Skip to main content

The Ancient Heart of Basilicata Post-Covid

Sergio Ragone in Matera
"In the ancient heart of Basilicata, there is the future of Italy after Covid 19" - By Sergio Ragone

Cinecittà Studios announced today that a new chapter of the infamous Rome film school, Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia, will open in the ancient stone city of Matera, located in the region of Basilicata. So I thought this would be a good time to share a thoughtful commentary by journalist and author Sergio Ragone whose work we have featured often throughout the years. He writes about the coronavirus pandemic and how it impacted his region and what must be done to continue the progress the Lucani have made in the past decade to build and promote Basilicata.

There is an Italy that the narrative of this pandemic has cut out, useless to deny it. It is the Italy of small villages, of provincial cities, far from the red areas and from Milan that has lived, lives and suffers because of the Coronavirus. It is the Italy of small communities, of often forgotten places, which does not enjoy highly innovative services, roads and where the human element is the main element of resistance. Resistance to all the negative things that globalization has produced and that has cut this Italy out of the world. And there is an Italy in the South which, despite its excellent performance, is not told as a model for managing the emergency. We are talking about Basilicata, one of the first regions that recorded 0 in the number of infections and which, thanks above all to the adoption of healthy and respectful behavior by its inhabitants, is showing patience and intelligence in the fight against the invisible enemy. This Basilicata was the land of the 2019 European Capital of Culture, Matera, and is today the ideal place to build a safe and necessary restart to restart the engine of the national economy. Of course, mistakes have also been made in Basilicata and unfortunately many families mourn the death of women and men torn away too early by the virus' fury; just as the economic crisis that threatens to wipe out the legitimate ambitions of many people, companies, innovators and young people who had laid the foundations for a life project to be built in this piece of the South, but photography is making itself felt Lucana of these days bodes well for a passing of Phase 2 and a return, albeit slow, to a much desired normality. The Lucanians are well aware that the game is not over yet, but they have decided to manage the game and not allow the opponent to take too much field. It's not easy, but they don't give up on it.


Maratea
Why isn't there a story about this positivity that doesn't hurt? Why, as always, the beauty and goodness of the Italian province is never presented to the world with all its strength and brightness? On the day when we still read terrible news of deaths and the number of infected is not so low as to let us breathe a sigh of relief, what is happening in Basilicata instead can be an example, a model to export and replicate in the Italian regions . The land of the Sassi of Matera and the boundless beauty of the sea that bathes Maratea and the Ionian coast, great cinema and successful television fiction has shown, once again, that it is only by adopting healthy, respectful behaviors and overcoming all selfishness that the most difficult challenges can be faced. It is not the first time this has happened, although this is the first time that we have all faced the risks and dangers of a pandemic; the Lucanians have already been able to demonstrate responsibility, tenacity and resilience on many other occasions in history, even the most recent.

In the region of the two names and the two seas, everything still has a genuine flavor, each word has a weight, each community has been able to preserve its memory and has treasured it. The green and yellow of its fields are authentic, just as they should be: all this not thanks to fortuitous coincidences but because the result of constant, daily work, the effort of the hands and the sweat of the forehead of those who live on the edge of dreams and it never gives up. These virtues deserve a stronger light, a bigger stage, an unprecedented visibility. This story deserves a story that goes beyond the stereotypes of shame that becomes a world heritage site and goes beyond that idea of peasant civilization, of which you are not ashamed, but talk about the progress, the innovations practiced, the talents that have blossomed here and have written important pages.

Italy today needs the ancient heart of Basilicata, it needs its virtues and its people to rebuild, regenerate, start again. There is a possible future that is being born in the South, let's not let it fade once again.

