Parthenope at #Giffoni54 is pure magic and anticipation: the cast actors and director Sorrentino in dialogue with the #giffoners

Parthenope is (pure) magic in the freshness of a youthful yet moving story that gives chills at the first viewing and leaves an intense anticipation to see it fully projected in theatres starting October 24, distributed by Piper Film. The vision of some clips from Paolo Sorrentino’s new film, which tells the story of Naples and love through the eyes of a beautiful woman, could be encapsulated in one sentence. The honour was all for the #giffoners of the 54^th edition of the #GiffoniFilmFestival currently underway, who were able to view some excerpts from the work together with the protagonists Celeste Dalla Porta, Dario Aita and Daniele Rienzo, with a special connection from director Sorrentino who answered questions and curiosities from the jurors present in the Sala Truffaut of the Cittadella del Cinema. But why choose Giffoni to talk about Parthenope? Sorrentino himself answered: “Through the Giffoni kids, I hope to reach all the other kids. Not a single category, but all those different from each other, because generalizations are always wrong”. The curiosities range from the director’s successful films to the meaning of “disunite”, a key word in “È stata la mano di Dio”. “Being disunited is a youthful condition. It means living the young age: feeling like masters of the world, but when one feels like a master of the world, one loses themselves. When young, one feels like they can have the world, but this possession means that they cannot truly find themselves. Even as adults, one can feel this way”. A director must have intuition: “There is no time to think or elaborate too many thoughts, intuition is a primary quality for a director, the ability to control multiple things simultaneously”. The protagonist, actress Celeste Dalla Porta, agrees: “This quality he speaks of was seen on the set, he had everything under control without showing the effort in doing so”. Surrounded by the embrace and large presence in the room, the actors engaged with the curiosities that the #giffoners wanted to know about the set and the first meeting with the director. The emblematic scene of a hug between the three of them, they emphasized, will remain indelible in their minds: “Being a film about youth, this scene is very important. For me, being young entails great responsibility because one is simultaneously building the future and also their past, the one that will be remembered more melancholically and resentfully. This scene represents one of those wonderful moments where you are young without thinking about the future or the past, you live the ecstasy of the present, – said Sorrentino – that wonderful moment when the present happens and you are alive and you feel that what is happening is love, a present that does not consider the ties with the future that young people build”. The overwhelming charm of Daniele Rienzo fascinated everyone, with his Neapolitan accent and some jokes but especially the wonder of the actor himself who, upon arriving in the room, exclaimed: “How many of you are there?”. Many requests for advice came from the kids to the cast actors: “I didn’t want to be an actor – said Dario Aita – I started doing it because I liked cinema and wanted to be a director, gradually I started acting. I don’t think there are recipes: if you like it, find as many situations as possible to do it”. For Sorrentino, finally, a film “more than giving answers, must ask questions. I always work to do what I will never be able to do: a masterpiece”. Between wonder and amazement: the perfect mix to reach hearts is given precisely by the director: “If I am always amazed and astonished, I will be able to amaze and astonish you”. In the room for the final photo and the Truffaut award ceremony, the creator and founder of #Giffoni, Claudio Gubitosi, also extracted the promise of a presence next year from the director: “If I am in Italy, I will definitely come to you”.