Articles by: Federico Ghelli

  • Art & Culture

    Sorrentino Presents his First-Ever TV Series at the Venice Film Festival

    Obscure, deceptive and impenetrable. This is The Young Pope, the new TV series by Paolo Sorrentino presented at the 73rd Edition of the Venice Film Festival.

    The Oscar-winning director (The Great Beauty) returned to Venice with his first TV series,  produced by Sky Atlantic in collaboration with HBO and premiering in the United States in February 2017.

    Starring Jude Law, Pius XIII is the first American pope. Unpredictable and fearsome, the young pontiff is a mix of cigarettes, curse words and Coca-Cola. The result is a character which confirms Sorrentino’s style: disruptive, with extreme care for every shot and line, and a refined aesthetics that aspires to a grotesque beauty.  

    “More than a TV series, it’s a 10-hour long movie," says Sorrentino. "Working on a wider timeframe allowed deepening the reflections that would be censored in a movie. I think I've taken more into account the narration with this series.”  

    The Young Pope alternates scenes now magnificent, now bizarre, often comical. They include kangaroos in the garden, cardinals grappling with gossip, and nuns playing soccer. "I'm a contradiction. Like God, as three in one. Like Mary, virgin and mother." is how Pope Lenny Belardo defines himself.  

    "For me it was an opportunity to work with Paolo [Sorrentino], depicting a character that has some contradictions," says Law. "It scared me a first to impersonate a pope, but Paul reminded me that this is the story of a man, who happens to be the pope.”  

    Sorrentino is not afraid of the reaction of the Vatican to The Young Pope. He said that they will need to see it to truly understand the purpose of the series.  

    “It’s a Vatican problem how they take it. In fact, it's not even an issue," says Sorrentino. "If they have the patience to watch it, they will see that it’s a work that fairly explores the contradictions, difficulties and fascinating matters of the clergy.”

  • Embarrassing #FertilityDay Campaign in Italy

    “Fertility is a common good.” With this debatable slogan Italy’s Health Minister Beatrice Lorenzin is trying to convince Italians to have more children and at a younger age.

    According to the circular issued by the Ministry of Health, the campaign plans to change the outlook of fertility from personal need to an essential good for the entire community. It also aims to teach people the “prestige of maternity.”

    Fertility Day, scheduled for September 22nd, has been promoted through slogans that caused a heated reaction on the web. Some even compared the campaign to the fascist propaganda of the 1930s.

    “Fertility Day is an insult to everyone: to those who cannot procreate and to those who would like to don’t have a job, said famous writer Roberto Saviano on Twitter.

    The website of the initiative offers even more debatable articles, such as the argument that Italian couples don’t have children because of men’s fear of having small genitalia. Italian Prime Minister Matteo Renzi claimed that he was unaware of the campaign. However, he openly rejected the idea, claiming the need for structural changes.

    “We must create the conditions to ensure that people can choose how and when to have children,” he said. “And I don’t know anyone who decided to have a child because he saw a billboard.”

    According to Lorenzin, the only purpose of Fertility Day was to inform about health issues that can impair fertility. Also, the campaign comes after an alarming statistic from the Italian National Statistical Institute (ISTAT) According to it, for the fifth year in a row the number of births dropped and the average age of new mothers rose. In addition, Italy has 1.3 children per female and the average age of first birth rose to 31.6.

    Yet, the main controversy was raised by the poor selection of slogan and visuals. Oliviero Toscani, prominent photographer and designer, argued that everything about the campaign is wrong.

    “This is the result when politicians decide to become advertisers. I’m afraid of their ignorance, their lack of culture,” Toscani said.

    Fertility Day campaign costed 28 thousand euros, but it will be revised. Lorenzin called for Toscani’s help as well to make it more efficient.

    “The campaign day wasn’t liked? We’ll make a new one. Fertility Day is more than two postcards, is prevention.” she wrote on Twitter.  
  • Dining in & out: Articles & Reviews

    Not Only Pasta. Italian Restaurants in NYC and their Earthquake Relief Effort

    Amatrice, one of the cities devastated by the earthquake, is home of the pasta all’amatriciana, famous dish used by local Italian restaurants to raise money for earthquake relief.

    The shepherds used to call it gricia, deriving its name from the village of Grisciano, in themunicipality of Accumoli. People in Amatrice took this sauce made with guanciale (bacon) and pecorino, added tomato sauce and gave it the name of amatriciana. The same shepherds brought amatriciana to Rome, where in the 1800s became famous nationwide thanks to Roman caterers.

    Today, People can enjoy la pasta all’amatriciana all around the globe. But after the earthquake that devastated central Italy, this typical Italian dish found a different purpose.

    In New York, more than 50 restaurants rallied to bring their support to the areas affected by the earthquake. They all sell Amatrice’s signature dish and donate part of the revenues for earthquake relief.

