Eighth day of the Il Cinema Ritrovato Festival. Yesterday, Saturday 29 June, a meeting was held with an exceptional guest: Damien Chazelle. After his speech, the director went to Piazza Maggiore to present “Les parapluies de Cherbourg”.
Saturday 29th June a Il Cinema Ritrovato yet another day full of emotions took place. At 19.00after attending the screening of Sorry, wrong numberfilm noir del 1948 Of Anatoly Litvak (yes, the same director I met on the first day with The Amazing Dr. Clitterhouse), I headed to the Modernissimo cinema for the highlight of the day. I’m talking, of course, about the‘meeting with director Damien Chazelle (La La Land, Whiplash, Babylon).
In a dialogue with Gian Luca Farinelli, the director was able to retrace the key stages of his life. The audience present in the room can now say that they know this great personality better.
After this conversation, we met the director again in Piazza Maggiore to present his favorite film, the inspiration for La La Land: Umbrellas of Cherbourg. Next to him too Rosalie Varda, the daughter of Jacques Demy and Agnès Varda.
Chazelle and cinema: the birth of a love
“I always wanted to make movies.”
Damien Chazelle
This was Chazelle’s first response when asked how his directing career began. In fact, since he was a child he has always fed a great love for cinemabefore animation (Peter Pan, Cinderella) and, then, for that live action (Hitchcock and Spielberg films).
At 13, as a very young man, he moved to Paris with his parents. Here, for the first time, he also came into contact with films of the pastwhich he spent hours and hours watching in the cinemas of the capital. One could actually say that, in reality, he discovered the city through its cinemas.
And when Farinelli asked him if he went alone or with friends, his answer almost became a comment on becoming an adult. If, initially, it was in fact a question of a social activity, connected to going to the shopping centre with other people, once they reached high school something changed. And, so, as a teenager Chazelle began to enjoy “the solitude, the sort of private dream”which represents going to the cinema alone.
But this has never been Chazelle’s only love. In fact, during high school, another art form was at the center of his thoughts: the music.
Interest in music and the return to cinema
Chazelle’s passion for music owes much to him high school teacher which, against all odds, he managed to create an incredible program of music. Unlike the others, this man he treated all the boys like adults: playing in the school band was a real job and, as such, had to be respected.
This important life lesson led the director to understand that his approach to music he was kind nostalgic. Chazelle he was playing the drums looking at the past and, in particular, at the years Thirties and Forties. In short, a bit the same process as when he watched old films in Paris.
Despite his strong interest in music, Chazelle returned to cinema at university. Influencing him particularly during this period was a documentary coursean art that soon becomes central to his way of conceiving the Seventh Art. As he himself recalled: “In the span of a few months, thanks to this professor, my eyes were completely opened”.
Chazelle has been living in Italy for some time and, therefore, has also experienced a different way of approaching documentaries. You made a point, for example, of mentioning the works of Vittorio De Seta, whose approach is pure naturalism (enter a community and observe what happens).
Justin Hurwitz and his beginnings
At university Chazelle not only rediscovered his love for cinema, but also met a fundamental person for his career: Justin Hurwitz.
The two met in an artistic context, since both they played in the same student band. Convinced that it was an area with no particular outlets, they soon decided to leave the band. “Right after we went away, of course, they got a contract” recalls Chazelle amid general laughter.
But the two friends did not lose heart and soon became roommates. Imagine this scene: Chazelle sitting at a table writing and, on the other side of the room, Hurwitz at the keyboard intent on composing. This was their life and, all things considered, it could have also been that of one of the protagonists of their films.
This friendship will then play a key role when the director approaches his first work. The idea was to combine the artistic vision of Jacques Demy with a documentary approach. Hurwitz’s role in all this? Write the music. Does the description sound familiar? It’s normal. After all, one could safely say that the result of this first collaboration was the basis for La La Land.
Chazelle director
Finally, when it comes to his current career, Farinelli argued that Chazelle’s great talent is his way of directing actors. But, as the director pointed out, there is no secret formula for doing so, because “There is no rule, even about rehearsal”. Every actor is different and, consequently, the way in which they are guided changes.
Take stage rehearsals, for example. Actors like JK Simmons, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone and Brad Pitt do not need to rehearse their scenes entirely. At most, they can participate in workshops in preparation for the role, but they certainly do not follow a theatrical approach in rehearsals. And then, instead, there are actors like Diego Calvawhich, at the time of Babylon, he had no particular experience, which is why Chazelle rehearsed the entire film with him in the back of his yard. He was there to play all the other roles the director’s wife who, apparently, can do a great imitation of Brad Pitt!
Directing, however, is not only about direction and shots, but also about inspiration. And so, at the end of the conversation, Farinelli asked Chazelle a fateful question: “Are there any influences from Italian cinema in your films?”the answer was “absolutely yes.” Se La La Land drew inspiration from Umbrellas of Cherbourg and from French cinema, Babylon instead derives from Italy and from The sweet life by Fellini. In both cases, the story is told of a city that tried to replace God with something else and, in truth, “Nobody has told that kind of stories better than Fellini”.
“The umbrellas of Cherbourg”, 1964 (91′)
Piazza Maggiore, 9.45pm. We see Chazelle again in the square presenting Umbrellas of Cherbourgthe 1964 film by Jacques Demy who was the cover of the festival this year. Along with him, in addition to the inevitable Farinelli, there is Rosalie VardaDemy’s daughter.
The film had already been restored ten years agobut the work had not been entirely convincing because part of the sound archives was missing. Once the problem was solved, the second restoration took place, which was decidedly more satisfactory.
Umbrellas of Cherbourg it is a film that, Behind the flashy appearance, hides a deeply melancholic soul. The story is that of two lovers forced by life to take separate paths (definitely the main source of inspiration for La La Land). And yet, despite the subject being so sad, the staging is full of bright colors and incessant music. I don’t use this description randomly, because the main characteristic of the film is that of a musical where you always sing. Indeed, the typical musical numbers of the genre are absent and, in their place, there are only characters singing their dialogues.
A great admirer of the film, Chazelle wanted to share with the Piazza his personal experience during the first viewing of Umbrellas of Cherbourg. The director was 17 years old when he sat down in front of the screen and started this atypical musical. Not being a fan of the genre, the constant singing had initially bothered him. And then the magic of cinema prevailed: “By the time the film ended I was in a place of emotion so overwhelming that I didn’t know what to do”. Trust me Damien, you’re not alone.
See you tomorrow with more news from Il Cinema Ritrovato.
a care of
Claudia Camarda
