- ized as she is about to take off her shoes before getting into a taxi. It was a stroke of luck. I was with a colleague and we decided to take a dif- ferent photo, we went to the other side of the canal. We d i d n ' t k n o w w h a t w o u l d happen, it's always a risk. By c h a n c e s h e t o o k o f f h e r shoes to get into the taxi and it was a unique and special moment. What has changed in all these years? O u r w o r k i n g a p p r o a c h has changed. Back in the days, up until the 1990s, you could schedule an appoint- ment with the actors, you c o u l d t a k e t h e m t o t h e beach, meet at the hotel, you could manage the artistic part in a simpler way. The photographer was consid- e r e d d i f f e r e n t l y , b e c a u s e t o d a y e v e r y t h i n g i s c o n - veyed by press offices, or the actors promote themselves on social media. Nowadays the spaces we have left are red carpets and photo-calls, where it is possible to take photos that give a sense of t h e s t a r i n t h a t e n v i r o n - ment. And only photogra- phers can take those photos; even the star who takes a selfie will never be able to immortalize that moment, in that particular context. Only photographers with their experience can do it. H o w h a v e d i v a s c h a n g e d i n a l l t h e s e years? T h e r e l a t i o n s h i p w i t h fans hasn't changed much. I remember Tom Cruise when he walked by fans twice to do autographs and please everyone, even if it was 2am. And Lady Gaga last year, after the red carpet in the rain, which was a historical i m a g e b e c a u s e t h e r e w a s o n l y h e r w i t h h e r w h i t e dress on an empty carpet. She decided to go to the Pala Biennale and amazed every- one because no one expected her to arrive there. She got h e r l e g s o u t o f t h e t a x i . Venice is a city that leads you to do things like that. I r e m e m b e r A l b e r t o S o r d i when he came for the Leone for Lifetime Achievement: we went to pick him up in Piazza San Marco and he came out of the hotel. This city makes you want to stay outside, no one can resist the charm of having a pic- t u r e t a k e n w i t h V e n i c e behind. Only Venice makes you feel this way. Do you have a particu- lar diva in your exhibi- tion? Yes, Chiara Ferragni; she is a new diva. We added her because she represents the new, with a crazy following. There is a photo with her s u r r o u n d e d b y f a n s , a l l young. W h i c h s h o t i s y o u r Photographer Andrea Pattaro's divas to celebrate women in cinema SILVIA GIUDICI favorite? Giovanna Mezzogiorno's. It is a photo that has been around a lot, and I took it from a somewhat fortunate situation. She arrived and we knew she was going to w i n t h e a w a r d . W e p h o - tographed her with the lions behind her, a scenography m a d e b y D a n t e F e r r e t t i , which remained for a few y e a r s . S o m e c o l l e a g u e s asked her to pose with us, so she casually stood next to me, and when they stopped shooting I tapped her shoul- der and ask her to turn to me. She looked at me and I snapped, catching her face a n d t h e p h o t o g r a p h e r s b e h i n d . T h a t i s a k i n d o f p h o t o y o u t a k e w i t h l u c k and the ability to manage an o p p o r t u n i t y . T h a t p h o t o says it all and it is another thing compared to a classic red carpet photo. S o i n y o u r o p i n i o n p h o t o g r a p h y i s t e c h - nique, a good eye and also luck? Penelope Cruz, iconic diva of modern cinema (Photo courtesy of Andrea Pattaro) LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY Continued to page 20

• Cover