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Interview: Anna Ferruzzo of Anime Nere

Contemporary Italian cinema is gaining more momentum worldwide with each passing year. When I began writing for Fra Noi back in 2004, I could count on one hand the contemporary Italian film festivals held in America. Fast forward to 2015, and there are dozens of film series and festivals across the United States that showcase the newest trends in Italian cinema and culture. The popularity of all those series and festivals is grabbing the attention of film distributors, leading them to discover how much Americans really enjoy a good Italian movie. Francesco Munzi’s Anime nere (Black Souls) is the latest example of this momentum. The film gained international acclaim when it premiered at last year’s Venice Film Festival, and it is now making its way across the film festival circuit in America before its nationwide release begins on April 10th by Rialto distribution company. 

Black Souls (Anime nere) is an unprecedentedly authentic depiction of the Calabrian crime organization known as the ’Ndrangheta. The film pits brother against brother when a young man turns against his law-abiding father in this powerful, Greek-tragedy inflected family drama. The film, adapted from a novel written by Giocchino Criaco, and directed by one of Italy’s most celebrated young directors, Francesco Munzi, features a remarkable cast of contemporary Italian cinema talent.


I recently caught up with one of the film's stars, actress Anna Ferruzzo. She was raised in the south of Italy and has chosen roles portraying the strength and resilience of southern Italian women. Her latest role takes that character to the next level.

The diversity of her career and the roles she has chosen mirror the passion that drives her professionally and personally. International audiences first saw her in Edoardo Winspeare's 2003 Southern Italian tale,Il miracolo. The film gave Ferruzzo the opportunity to work in her hometown, portraying the strength and resilience of the soulful Pugliese culture in which she was raised. We posted our interview with Anna in both English and Italian. You will enjoy getting to know this beautiful actress, inside and out.

Black Souls is about to released nationwide in America. Tell me about your character, Antonia and what you did to prepare for this role.
In the movie Black Souls Antonia is the wife of Luciano, one of three brothers and protagonists of the story. In real life I am a woman of the South but I am not Calabrese and I had to learn to speak the dialect of that beautiful land. What helped me a lot was observing the attitude of the Calabrese women who were chosen as extras in the film. I tried to "steal" not only their accents but also their gazes and long silences. In Mafia families, men make important decisions but women always know everything and have a vital role in preserving the traditions even when they live with violence and revenge. I understand well that  the silences mafia women are more important than their words.

A partire della prossima settimana, "Anime Nere" verrà mostrato nelle sale in tutta l'America. In primo luogo, dimmi del tuo personaggio, Antonia, e quello che hai fatto per prepararsi a questo ruolo?
Nel film "Anime Nere", Antonia è la moglie di Luciano, uno dei tre fratelli protagonisti della storia. Nella vita reale  anch'io sono una donna del sud ma non sono calabrese e  ho dovuto imparare a parlare nel dialetto di quella bellissima terra. Mi è servito molto osservare l'atteggiamento delle donne calabresi che sono state scelte per  fare le comparse nel film. Ho cercato di "rubare" loro non solo gli accenti ma anche gli sguardi e i lunghi silenzi. Nelle famiglie di mafia gli uomini prendono le decisioni importanti ma le donne sanno sempre tutto e hanno un ruolo fondamentale nel preservare le tradizioni anche quando portano violenza e vendetta. Ho capito così che i silenzi delle donne di mafia sono più importanti delle parole.
What is the message of this story?
All the protagonists of this story seem to be condemned to evil, with no hope. Even Luciano, the only brother who tried all his life to stay away from the mafia logic would give his life just to break the bloody feud that has ruined his family. Violence always begets violence, and this is perhaps the only message in a story so hard and difficult.

