L'Italo-Americano

L'Italo-Americano THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 26, 2015 www.italoamericano.org 8 M auro Borrelli, in more t h a n t w o d e c a d e s o f activity, has been per- fecting his visual craft, alongside undisputed cinematic masters, t h e l i k e s o f F r a n c i s F o r d Coppola and Tim Burton. In 2013, Borrelli realized the short film, White Shoe, a whim- sical story inspired to the - inter- nationally renowned - Italian s h o e m a k e r , S a l v a t o r e F e r r a g a m o . H i s n o t e w o r t h y short had a great reception, win- n i n g t h e 2 0 1 4 S a l e n t o International Film Festival, and even being shortlisted for the Oscars. Currently, Borrelli has sever- al projects in pre-production, ranging from sci-fi to thriller and fantasy. Unfortunately, going to production represents a big chal- lenge, notwithstanding they are all based on very marketable high-concept narratives, and despite Mauro has a clear execu- tion plan, which combines the best from the latest Hollywood technologies with the excellent Italian manual skills and arti- sanal tradition. We, from L'Italo-Americano, warmly hope and wish to see Mauro Borrelli's next movie in theaters very soon. Tell us about your upbring- ing in Italy and your back- ground. Was there a specific moment in which you decided t o p u r s u e a f i l m - m a k i n g career? My artistic formation began in Italian art schools, first in V e r o n a , t h e n i n V e n i c e . Afterwards, I moved to Rome, where I became apprentice of the p a i n t e r R i c c a r d o T o m m a s i Ferroni. Back then, I was trying to "absorb" the European tradi- tional figurative style. While in Rome in the 80s, I m e t t h e s c u l p t o r a n d a c t o r , Giuliano Gemma, who asked me for a painting's copy to be fea- tured in the TV series, Caccia al ladro d'autore. That was my first time on a set and it was "love at first sight." I s t a r t e d t o a s s i s t a s s e t designer for some films, shot in Rome, the likes of Peter Del M o n t e ' s , É t o i l e , a n d T e r r y Gilliam's, The Adventures of Baron Munchausen. The real turning point came when I had the chance to get acquainted with Francis Ford Coppola, during the shooting of The Godfather Part III. I entered his entourage and learned how to be a storyteller, through digital story boards. Time later, Coppola invited m e t o h i s r a n c h , n e a r b y S a n Francisco. I stayed there for one and a half year, before moving to L.A. I g r a d u a l l y e x p a n d e d m y technical skills in visual effects, but also video games' design, w o r k i n g a s a r t d i r e c t o r f o r Activision. Soon, I realized that becoming a director would have allowed me to combine all that expertise together. Was there any particular Italian director/visual artist, w h o s e s t y l e y o u w a n t e d t o emulate? Or were you looking more at the worldwide cinema, in general? The visionary filmmaker, Terry Gilliam, represented my early influence and model. L a t e r o n , F r a n c i s F o r d Coppola instilled in me the idea that dreams may be fulfilled, since he is himself a dreamer, able to turn the "impossible" into possible. U l t i m a t e l y , m y s t r o n g e s t artistic "imprint" came from Tim Burton, with whom I col- laborated in such films as Sleepy Hollow, Planet of the Apes and Dark Shadows. My visual style on the model of Burton is evident in my 2013 short film, White Shoe (viewable on line), inspired to the Italian s h o e m a k e r , S a l v a t o r e Ferragamo's life. However, while Tim's artis- t i c t a s t e s a r e c l o s e r t o t h e Nordic, Gothic tradition, I main- tain a more Italian, Baroque sen- sibility. As far as influences from the Italian cinema are concerned, I feel a special affinity with the dreamlike, fantastic world creat- ed by Federico Fellini. L e t ' s g o b a c k o v e r t h e moment you move from Italy t o t h e U . S . H o w w a s t h e adjustment phase in L.A.? For my first year and a half in the States, when I was a guest in Coppola's ranch in the Napa Valley, my only "anchorage" was represented by Francis, a real friend with whom I could chat in Italian. However, despite his charisma, I still felt isolated, at times. After I moved to L.A., I grad- ually started to open up more, simultaneously with my linguis- tic improvements. After two years since my arrival to the U.S., I finally started to feel integrated. Tell us about your collabo- r a t i o n w i t h T i m B u r t o n ? What's the biggest lesson you learned from him? Aside from Burton himself, I worked in close collaboration with the 2000 Academy Award Winner production designer, Richard Heinrichs, who graduat- ed from Tim's same school: Walt Disney-founded California Institute of the Arts. I went through the process of acquiring Burton's cinematic language, his "grammar", in order to feel confident enough to break his rules and find my own voice. Tim Burton, a real artist who draws several of his movies' s c e n e s b y h i m s e l f , u s u a l l y spends plenty of time with the art department. He has a collab- orative spirit and an open atti- tude. I n S l e e p y H o l l o w ( 1 9 9 9 ) , partly drawing inspiration from the image of a crocodile which twists its body as it emerges from the water, I drew sketches for the "Tree of the Dead." In Planet of the Apes (2001), I realized some alien town's sketches, featuring primordial i n f l u e n c e s a s w e l l a s Mayan/Aztecan elements. In Dark Shadows (2012), I gave my contribution, drawing both interiors and exteriors for the mansion, where the movie is set. An anecdote is that some 25-30 different staircase's ver- sions have been realized, before finding the right one. Interestingly, architectonical elements, as the Caryatids, origi- nally conceived as mere concept art, or designs, in the shootings' phase, became alive and turned into actual characters, which take part in the final battle. W h a t d o y o u l i k e a b o u t L.A.? Is there a place where you go to seek inspiration? I love the city where I live and work: Burbank, which has a wonderful sense of community. This communal spirit becomes evident in celebrations, like the upcoming Halloween, during which all the kids' parents coop- erate in harmony. The visual master, Mauro Borrelli, from Veneto through Napa Valley to Burbank VALERIO VIALE Mauro Borrelli became one of Hollywood's premiere visual artist, among his most important contributions to Hollywood's productions are his con- cept design for "the Pirates of the Caribbean", "Godzilla", "Wolfman", and "Captain America" LOS ANGELES ITALIAN COMMUNITY Director and visual artist Mauro Borrelli

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