Skip to main content

Actress Lucia Mascino on her Collaboration with Francesca Comencini


Actress Lucia Mascino presented Francesca Comencini’s "Stories of Love that Cannot Belong to This World" at the 18th edition of the Film Society of Lincoln Center's Open Roads: New Italian Cinema.

Adapted from Comencini's book, the film offers an intimate look at how one woman deals with the end of a relationship. Although many would not have the same seemingly desperate reaction, it's the delusional or even hopeful motivation for which she stayed that we can all understand on some level. 

The film follows Claudia (Lucia Mascino) and Flavio (Thomas Trabacchi), two very different people but deeply in love nonetheless. Their tumultuous, passionate relationship is driven by powerful feelings, but they are simply not good for each other. Their sincere love, affection and attraction keep them emotionally and physically attached and unable to leave even though they often argue. However, an indifferent comment made by Claudia is Flavio's last straw and he finally breaks away. The film is a series of flashbacks woven with moments in the present. There are surprises and unexpected twists. At times, it gets frustrating to watch Claudia’s desperation and codependency, but it’s worth staying in the trenches to witness her gratifying revelation at the end.

Mascino’s performance is exceptional and she has received numerous praises and awards for the interpretation of her character. Claudia’s emotional rollercoaster takes her to extreme highs and lows. Although Claudia has an eccentric personality, she is relatable because there are many layers to her. You will not identify with all of them, but as Mascino reveals the complexities and idiosyncrasies of her character, you will find common ground.

I spoke with Mascino while she was in New York promoting the film. She talked about her affection for this character and her joy in working with Comencini.

Tell me about your character in this film.
The film tells the story of a character that in my opinion, many women can relate to. This character named Claudia is a university professor, but beyond the craft has an emotional temperament. In my opinion, her temperament can be characterized as great passion, great sentimental generosity and therefore also has a great commitment to those close to her. She is an exaggerated, tumultuous woman who is dealing with a huge emotional break. There is a story of separation from a great love. However, the beautiful thing about this film is that it tells something positive because it’s a story of how we transform ourselves as we bring our life back into our own hands after giving it to another person. It is a film about rebirth and this character embodies all the feelings from the most funny to the more dramatic during this emotional evolution. I really like this character.

How did you prepare for this role? For example, did you reach inside yourself to understand how you related to Claudia?
When I read the script, I liked it so much and I thought I did not want to make a character built from the outside. I wanted to approach it slowly. There were many months before shooting because I had received the screenplay in November and we shot the film in May. So during those five months, I would think of one phrase from the movie rather than thinking about the whole movie. For instance, while I was taking a shower, a sentence would come to mind and I’d then have an understanding of that phrase. I tried to approach the character in this way, slowly, because I felt it was the best way to honor and approach a true story.

What was it like working with Francesca Comencini. How did your collaboration come about?
We did not know each other when she asked me to audition but we wanted to give it a try. She told me to throw myself into the character and to exaggerate, not to be afraid in the audition. So I did what she said and I found out immediately after the audition that I had been chosen for the part. I was very happy to work with Francesca because I had seen her films. In particular, I had seen "Un spazio bianco" (The White Space) with Margherita Buy. That was a wonderful film. I would have never imagined doing a movie with her because she is a director that I knew but she did not know me. How was it to work with her? Let's say this collaboration allowed us to work well together. The story is also a bit of her own story even though she wrote the screenplay with two other writers, and so there was a delicate situation. It was easy for me to work with Francesca because in a way, we are similar, and she loves actors very much. She always said, ‘My beloved actors!’ And this is important. 

"Stories of Love that Cannot Belong to This World" is still being shown at film festivals throughout the world. We'll keep you updated on distribution in North America. In the meantime, you can watch Lucia Mascino opposite Christian De Sica in Caterina Carone's Storm Warning (Fraulein- Una Fiaba d'Inverno), which is available to stream on Amazon.

