First-time Italian director Giulio Bertelli, son of fashion designer Miuccia Prada, has made Agon, perhaps the year’s most unusual Italian feature debut. The film is an allegorical drama about three female athletes competing in judo, fencing, and shooting in a fictitious live-streamed global sports tournament called Rudozi 2024.
“Agon” (which takes its title from the ancient Greek word meaning struggle, contest, competition) was inspired by historical figures such as Joan of Arc, Cleopatra, and a Russian cavalry officer called Nadezhda Durova. This experimental drama examines the social pressures of competitive sport, the use of technology and social media applied to sport, and the relationship between sport and war, providing a fresh and realistic perspective on the struggles of modern sport.
The film stars Italian judoka and Olympic gold medalist Alice Berandi, while “La Chimera” stars Yil Vianello and Sofiya Zobina.
Following its premiere at the Venice Film Festival Critics’ Week in September, Agon was released in Italian cinemas, kickstarting the movie’s plans for an Italian theatrical release and toured extensively on the film festival circuit, including the Rio, Thessaloniki, Geneva, and Brisbane film festivals.
Bertelli spoke to Variety about his personal connection to the film’s subjects and how he brought in Mubi and Match Factory as producers, Italian theatrical distributors, and global distributors.
You were on the Italian sailing team that competed in the America’s Cup. Was that what made you want to depict the world of competitive sports?
Yes, I definitely have a personal connection to this movie. But there is also a broader context. It is true that “Agon” is centered around the world of sports. And of course, there’s room for interpretation. But I also use the context of these fictional Olympic sports worlds, which are largely geopolitical platforms, to consider the role that competitive sport has played over the past century. You can also talk more generally about the feeling of not achieving your goals in life. So in a way, this is also the story of three teenagers who can’t do what they want to do. This is observed very differently for each character, contextualizing this journey as preparation for competition in the minor sports categories of the virtual Olympics. Then there’s the broader question of the macro linkages of how we came to call sports what we call them today. Where did it come from? And the relationship between war, violence, and sports.
Please tell us about the decision to cast real-life world champion judoka Alice Berandi in the film.
“Agon” was originally conceived as an animation project. When it was decided to make it into a live-action version, there were two major problems. One was how to give it a real flavor that would build trust with the audience. Since fencing involves wearing masks, I thought I could use a stuntman. I also knew that when it came to shooting, it wouldn’t be a big issue since the athlete had to stay still. But when it came to judo, I knew I had to find a real judoka. Then, when I met Bellandi, reality exceeded my expectations and he agreed to be in the film. And five months after we filmed, she won a gold medal at the Paris Olympics.
To put it simply, ‘Agon’ explores the relationship between sport and technology, which is very clear in competitive sailing. Talk about how you factored this into the film’s narrative.
I am interested in the relationship between sports and technology in a broader sense, and I would like to continue to focus on that. What I’m really interested in is the relationship between the organic world and technology, the “organic” that relates to the body in this film. An example of this is the surgery scene in the movie, which is obviously a very sketchy scene. For me, it’s very important because it’s not a metaphor. There are other directors who have tackled this theme (technology and the body) using metaphorical devices that shaped my imagination. But I’m fascinated by seeing this relationship (rapport) existing purely as a reality and not as a metaphor. In other words, it’s a robot that eats into flesh and blood.
Please talk about your relationship with Mubi. How did we get them to participate in such a big way?
In fact, Mubi-san was involved with Agon from the beginning, earlier than anyone else. When I wrote this story as an animation project, I wasn’t really actively trying to get this movie off the ground. I met Efe Kakarel in 2017, when Mubi was much smaller than it is now. We talked about it. He said he had this story in mind and would like to make a film in the future. He said, “I’m interested. I’m interested not only in the platform, but also in the future to start producing. Would you like to write a screenplay?” So I wrote the script and started talking directly with Mubi. Initially developed directly in London as an animated film, it proved to be too expensive and complex to do as an animated project.
During that time, my life was changing. “I thought, maybe this could be my first feature film, and Efe rightly said to me, ‘Look, I want you to find a producer to move this project forward. You need to find a producer.’ But we’re working on it. ”So, along with[Italian producer]Max Blanc, we introduced ourselves to Jules Daly, who had just come out of RSA Films. She liked this project and decided to help me and become a producer of this film. And little by little, “Agon” was born. Then, as the project began to take shape, Mubi came on board. We had the idea of distributing it from the beginning. But they also became stock investors. At that point, Mubi had acquired or was in the process of acquiring The Match Factory. So, to my great pleasure, I started working at The Match Factory as an international sales agent. And they said, “They wanted to start distributing it in Italy, so instead of selling the project, we’ll distribute it directly in Italy.”
This interview has been edited and condensed for clarity.
Provided by: Film Italia