    Slow Food, the international movement founded by Carlo Petrini to preserve national and regional food, launched the initiative. “Un Futuro per Amatrice” (A Future for Amatrice), aims to encourage all Italian restaurants worldwide to add the amatriciana to their menus and donate part of the sales.

    “Through this dish symbol of the gastronomic history of Amatrice, we hope to be able to spread worldwide the values of solidarity and sharing,” said Petrini.

    Ribalta (48 East 12th St.) was one of the first restaurants in New York to join the initiative. There, an order of pasta all’amatriciana is only $12, with $4 donated for each portion sold. Owner Rosario Procino said that various artists are contributing to the cause too, offering to play live music in the restaurant or gifting pieces of art to auction.

    “People come to eat something else but end up ordering a portion of pasta all’amatriciana as well, just to contribute,” Procino said. “My ultimate dream is to create a common fund with all the other restaurants and dedicate the money to build something tangible, like a hospital or an auditorium.”

    Other restaurants, such as Felidia (243 East 58th St.) and Rafele (29 7th Ave. South) are donating $5 and $2 respectively to the Italian Red Cross for each portion of pasta all’amatriciana. Barbetta (321 West 46th St.), instead, is donating the 10 percent of all sales in the next two months. EatalyNY is donating $5 from every bucatini all’amatriciana sold to the towns that were affected.  

     All other participating New York restaurants are listed on the website of the initiative AMO Amatriciana, created in collaboration with the Associazione Italiana Chef New York (AICNY).

    “This initiative is to show that even if we reside abroad we still care about our homeland, especially in times of need,” said Massimo Carbone, president of AICNY.

    And apparently, pasta is not the only thing going well with the amatriciana sauce. Two pizzerias, Kesté (271 Bleecker St.) and Don Antonio (309 West 50th St.), reinvented the amatriciana sauce as condiment for their pizzas. Both restaurants sell the pizza all’amatriciana for $20, donating $5 for every pizza sold.

    Roberto Caporuscio, owner of both restaurants, said that the creative idea of the pizza all’amatriciana was born from the strong desire to help the municipalities devastated by the earthquake.

    “I’m from Lazio (region of Amatrice and Accumoli), so I feel close to the families affected by the earthquake. This is my way to give back to those communities and I invite everyone to support this charitable initiative,” he said.

    ---

    All interested restaurants in NYC. are invited to send us their data and relevant information (editors@i-italy.org). We are ready to add more info 

     
  • Facts & Stories

    Zuckerberg Connects with Italian Community after Earthquake

    It was business trip and a reason to stay close to the community he loves so much.

    Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg headed to Rome today, after the earthquake that devastated central Italy last Wednesday. There, he hosted a Townhall live question and answer session at the Universita’ LUISS Guido Carli with the Italian Facebook community.
     
     

    “In moment like this, it’s heartbreaking.” Zuckerberg said, “But seeing how the community here in Italy has been able to come together and connect is really inspiring.”
     
    The trip gave also Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla the opportunity to meet with Pope Francis and Prime Minister Matteo Renzi.  With the pope he discussed the importance for people to connect, especially in countries without internet connection He also donated a model of Aquila, a solar-powered drone capable of bringing internet connectivity in places where it doesn’t exist.
     
    “It was a meeting we'll never forget. You can feel his warmth and kindness, and how deeply he cares about helping people,” Zuckerberg said.
    During his face-to-face with Renzi, Zuckerberg talked about new technologies, the earthquake and the ability of the Italian community to recover and rebuilt. As part of his effort to help, Zuckerberg donated $500 thousand to the Italian Red Cross and made Facebook available for any kind of support.
     
    Already in 2014, Facebook launched the Safety Check feature for people to let family and friends they’re fine during unexpected disasters.
     
    “Social networks are proving their great utility for social engagement in case of emergency, and solidarity for the communities affected by tragic events like the one we are experiencing these days,” Italian Red Cross President Francesco Rocca said.
     
    However, Zuckerberg’s trip wasn’t all about business after all. It gave him the chance to visit once again the city he loves, Rome, and celebrate his close friends’ wedding.
    Sunday afternoon he posted a picture from Torno, near Lake Como. Zuckerberg and his wife were among the guests of Daniel and Sofia Ek’s wedding. “Many people know Daniel as one of the great European entrepreneurs -- the founder of Spotify. I know him as a great friend and dedicated father,” Zuckerberg commented on his post.
     
    Only 13 hours later, Zuckerberg was in Rome, running around the Circus Maximus and the Colosseum. On his Facebook pot he confessed his love for the eternal city. In fact, he and his wife spent their honeymoon there as well. Zuckerberg also studied Latin and Roman history and culture in school and recognizes Augustus Caesar as one of his favorite historical figures.
    “Being in this part of the world brings out other emotions for me, because I love Rome. “When I went to college I thought I was going to major in classics, but I didn’t. I ended up majoring in computer sciences and psychology, but I didn’t make far into college anyway,” said the youngest billionaire in the world.
     

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