- Jeannine Guilyard

Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Anna Foglietta: Actress and Activist with Old School Elegance

One look at actress Anna Foglietta in her any of her roles, and the Golden Age of Italian cinema comes to mind. Among Italy’s most sought-after actresses today, Foglietta brings to the table a classic eloquence of yesterday while representing Italy’s modern woman. Born in Rome in 1979, Foglietta began her career in 2005 with a role in the RAI television series La squadra . Her character Agent Anna De Luca had a two-year run on the series as she was transitioning to cinema with Paolo Virzì’s 2006 ensemble project 4-4-2- Il gioco più bello del mondo . Since then, she has become one of Italy’s most diverse actresses, transforming herself into interesting, layered characters for comedies and dramas alike. Aside from a small part in Anton Corbijn’s 2010 film The American starring George Clooney, Foglietta’s work began reaching mainstream American audiences in 2015. As Elisa in Edoardo Leo’s 2015 comedy Noi e la Giulia , Foglietta showed her funny side playing a goofball pregn

The Life and Work of Monica Bellucci

Monica Bellucci as Malèna Born in Umbria in 1964, Monica Bellucci is one of the most recognizable faces of international cinema. But she didn't always have her sights set on the spotlight. She went to college to study law and modeled to pay her tuition. Her success in the fashion world coupled with the offers that were pouring in to appear on the big screen eventually took over, changing her fate. Bellucci made her on-screen debut in the 1990 television movie, " Vita coi figli." Just two years later, she scored her first American role in Francis Ford Coppola's "Dracula."   In addition to her native language, she speaks fluent English and French, which has made for a smooth transition from Italian to international cinema. Stateside, she has acted in blockbusters such as "The Matrix-Reloaded,"     " The Passion of the Christ" and " The Sorcerer's Apprentice." She has also appeared in several French films, a

Pasolini's Playground of Roman Ruins

Anna Magnani in a scene from "Mamma Roma" Pier Paolo Pasolini’s 1962 “Mamma Roma” starring Anna Magnani , follows the title character, a Roman prostitute determined to change her life and give her son the opportunities she never had. She seizes the opportunity to leave her life on the streets behind when her pimp (Franco Citti) gets married and frees her from his possession. Mamma then goes to the small provincial town of Guidonia to fetch her son, Ettore (Ettore Garofolo), and bring him to Rome to embark on their new life together. She buys a pushcart, finds an apartment in a nice neighborhood, and uses her connections to secure him a job in a restaurant. However, Ettore gets mixed up with boys who are petty thieves and is negatively influenced by them. At the same time, Mamma Roma’s pimp resurfaces and sends her back to the streets. When Ettore learns about his mother’s prostitution, he goes astray and wholeheartedly joins in on the petty crimes of the boys. One day, while

Stefano Natale- the Charismatic Muse behind Carlo Verdone's Iconic Characters

The beauty of Italian cinema lies in the diversity of its genres and styles. Although the ’80s have received its share of criticism for its less-than-profound output, it was the decade in which contemporary maestro Carlo Verdone emerged as a creative young director and actor. The characters he brought to life during those years became permanent fixtures in Roman pop culture. Films like “Un sacco bello,” “Bianco, rosso e Verdone,” and “Borotalco” gave birth to the iconic Mimmo, Leo and Sora Lella.   Enter Stefano Natale, the real-life muse behind Leo and Mimmo. Natale was the subject of a documentary presented at the 2015 Festa del Cinema in Rome. One of four protagonists in Luca Ferrari’s “Showbiz,” he is a soft-spoken gentle giant who recalls his life with Verdone and the creation of his characters in a nostalgic, affectionate manner. “Verdone and I grew up together in the same building near Ponte Sisto,” Natale recalls. “Our grandmothers were cousins, and for 30 years we saw each o

Nicoletta Braschi and Roberto Benigni.. What cinema dreams are made of

The Toronto International Film Festival is wrapping up its retrospective of the cinematic collaboration of husband and wife team, Nicoletta Braschi and Roberto Benigni. Over the last few days, the couple have participated in discussions, Q & A sessions and have introduced several of their films. Today, I attended a screening of "La voce della luna" (The voice of the moon). It was  Federico Fellini's last film and is a wonderful tribute to the director's signature poetic madness. The film gave Benigni the opportunity to team up with fellow beloved comic, Paolo Villaggio, and the two created a truly unforgettable adventure. Today's screening began with an introduction by Benigni. The moments leading up to his introduction were noticeably serious and somewhat tense. Benigni's publicist and TIFF security staunchly guarded his privacy. There was no interaction and no photos were allowed. Guided by his entourage, he walked quickly from the Green Room to th