Qual è il messaggio di questa storia?
Tutti i protagonisti di questa storia  sembrano condannati al male, senza nessuna speranza. Perfino Luciano l'unico dei fratelli che ha cercato per tutta la vita di tenersi lontano dalle logiche mafiose  dovrà uccidere a sua volta per spezzare la sanguinosa  faida che ha rovinato la sua famiglia. La violenza genera sempre violenza è questo forse  l'unico messaggio in una storia così forte e difficile.
Let’s take a step back to your role in Edoardo Winspeare’s Il miracolo. The story is set in Taranto. Tell me about your experience working on that film.. did you have a special affection for your character, Annalisa since you are from that city?
The role of Annalisa in the film The Miracle was my first starring role in cinema. Until that point, I had always worked in theater. I'm really very grateful to Edoardo Winspeare. He gave me the opportunity to have my first real experience at the cinema in my city, a city that I loved and that I knew very well. It was really a privilege for me. I tried to enrich the character of Annalisa with the strong emotions I was living in that moment: the passion for my job, enthusiasm for this new experience and my great love of Taranto. The Miracle was a very important film for me both from the professional and personal points-of-view. After filming, I moved to Rome. I revolutionized my life and I began to think with more confidence about my future as an actress. I'll always have a wonderful memory of that experience, an emotional memory, almost magical.
Il miracolo
Facciamo un passo indietro per il tuo ruolo nel film di Edoardo Winspeare, "Il miracolo" .. Nel 2003, ho intervistato Edoardo quando ha presentato il film a New York City. La storia è ambientata a Taranto .. Parlami della tua esperienza di lavoro su questo film .. hai avuto un affetto speciale per il tuo personaggio, Annalisa poiché sei di quella città?
Il ruolo di Annalisa nel film "Il Miracolo" è stato il mio primo ruolo da protagonista al cinema. Fino a quel momento avevo sempre lavorato in teatro. Sono davvero molto grata ad Edoardo Winspeare. Egli mi ha dato la possibilità di vivere la mia prima vera esperienza al cinema nella mia città, una città che amavo e che conoscevo benissimo. È stato un vero privilegio .Ho cercato di arricchire il personaggio di Annalisa con le emozioni  forti che vivevo in quel momento: la passione per il mio lavoro, l'entusiasmo per quell'esperienza così nuova  e il grande amore per Taranto. "Il miracolo" è stato un film molto importante per me sia dal punto di vista umano che dal punto di vista professionale. Dopo le riprese del film mi sono trasferita a Roma, ho rivoluzionato la mia vita ed ho cominciato a pensare con più fiducia al mio futuro di attrice. Conservo un bellissimo ricordo di quell'esperienza, un ricordo emozionante quasi magico.
Tell me about Braccialetti Rossi. The series is not known in America, but seems to be very popular in Italy. What is your role in that series?
Red Bracelets is the Italian version of the Spanish television series Poiseres Vermelles inspired by the true story of the Spanish writer Albert Espinosa. The series tells the stories of a group of young patients in a cancer hospital. Their friendship and love will help them to face and overcome the tragedy of disease and death. In this series, I play the hospital psychologist. The success of Red Bracelets was surprising especially among the young. Before this series, no one on Italian television dared to talk about these important and uncomfortable issues of illness and death of young people and children. The series has instead shown that you can tell any story, even the most difficult, as long as you face it with grace, respect and truth.
Raccontami "Braccialetti Rossi". La serie non è conosciuto in America, ma sembra essere molto popolare in Italia. Qual è il tuo ruolo in questa serie?
"Braccialetti Rossi" è la versione italiana della serie televisiva spagnola"Poiseres Vermelles"ispirata alla storia vera dello scrittore spagnolo Albert Espinosa. La serie racconta le storie di un gruppo di giovanissimi pazienti in un ospedale oncologico. L'amicizia e l'amore li aiuterà ad affrontare e a superare il dramma della malattia e della morte. In questa serie io interpreto la psicologa dell'ospedale. Il successo di "Braccialetti Rossi"è stato sorprendente soprattutto tra i giovanissimi. Prima di questa serie nessuno,nella televisione italiana,aveva osato raccontare temi così importanti e scomodi come la malattia e la morte di giovani e bambini."Braccialetti Rossi"ha invece dimostrato che è possibile raccontare qualunque storia,anche la più difficile, purchè lo si faccia con garbo,rispetto e verità.
How has growing up in Taranto influenced your work as an artist? Do you bring any special qualities to your characters because of your experiences growing up in such a beautiful culture?
Everyone carries within himself the soul of the place where he was born; the beauty of our own land and its history.. but also its conflicts and miseries live in us everyday through our thoughts and actions. In my life, in my work, in everything I do, there is always a bit of Taranto. There is the beautiful sea, its wonderful sunsets, its glorious past but also the difficulties of the present situation. Taranto is a beautiful city but deeply hurt by a savage industrialization that has violated and polluted the territory. These strong emotions, these profound contrasts are always inside me. And since I believe that the contradictions can be a great wealth, I hope to keep improving the characters I play with the contrasts of my soul and my land.
