AND Alexander Roia the protagonist of the new episode of “Stories”the cycle of interviews with the main interpreters of the show by Sky TG24. Guest of the deputy editor of the newspaper Omar Schillacidirected by Robert Contactsthe actor tells himself in “Alessandro Roia – Distinguishing marks: director”on air Monday 28 August at 21.00 on Sky TG24, Saturday 2 September at 1.45 pm on Sky Arte it is always available On Demand. At the Venice Film Festival with his first film as a director: With the grace of a God. Then childhood memories, acting school, the beginnings with Romanzo Criminale, successes at the cinema, fatherhood and the desire to always question everything…
A long chat to retrace the most important stages of a film career full of successes and who is now preparing for a turning point with his directorial debut. In fact, his new film ‘With the grace of a God’, a production by Bartlebyfilm and Rai Cinema starring Tommaso Ragno and Maya Sansa, will be presented on 4 September at the Venice Film Festival in the ‘Venetian Nights – Giornate degli Autori’ section: And “the story of a man who returns to his past and somehow has to deal with his ghosts and his nature. The direction I’ve tried to take is really to use the noir to get into the story and then, somehow, tear the surface of the noir and get into it. Going into something more psychological, more ‘dramatic’, but somehow deeper than the story and the genre. The phrase I hear most from the people who have seen it? I didn’t expect it… It’s a compliment, surprising is a beautiful thing. The more it goes on, the more it becomes a source of pride”. Not a few, however, the difficulties encountered along the way that had even led him to think about quitting (“There was probably a moment when the ‘actoral me’ collapsed with the desire to have something more“), a disturbance that shook him and pushed him to “this idea of bringing out that desire to do, precisely directing “. However, the story of Alessandro Roia begins in a popular neighborhood of Rome (“I lived the street a lot, it’s not a boast like in the rap lyrics, but it was a really hardcore street. He taught me a lot, he gave me friends that I have always carried with me and that somehow bounced me to the opposite side of the possibilities I could have having being born there”), thanks mainly to the help of a friend “that he could actually, for personal reasons, lead me to go in one direction himself, however, he was strong and good enough to push me in a completely different direction. I will always be grateful to him”. In high school the turning point, thanks to professors capable of stimulating his curiosity and bringing him closer to the world of cinema, one in particular who “he introduced me to Basquiat, he introduced me to a lot of art in parallel to what he was doing and a lot of cinema, because we were talking about Kubrick. I have to tell the truth, they gave me a big bailout ”. Then finally his entrance to the Experimental Center of Rome (“I was the first to believe in myself. I still remember my father’s look when I told him I wanted to be an actor, terror passed in his eyes” he jokes ed.). The auditions, including the one for ‘Romanzo Criminale’, which consecrated him to the general public (“I showed up with my father’s 70s shirt and trousers, crucifix around my neck and backcombed hair”) and a great life lesson, learned from Stefano Sollima and which today he feels like sharing with young actors (“When you walk in the door to audition you’re not going to beg. You’re going to solve a director’s problem that he’s lacking, he’s lacking character and that’s one way to see from the other side.”), he who embraced acting with the awareness and modesty of not considering himself a phenomenon at all (“I have always criticized myself for this. I’m not a ‘how do you put it’ actor, I’m not a genius. There are actors who when you put them on the right track they go great, but if something inside me doesn’t ignite, I struggle“). However, there are several roles in thick films in the Italian panorama, such as ‘Diaz’ which “I consider it a great film, even a little underrated in some respects. I think that cinematically it is also the highest thing that Daniele (Vicars ed) did from a cinematic point of view”, or the successful artistic partnership with the Manetti Bros. and his interpretations in ‘Song’e Napule’ and ‘Diabolik’. Not only cinema though, Roia is also the protagonist of one of the most successful Italian series, ‘1992’ in which, however, he was initially cast for another role (“I was called to audition for the Northern League character who then did Guido Caprino in a wonderful way. But they were happy with my audition and wanted me in the project. There were two characters at stake who were writing and the idea came to merge them and create Rocco Venturi, a character that I really liked“). From the actor Roia to the father Roia (“If one wants to be honest it is a total revolution. The word that comes to mind the most is ‘revolution’, it changes the rules of the game”) and the new challenges of reconciling career and family (“my daughter had just been born and after 10 days I left. It took me a while to fuel the relationship with her.”).
During the broadcast of the interview, a QR Code will appear which, by framing it with the camera on your smartphone, will allow you to access a series of special contents dedicated to the artist, available on the skytg24.it website. All the “Stories” interviews are also available among the Sky TG24 podcasts, on the skytg24.it website and on major podcasting platforms.
STORIES: “ALESSANDRO ROIA – PARTICULAR SIGNS: DIRECTOR” AIRED ON MONDAY 28 AUGUST AT 9.00 PM ON SKY TG24 (SKY CHANNELS 100 AND 500 AND DTT CHANNEL 50), SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 2 AT 1.45 PM ON SKY ARTE IT IS AVAILABLE ON DEMAND AND ON SKYTG24.IT.
Source-tg24.sky.it