ItalianoDirector’s notes
The project of the documentary was born in autumn of 2012. The basic idea was the one that was actually carried out with the filming: to follow and narrate what happens inside an independent and unauthorised social center, the reasons why a person decides to enter, why they decide to stay, and finally the reasons why they sometimes leave, continuing or not their experience of social battle in other forms or other groups. At the same time, there was the need to tell how this community related with the outside, how it confronted the contemporary political situation and actors.
Naturally, a story like this could never have been written in a detailed script, it was necessary to chase reality with a constant, almost obsessive, presence of the video camera. The collected material which was filmed ranges from public events, demonstrations, actions, occupations, to more private moments such as assemblies, meals, freetime, etc. The trust of the group, earned day by day and never taken for granted, allowed for filming that would have been impossible for a standard production, with a full crew, tight schedules, and a precise written script. A production team would have been perceived as a stranger in the home, would not have had access to the most private situations, and would have ultimately failed in the objective of narrating such a peculiar community. The limited budget, though not an overall advantage, did help as it favoured the use of inconspicuous equipment.
The chosen approach was (and is) to grasp the real life, waiting for it to happen and never building ad hoc situations, other than the interviews. Fortunately, social centers have ritual practices (actions, safeguarding shifts, events, etc.), which are very often necessary to legitimize their existence, and that require planning and scheduling. A long and patient work, but absolutely necessary in order to pass on to the editing phase.