‘Not just film shoots, Indian celeb weddings have also led to a spike in tourism in Italy’

Recently, the Embassy of Italy organised Italian Screens, a three-day film festival in several Indian metros, to present the best of Italian cinema to the country. The initiative was part “of a wider project of deepening cultural relations between Italy and India, to ensure a rapprochement with Bollywood and to stimulate meeting opportunities between producers, distributors and creatives of both countries”.
On the sidelines of the event, Roberto Stabile, Head of Special Projects of the Directorate General for Cinema and Audiovisual of the Ministry of Culture (DGCA-MiC) at Cinecittà, Italy, spoke about the filmy ties between the two countries, and how desi movies and ads shot in Italy, as well as Indian celebrity weddings there, have not just deepened this relationship but also led to a spike in tourists in the region. Excerpts:
‘CINEMA, ADVERTISEMENTS AND EVEN CELEBRITY WEDDINGS HAVE LED TO RISE IN TOURISTS IN ITALIAN DESTINATIONS’
Talking about how ‘cinema is a powerful tool to promote culture, lifestyle, and above all, tourism’, Roberto Stabile says, “Thanks to certain local TV series or international blockbusters, off-track spots have become exquisite and precious touristic destinations. For example, in Europe, the Swiss Alps became very popular among Indian tourists. Sometimes, the place might not even have been that mesmerising, but it gained popularity just because it was the house of the main character of a series.”
He adds, “Our target is to attract international productions to locations lesser known to the general public, instead of the usual cultural destinations, that are already overcrowded with tourists, such as Rome, Venice and Florence. A very interesting case study for this is the most recent James Bond movie No Time To Die, which features 14-minute long breathtaking shots of Matera (south of Italy).”
“We have seen a hike in the number of visits of Indian tourists to places such as Tuscany or Milano, where movies or even commercials were shot. Not just films and ads, Stabile says that “even Indian celeb weddings celebrated in Italy are a fantastic eye-catcher for tourism,” he further says.
STRENGTHENING TIES BETWEEN ITALIAN AND INDIAN FILM INDUSTRIES
He says that they plan to attract more Bollywood filmmakers to Italy, adding, “Very efficient services are being offered by the film commission. The regional funds and the tax credit policy supports up to 40% of foreign productions working in Italy. We plan to expand the trend and become one of the favourite destinations for Bollywood and Indian productions in general.”
Stabile adds that initiatives like Italian Screens are designed to promote the new Italian cinema in the huge Indian market, adding, “We will share with Indian distributors all the policies that the Italian government, through Cinecittà, offers to the distributors who buy Italian movies and screen them in Indian theatres. Not everybody is aware of the fact that, thanks to the Film Distribution Fund, we cover up to 30% of the costs of launch and distribution of the movie up to a maximum of 30,000 Euros (24 lakh, approx).”
With Italy and India having signed a co-production agreement, Stabile says, “We should constantly strengthen the exchange of information and knowledge among the creative directors and the producers. It is crucial to organise throughout the year a dialogue for authors and producers from both the countries.”
FROM THE APU TRILOGY TO DELHI CRIME: INDIAN FILMS AND SHOWS THAT ARE A HIT IN ITALY
Roberto Stabile says that cinematography by Italian masters has inspired generations of filmmakers. “Our Italian cinema – from Rossellini’s neo-realism to Fellini’s surrealism, and Spaghetti Westerns to Italian comedy – has influenced the seventh art and trained generations of filmmakers. We aim to also spread awareness about new and contemporary Italian cinema and content closer to consumption patterns and means,” he explains. Talking about the reach of Indian filmmakers inItaly, Stabile says, “The general public for sure is well acquainted with The Apu Trilogy by Satyajit Ray, Monsoon Wedding by Mira Nair, The Lunch Box by Ritesh Batra, the Elements trilogy by Deepa Mehta and 3 Idiots by Rajkumar Hirani. Recently, the web series Delhi Crime also became a hit there.” While he says that OTT has the advantage of enabling the global diffusion of content, Stabile also feels that its weakness is that content is influenced by algorithms based on habits or prospective trends. “I am of the belief that we shouldn’t be too bound to these tools (like OTT) in connection to movies filmed for a global market.”
‘WE PLAN TO FACILITATE MORE ITALY-INDIA FILM CO-PRODUCTIONS’
Vincenzo de Luca, Ambassador of Italy, told us, “Italian cinema discovered India a while ago. In fact, the documentary series India Seen By Rossellini came out in 1959 and (Pier Paolo) Pasolini’s Notes For A Film On India in 1968. At the same, today Italy is among the preferred shooting destinations for big-budget Indian productions. Among the most recent is the Prabhas-starrer Radhe Shyam (2022), shot in Piedmont, Italy. Cinema is undoubtedly at the core of our action. We are supporting the promotion of more business opportunities for our creative industries, also thanks to the signing of important agreements that will facilitate Italy-India film co-productions.”