L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, JULY 9, 2015 www.italoamericano.org L'Italo-Americano 5 Giacchino's work in video games sparked the interest of J. J. Abrams and thus began their long standing relationship that would lead to scores for the hit TV series Alias and Lost, as well as for Mission Impossible III and Star Trek, and Super 8. M i c h a e l G i a c c h i n o ' s f i r s t major film score was for Pixar's The Incredibles in 2004, which earned him two Grammy nomi- nations. It also cemented a rela- tionship with Pixar, which would have him scoring Ratatouille, Car 2, and Up (Academy Award winner for Best Original Score in 2010). This summer, he has three films in theaters: Tomorrowland with George Clooney, Jurassic World, and the delightful anima- tion film Inside Out. From video games to TV series and big screen movies, what do you think makes your s c o r e s s o s u c c e s s f u l ? A n d where do you draw inspiration from? The musical inspiration for any type of score— whether it is a film, a television show or a v i d e o g a m e i s t h e p r o j e c t itself. This type of music com- position must go hand in hand with whatever story is being told on the screen, It cannot be done independent of that. The music has to take the audience to an emotional place that the director also wants to go. Of course, there are other elements that help decide what type of instru- mentation you use: the geo- graphic location of the film, the time period it takes place in, for example. I have been fortunate to have close working relation- ships with most of my directors, who are incredibly supportive in the creative process. After your latest hits the likes of Jurassic World and Inside Out, are you already working on a new project? I have several projects on the horizon, but nothing I can speak about at the moment. All I can say is that the directors I work with aren't short on ideas, so I am sure you will be hearing about them soon! How is your relationship with your Italian heritage? I a m a n I t a l i a n c i t i z e n ! Several years ago, our whole Continued from page 1 family received dual citizenship through my paternal grandfa- ther's family. My great-grandfa- ther, Michele Giacchino, was b o r n o n A p r i l 2 4 , 1 8 7 6 i n Caccamo, Sicily. He later emi- g r a t e d t o t h e U S w h e r e m y grandfather John, was born in Philadelphia in 1905. John mar- ried Stella Aiello, who was from Barrafranca, Italy. My maternal grandmother, Louise Vizzarri, was born in Casoli, Italy and moved to the US when she was 7. She later married my grandfa- ther, Anthony Fortunato, who had been born in Casoli as well. Three out of my four grandpar- ents were born in Italy. We grew up going to Sunday d i n n e r s a t m y g r a n d p a r e n t s ' home. Homemade spaghetti, "gravy", meatballs, and pizzelles were all part of my childhood. The tradition of big family gath- erings based around food contin- ues today. We travel to my par- ents' home in New Jersey every Christmas, and my kids (3 out of 9 grandchildren) help make the ravioli and roll the little meat- balls for escarole soup. Time with my family is very impor- tant to me. My home is always open to my siblings, my nieces, nephews, and my parents. It is just part of who I am. Even when I am busy working on a film, I make it a point to have time for family. One of the greatest experi- ences I have ever had was a Giacchino family excursion to S i c i l y t h r e e s u m m e r s a g o . S e v e n t e e n o f u s w e n t t o Caccamo where Michele was born. There was a tremendous welcome party, with everyone from the town there: the mayor, the priest, and the historian. We were given a full tour and a key t o t h e c i t y . O n e o f t h e m o s t moving moments that day was when we visited the Duomo and s t o o d a t t h e s p o t w h e r e m y great-grandfather was baptized with my own father and my chil- dren. Afterwards, of course, there was a twelve-course feast in the castle. I can't help thinking that my love and passion for music is s o m e h o w c o n n e c t e d t o m y I t a l i a n h e r i t a g e . I t a l y h a s inspired and nurtured artists for centuries, so it has to be in my DNA…right? Academy Award winner Brad Bird and Michael Maria Giacchino. Photo Maria Giacchino Michael Giacchino Sr. and Michael Giacchino at Baptismal Font in Caccamo, Sicily. Photo Maria Giacchino

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