The 150th anniversary of Felina gangcontained in a documentary film directed by Alessandro Scillitani: his history of Felina gang from 1870 to today with interventions by bandsmen. of yesterday and today. An extraordinary journey dedicated to the memory and discovery of Felina’s musical and cultural tradition, “the country of music.
We interviewed the director Scillitani, author of documentaries, musician and singer. He takes care of screenplay, direction, editing and music for his works. Since 2011 he has collaborated with the well-known writer and journalist Paolo Rumiz, with whom he has made numerous films, many of which have been distributed with Repubblica and on television channels (Rai, LaEffe TV, RSI) and screened in cinemas. In 2013 he founded his own production company, Artemide Film, with which he has created numerous works.
The interview
What was your inspiration for this film about the Felina marching band?
We were contacted by the Municipality of Castelnovo on the occasion of the 150th anniversary of the Felina musical band. An extraordinary fact: there are no other gangs that have such a long life. The first objective was precisely to want to describe a territory also through this peculiarity, which is so strong and persists over time. A project born to give value to memory: a world that speaks about us, about our current situation. In order to be able to tell it, I did what I always do in my work, that is, I search for the authenticity and truth of things. I became a member of the Band, I followed them in their performances and in their convivial moments, precisely to try to gather what is their essence. An example? Starting with President Alice Manfredi, who joined the Band unaware, as she stated, of having a great-grandfather who was its director shortly before the Second World War. Retrieving a diary we realized how Alice and others embody Felina’s ancestors and those who contributed this legacy.
What is the significance and importance of the Felina marching band in local history?
There is a great value that is linked to these 150 years of history and therefore also testimony to the passage of many Felinesi within it. It might seem that it has lost its aggregative function, but only apparently: in the past, for example, all holidays were celebrated, even weddings and funerals; then there was the habit of playing even outside the context of the Band, by various members in the so-called Civic: all things that perhaps today have fallen asleep or have, in fact, different functions. Today everything is more structured. But even today the Band is a passion that unites people, even those who are very different from each other, who perhaps carry out different jobs during the day and then find each other again.
How did you conduct the research to accurately tell the story and soul of the gang?
The goal was to narrate the Band itself. I relied on the members and also on someone who left the Band, working above all on the testimonies. We have collected, for example, the important testimony of the historian Giuseppe Giovanelli. In short, a job that allowed us to make the right framework within the history of Felina, of Castelnovo, of the mountain, of these 150 years. The ‘caskets’ are the members of the Band themselves who told anecdotes and stories also linked to their experiences within the Band, they also evoked their ancestors, their roots.
How did you choose the soundtrack and what role does it play in the film?
The protagonists are the members but the main actor is the music. The Band can only be described through music and therefore there is a continuous filming of it while it plays in the streets of the towns during the holidays: every testimony, every story, is ‘accompanied by sounds’. The soundtrack is therefore their music.
In this case I contravened one of my precepts, that of using music sparingly: in my films I have almost always used simply the sounds of nature as a soundtrack, in this case the music of the Band could only be the protagonist.
Are there any particular historical moments of the gang that you wanted to highlight in the film?
It was certainly the moment in which the Band was formed, therefore 150 years ago: understanding and telling the reasons for this longevity. Then it was also interesting to delve deeper with Alice Manfredi into the story of her great-grandfather who, as I said before, was part of the Band and had directed it. You also showed me a diary, which you later found, where Ugo Manfredi describes with great care and attention various passages in the life of the Band. For me, one of the most touching elements which is perhaps also the basis of the salvation of this Band is when Ugo, during the Second World War, ordered the various members to keep their instrument at home, to avoid that a bombing could destroy it. (they left them elsewhere instead). Once the war was over, this allowed the Band to start again. Another very touching element is when the story ends: Ugo will die during the bombing of the Castelnovo hospital, where he was.
What is the main message you hoped to convey through this film?
We must look at the beauty of these roots of ours because the sense of belonging to a history, to a community, to being together is something that is within us and that, a little caught up in the rhythms of life, we have lost. The Felina Band is in some way the emblem of feeling good.
