Pietro lives in an anonymous suburb. He has a job, a home and a family. His job consists in distributing leaflets on the streets. His home is an old apartment left to him by his parents, now decaying. Pietro lives in it with his brother Francesco, who represents his entire family. However their relation is anything but easy. Francesco’s a drug addict, depending on his drug dealer and friend NikiNiki and his mates. The only way Pietro has to connect to his brother seems to be to live out the role of a fool assigned to him by the friends’ circle. This stuff he’s put through during the nights spent with his brother at home is only the other side of the many insults that on his work place he has to suffer by the hand of a violent boss for little more than peanuts. Despite all this all these characters go on with their lives blindly facing the on-going devastation in their broken lives.

DIRECTOR’S COMMENTS ON THE FILM

FOUR WORDS

Anger, affection, frailty and violence. These are the themes, the ingredients of

PIETRO, a movie generated by different circumstances and suggestions (some of

which are personal). It was a difficult period for me, I was not doing anything. Yet,

people were telling me to be less radical. Thus, I wrote my first draft of this story: a

harsh movie that reflects a harsh situation and some people I know who are

fragile, invisible. Although society denies their existence, these people have a role

in our society and allow it to function. They could become ticking bombs. A person

I know, for example, is a mix of fragility and dormant violence.

REFERENCES TO CURRENT EVENTS

None. Total absence of references to current events in the form of news. However,

the film shows how reality affects people. Also, I did not want to adopt an explicit

stance or take sides because, by doing so, I would have offered a reassuring picture

in which everything is already in its place. For example, I opted against making the

woman a foreigner because, as Pasolini said, discrimination exists even among the

white population. What I can say is that this film is a forecast of what we are about

to become‐ or what we already are.

MAN AND SOCIETY

Surprisingly, in a society where man seems to have complete sovereignty, he is the

first to die. Man is not entitled to his rights and does not have any boundaries. The

issue presented in PIETRO is that, at times, individuals have to use inhumane

means to obtain a legitimate status of humanity. This is a clear and cruel film but it

is also filled with an undeniable kindness and affection.

TELEVISION

The only way Pietro can capture his brother’s attention is to act like a jester. Pietro

lives in a world that has become a sort of television show. People are “televisonlike”.

They are not unkind but indifferent and careless towards humanity. In fact, it

is not a coincidence that Pietro’s brother tells him: “you should have been on

television”. Television never appears in the movie and it is mentioned only once

PIETRO but it permeates everyone. Everybody sees Pietro as a character of a trashy

television show because it fits his character, how he acts around others.

ACTORS

I have been asked if I found my actors on the street…but it is not true, they are

professionals! They act so well that they seem the characters they play. I have a

good relationship with those who do surreal theatre and cabaret. I had already

worked with Fabrizio Nicastro for the movie Nemmeno il destino where he played

Ferdi. The characters of this film came to life thanks to the actors. When I wrote

the script I had certain features in my mind and those stimulated me to make this

film. Pietro Casella, the actor who plays Pietro, is a talented comedian and, as we

all know, there is a subtle line that separates comedy from tragedy.

WHERE

Pietro was filmed in Turin but I chose anonymous places, places that are so generic

they can be considered universal.

THE PRODUCTION

The film was carried out in a very independent fashion and represents a co

production of our job. This is very important because sometimes it is the only way

to maintain some freedom.

MOTION‐PICTURE CAMERA

The type of motion‐picture camera used for this film is worth mentioning. We used

the Red, which is the same digital camera that Soderbergh used for Che. The

advantage of using this type of camera is that it forces you to keep a

cinematographic mentality and it makes you respect the timing of everything. The

photography director Gherardo Gossi wanted very few lights but used in a perfect

way.