James

by Andrea Della Monica

Italy, 2020, 70', color, DCP

Screenplay: Andrea Della Monica
Davide Mastropaolo

Saturday 05 September 2020

21:30 Isola degli Autori Public, free entrance
V.O. ITA sub ENG
Reservation required on giornatedegliautori.com starting from August 31st

BOOK

cinematography
Luca Scarparo
editing
Diego Liguori

music
James Senese
sound
Massimo Carola

with
James Senese
Franco Del Prete
John Vignola

producer
Luca Nottola
production
Arealive
co-producer
Davide Mastropaolo
co-production
Audioimage

with the support of
Regione Campania
Film Commission Regione Campania

world sales
Amarena Film
info@amarenafilm.it

italian
press office
Big Time
Fabio Tiriemmi
fabio@bigtimeweb.it
www.bigtimeweb.it

A child of war, born to a Neapolitan girl and an American soldier after World War II, James Senese was raised in the outskirts of Naples, of which he witnessed the transformation from countryside to suburb. In a fifty-year-long career, he has searched for an identity in a changing world, pouring his conflicts into his music. The documentary paints a portrait of the man and the artist, tracing the beating heart of his trajectory back to the formation of the band Napoli Centrale in the early Seventies, and investigating the latest evolution of that musical endeavor.

James

Filmography

2020 James [doc]

2019 Il cambio [short]

2018 Lo spirito giusto [short]

2018 No talent [short]

2018 Elvis [short]

2013 Uoldìsnei [short]

2011 Some Rest in Peace [doc]

When I told James I would be making a film about him, his answer was: "bear in mind, I'm not dead!" I did. The film is not a hagiography, nor an attempt to secure James a place in the firmament of music. It is rather a picture of a living thing, hence the choice to be as close to him as possible. While investigating his influences and how his music came to be, I left much of the context to the history books. If one should find Naples in the film, that would be through what James himself calls ‘o sentimento. I tried to catch a glimpse of it and now look forward to sharing it with an audience.

After graduating with a degree in philosophy from the University of Naples, Andrea Della Monica (Naples) moved to London, where he graduated with an MA in Filmmaking from the London Film School. His short films have competed at several festivals internationally. James is his first documentary feature.