Click here to watch my 2018 documentary, "Return to Lucania," which offers a look into the socioeconomic evolution of Basilicata through the cinema made there.
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Federico Fellini: A Look into the Life and Career of an Icon

A Fellini family portrait  “The term became a common word to describe something on the surface you can say is bizarre or strange, but actually is really like a painter working on a film,” said Martin Scorsese when asked to define “Felliniesque,” an adjective inspired by one of the greatest filmmakers of all time. The oldest of three children, Federico Fellini was born in the seaside town of Rimini in 1920. His father was a traveling salesman, so his mother was left to do the bulk of raising the children. One can argue that Fellini was born for his destiny. “You could tell that even as a child, he was different and unique. He was very intelligent, well above average. He was always the one to organize things, direct the others, make up games. He could control the other kids with just a look, said Fellini’s sister, Maddalena, in an interview with journalist Gideon Bachmann.  Not only was Fellini directing the children, but he was also putting on shows and charging ...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Sweetness and Genius of Giulietta Masina

Fellini and Masina on the set of "La Strada" As open-hearted and sunny as Federico Fellini was dark and complex, they were perfect counterpoints during a half-century of marriage and professional collaboration.  Nicknamed a  “female Chaplin” and described by Chaplin himself as  the actress who moved him most,  Giulietta Masina confronted the tragedy of her characters with an eternal innocence and enthusiasm that gave Italians hope in the most challenging of times.  Born in 1921 in San Giorgio di Piano, a commune north of Bologna, Masina was the oldest of four children born to a father who was a music professor and violinist and a mother who was a grade-school teacher. Her parents sent her as a child to live in Rome with her widowed aunt while she attended school there. As Masina took an early interest in gymnastics, her aunt saw in her a passion for performing and encouraged her to pursue acting. So after high school, Masina attended Rome’s La...
Post a Comment
Read more

The Extraordinary Career and Legacy of Dino De Laurentiis

Producer Dino De Laurentiis was one of the most prolific filmmakers ever, having produced or co-produced more than 600 films during a career that spanned seven decades. His legacy continues not only through the work of his children and grandchildren but also through a new generation of filmmakers in his Italian hometown. De Laurentiis was born in the shadow of Mount Vesuvius on Aug. 8, 1919, in the city of Torre Annunziata, located just minutes from the ruins of Pompeii. As a child, he worked at a local pasta factory owned and operated by his father. That experience had a profound effect on him, shaping a lifelong passion for food and an appreciation for business. At the age of 17, he decided to leave home for the big city. He arrived in Rome and enrolled in the prestigious film school, Centro Sperimentale di Cinematografia. After attending the school for about a year, he managed to produce one film in 1940, The Last Combat , before having to leave Rome temporarily for m...
Post a Comment
Read more

Alessandro Gassmann: Born to Act

Alessandro Gassmannin his directorial debut "Razzabastarda" Alessandro Gassmann is the son of the iconic Italian actor/director Vittorio Gassman and French actress Juliette Mayniel. He was born in 1965 and grew up around cinema royalty.  He made his cinema debut in 1982 at the age of 17 in his father's autobiographical film, "Di padre in figlio." He went on to study his craft under his father's direction at the Theatre Workshop of Florence.  Vittorio Gassman was very active in theater and seemed just as comfortable on stage as he did in front of the camera. Known for his powerful interpretations of Dante's "Inferno" and "Paradiso," it is no surprise that he nurtured his son's acting aspirations on stage before he launched his career in television and film. One of Gassmann's strong qualities, which he undoubtedly inherited from his father is his incredible range and ease in going from genre to genre. He can play ...
Post a Comment
Read more

A Conversation with Actor Mirko Frezza of David di Donatello Winner "Il più grande sogno"

The 2017 David di Donatello award show, which took place on Monday, was an exciting event that celebrated many great contemporary talents of Italian cinema.  I was fortunate to have seen most of the nominees.  Among my personal favorites  is Michele Vannucci's  Il più grande sogno  simply because it is based on one of the most inspiring, beautiful stories I've ever  heard, and the person behind that story is as authentic and down-to-earth as they come. The film won the 3 Future Award, which is determined by the public. With Director Michele Vannucci and Actor Mirko Frezza I first saw  Il più grande sogno last September when it premiered at the Venice Film Festival. I didn't make it to Venice, but thanks to a great online platform called Festival Scope , which offers a handful of premieres to be screened on the web, I felt like I was there. The film itself blew me away, and then when I realized it was based on a true story, I knew t...
Post a Comment
Read more