Matteo Martari: “Let’s not escape from dead times”

In the first scene of Day and night, the new film by Daniele Vicari produced by Kon-Tiki Film and available on RaiPlay, Matteo Martari appears with long hair and beard, a black hat with a peak and a t-shirt that says “Running sucks”. The film, shot in the middle of the first lockdown, involved several actors who, given the impossibility of moving, shot their segments independently, following Vicari’s directives in a sort of «smart filming» which led each of them to juggle with photography, with sound, with shooting, with many arts that before that moment were the competence of others.

“I think it is good for all actors to realize how many things are behind them,” Martari explains on the phone in a dark voice, articulating the words with great care, taking his time to reflect and respond.

In the film, it marked his second collaboration with Vicari after The alligator, the fiction aired last year on Raidue which saw him in the role of the dark Marco Buratti, Martari appears in the location where he chose to pass the first lockdown: a splendid farmhouse near Verona owned by his friend Mattia which allowed the spectators to meet Diego, a beautiful donkey that Martari defines as “better” than him at being an actor. “Diego is a very dear friend, if he knew how to use the telephone we would hear from each other more often, although I admit that, with Mattia, we made a couple of video calls with him” jokes Matteo who, on the occasion of the opening night of the eleventh edition of Figari Film Fest – International Short Film Festival & Market, scheduled for June 19, will receive the Bracco Award as best revelation actor.

Born Day and night like all his colleagues, he tried his hand at many “professions”: is there one that you found more complicated?
“Photography and sound were very difficult. When we arrive on set everything is ready, but the truth is that behind it is the incredible work of these professionals. Having a specific idea of ​​what they do helps us to have a healthier approach, to become aware of what lies behind ».

The film was shot during the first lockdown: how was his spirit in those weeks?
«When Daniele’s proposal arrived, I said I was grateful because I finally had the possibility to escape mentally, to go beyond the physical and psychological constraint that brings with it long-term damage. Somehow, do Day and night relieved me. The thing I remember with the most anguish of those weeks is silence: I am a lover of the mountains and that condition, but having silence in the city is terrifying ».

What relationship do you have with silence?
«I love him, I am one of those who listens in conversation. We seek silence but, shortly after, we often run away: it is not complicated to reach, but to manage. In silence there is no distraction, there is only you. However, we must not be afraid of it, because nothing happens ».

Is there anything he faced about himself during those months?
«I do the accounts with myself as little as possible. Seriously, it was not the lockdown that favored this introspection ».

Silence always presupposes listening. Do you think we are in the right condition to listen today?
“No. If we had a remote control in hand, we would probably carry on the speeches that do not interest us so as not to waste time. Listening, however, is the only way we have to grow, to have a dialogue: the ability not to listen is counterproductive ».

According to some, the lack of listening is linked to the explosion of social networks that she, however, uses sparingly.
“Maybe I didn’t understand the means. Social media are very useful and fun, but you have to be careful because they could be a trap. The important thing is not to confuse the virtual square with that of the actual meeting ».

Do you consider yourself a connected person?
“Enough, if you look for me you will find me. I don’t have great alternatives ».

Do you fear the dead times that dominated it during the lockdown?
«My work is made up of dead times. I live in dead times, in living times you are already doing something. They gave us the beautiful gift of life and we must live it, each according to their own way. We have to find a way to transform dead times into undead times, without running away from ourselves ».

Speaking of life, she has lived a lot: she became a hotelier, then a model and, finally, an actor.
«I had a passion for acting since I was little, my mother reminded me of it. With a friend of mine in the summer we wrote small staging and then we forced our parents to see them ».

Why didn’t you think about getting on that train right away?
“I think that to do this job you need a lot of preparation and I, at the time, didn’t have the possibility of facing a school. I joined when I was able to save enough to do so at 28. I couldn’t afford it before. ‘

So was it all calculated?
“It was my plan, yes.”

Do you like planning?
“Not so much. Also because the things I plan never end as I wanted. Here, however, more than a plan, it was really a dream ».

A dream that, between The alligator e The bastards of Pizzofalcone, has allowed her to achieve important goals.
“I don’t think I’ve gotten anywhere. This work shows itself over time, it is not so much where you arrive. But, then, where, when, why? I simply see it as a long path adjacent to that of life ».

The journey, in short.
“Even if you don’t always enjoy it. Sometimes it’s sunny, sometimes it’s stormy, sometimes you’ve run out of gas. The journey is tough, but it’s what builds you. Where I come from they say what “makes you bones” ».

Meanwhile, between the series Hearts by Riccardo Donna, the film Four halves by Alessandro Maria Federici and the new season of The bastards of Pizzofalcone, it certainly cannot be said that he has not “traveled” in recent months. During the lockdown, did you fear for your future?
“I fear for the future every day. During the lockdown I not only feared for my eventual artistic career, but also to lose the concreteness of what I was doing. Going back to work in the countryside, in this sense, helped me a lot because it allowed me to understand that you don’t have the power over events. The great capacity of the human being is this: to adapt to various situations ».

Does she fit easily?
“It depends on the situation. In general, however, the conflicts are beautiful, they are what make the stories fascinating ».

How will your summer be?
“I don’t have big things in mind. If I do something, I will take advantage of the beautiful country we live in, I just have to choose whether to go and dip my feet in the water or take a breath of air on some mountain.

(Opening photo by Maddalena Petrosino)