In the same places where Visconti shot "La terra trema", the Rodolico family has built ships for four generations. An ancient knowledge is going to fade away. The wood, alone, can save its memory.

Interview with Director Daniele Ragusa Monsoriu

Congratulations! Why did you make your film?

This film is born from the idea of showing the relationship between man and nature. We went to Aci Trezza to discover the last ship makers from eastern Sicily. In particular, we talk about the Rodolico family, that has been building wooden ships for four generations, by hand and with simple tools, using the ancient techniques handed down from father to son.

Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?

To discover a world, that of the glorious Aci Trezza’s ship makers, which is about to disappear because of modernity. The Sea, the ships, the wood, the human effort, the very ancient knowledge, beautiful Sicilian scenarios. This and more you can see in Last Ship.

How do personal and universal themes work in your film?

On one side, there is the story of this family of ship builders, which in the past was a very flourishing activity, enlivening the whole community and which is now in crisis. This local dimension makes you think about wider problems, such as modernity (and its limits), the protection of an immaterial heritage (the knowledge of the ship makers), the relationship between work and environment.

How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?

The processing has been very simple. From the Idea we switched to its realization in a short time. This could happen thanks to the extraordinary flexibility of the Rodolico family. It was all very natural. The aim was to capture the daily life, the silences (how much silences can tell!), the time almost motionless. A very “zen” world, I would say. We entered in paces which are very different from the chaotic modernity we are used to. This experience surely left a mark on us.

What type of feedback have you received so far?

The documentary seems like its having success in the United States, and we are glad about this. Its key of success is probably (beyond the melancholic story) the faces and the landscapes; they are so Mediterranean that they look exotic. Distant in time and space.

Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?

To be honest, we didn’t expect all this success from a product we created without big tools, or productions to sustain us. I realize, together with Davide and Carlo, how far we arrived in such a short time, and it’s pretty unbelievable. Last ship found itself competing with works having very long end credits (productions companies, sponsors, technician, sound engineers and so on), just like the little David facing Goliath the giant. We are very proud of that! At BFF they told us “You’re the Cinderella story!”.

What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?

The aim is that of reaching the widest audience possible.

Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?

Everyone wanting to push the Last Ship. At the moment, the rights of distribution and sale are completely in our hands and our hope is that of releasing it in cinemas.

What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?

I want it to offer the opportunity to get to know a pretty unknown world, destined to vanish. I believe that a movie, first of all, is made to inspire and make people dream.

What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?

Is Last Ship really destined to be the very last ship?

Would you like to add anything else?

For those who want to follow the story of Last Ship, or to contact us, here is the link to Last Ship's page: https://www.facebook.com/lastshipcortometraggio/?fref=ts

What are the key creatives developing or working on now?

The authors of Last Ship and I just finished our brand-new work, “American Rhapsody”, shot in NYC; and we hope it will start its journey from April.

Interview: March 2017

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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela

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Last Ship

Length:10min. 31 sec

Director: Daniele Ragusa Monsoriu

Producer: Daniele Ragusa Monsoriu, Davide Iacono, Carlo Distefano

Writer:

Daniele Ragusa Monsoriu, Davide Iacono, Carlo Distefano

About the writer, director and producer:

Daniele Ragusa Monsoriuhas graduated in 2009 in Cinematography at University of Rome3. He works at 6 television movies of Palomar , RAI productions of Inspector Montalbano. In 2014 he worked on the film “Tale of Tales” by Matteo Garrone (Golden Palm nominationin Cannes Festival). In 2015 he worked as assistant director at the film “Quel bravo ragazzo” by Enrico Lando (Lotus Production).

Key cast:

Gianni Rodolico; Salvatore Rodolico

Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists):
Funders:

Producer

Where can I see it in the next month?

At the 18th Landshuter Film Festival in Germany