Vorrei sapere quanto la bellezza di Taranto influisca nella tua carriera. Porti qualsiasi qualità speciali ai tuoi personaggi a causa delle tue esperienze in una cultura così bella?
Ognuno porta dentro di se l'anima del posto in cui è nato. Le bellezze della propria terra, la sua storia ma anche i suoi conflitti e le sue miserie vivono in noi tutti i giorni attraverso i nostri pensieri, attraverso le nostre azioni. Nella mia vita, nel mio lavoro, in ogni cosa che faccio c'è sempre un po’ di Taranto. Ci sono il suo splendido mare, i suoi tramonti meravigliosi, il suo passato glorioso ma anche le difficoltà della situazione odierna. Taranto è una città bellissima ma profondamente ferita da una industrializzazione selvaggia che ha violato e inquinato il territorio. Queste forti emozioni, questi profondi contrasti sono sempre dentro di me. E poichè credo che le contraddizioni possono essere una grande ricchezza , spero di arricchire sempre  i personaggi che interpreto con i contrasti della mia anima e della mia terra.
How do you feel about the roles being offered to women in this period? Do you feel they are strong, interesting characters or are they more supporting roles to men?
In the last ten years, the economic crisis has reduced much investment in the cultural field in Italy and all of Italian cinema suffers greatly for it. The productions fell by half. We make a few movies, and many of those tell the stories of men. Very few films tell stories of women. This is a real shame. Italian women are an important resource for the country. They know how to handle a career and family, extricating themselves with such difficulty. They are really the core of Italian Society. Their stories are full of passion and courage. They are extraordinary, beautiful stories that would be important to tell. But the complex and fascinating world of women is still little explored by the Italian cinema. Female roles are often relegated to the margins of history. There are many male roles and few female roles .... but I think this is not just an Italian problem.
Dimmi i tuoi pensieri dei ruoli proposti alle donne italiane in questo periodo? Senti che sono personaggi interessanti, forti o sono ruoli più di supporto agli uomini?
Negli ultimi dieci anni la crisi economica ha ridotto molto gli investimenti in campo culturale in Italia e tutto il cinema italiano soffre moltissimo per questo. Le produzioni si sono dimezzate, si fanno pochi film: molti raccontano storie di uomini e pochissimi film raccontano storie di donne. Questo è un vero peccato. Le donne italiane sono una risorsa importantissima per il Paese. Esse sanno  gestire il lavoro e la famiglia districandosi fra mille difficoltà e sono realmente il perno della Società italiana. Le loro sono storie piene di passione e di coraggio, sono storie straordinarie e bellissime che sarebbe importante raccontare. Ma il complesso e affascinante mondo femminile è ancora poco esplorato dal cinema italiano, i ruoli femminili sono spesso relegati ai margini della storia. Ci sono molti  ruoli maschili e pochi ruoli femminili ....ma credo che questo non sia un problema solo italiano.
What inspires you and motivates you in life?
My life is dominated by love and passion. These are the engines of my life, my inspiration, my true motivation. I am a simple woman, instinctive and passionate. For me friendship and love are very important things, and the esteem and respect towards me by the people I love are fundamental to my stability and my serenity. Sometimes I'd like to be more cold, rational but my instinctive part in the end prevails over reason. Even at work, I need to love what I do. And so, in a movie as well as in a play, I always fall in love with the character I play. I think this is the best way to keep the passion alive for my hard work.
Che cosa ti ispira e ti motiva nella vita?
La mia vita è dominata dall'amore e dalla passione. Sono questi i motori della mia esistenza, la mia ispirazione, la mia motivazione vera. Sono una donna semplice, istintiva e passionale. Per me l'amicizia e l'amore sono cose molto importanti e la stima e il rispetto nei miei confronti da parte delle persone che amo sono fondamentali per la mia stabilità e la mia serenità. Alle volte mi piacerebbe essere più fredda, razionale ma  la mia parte istintiva alla fine prevale sempre sulla ragione. Anche sul lavoro ho bisogno di amare  sempre quello che faccio. E cosi, in un film così come in uno spettacolo teatrale, mi innamoro sempre del personaggio che interpreto. Credo che questo sia il modo migliore per mantenere  sempre viva la passione per questo mio meraviglioso e difficile lavoro. 
What is your dream for the future?
I love acting. It's the best form of communication that I've ever been able to find! I consider myself a lucky and privileged person. I managed to turn my biggest passion into my work.  More than a dream, it's a wish. I hope to continue to do my work with the same burning passion of when I started in order to continue to deserve the great privilege that I conquered.
Qual è il tuo sogno per il futuro?
Amo molto recitare. è la migliore forma di comunicazione che io sia riuscita a trovare in tutta la mia vita!  Mi ritengo una persona fortunata e privilegiata, sono riuscita a trasformare la mia più grande passione nel mio lavoro  e faccio ciò che mi piace fare. Il mio , allora , più che un sogno è un augurio. Mi auguro di continuare a fare il mio lavoro con la stessa bruciante passione di quando ho cominciato e di continuare a  meritarmi , anche in futuro, iil grande privilegio che mi sono conquistata.

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