Believe Media has brought director Pietro Coppolecchia aboard its roster for commercial representation in the U.S. and U.K. Believe will be the first to represent him in these territories.
His short film For The Love I Show is the story of two young lovers dealing with the agony of their ending relationship as they say goodbye on a road trip of self-discovery and mutual growth in a modern world tied together by globalization. The film won Best Short at the 2019 Holly Shorts Film Festival and received special mention at the Filmmaker Festival Milan.
In commercial work, he has collaborated with brands Prada, Armani, Etro, Salvatore Ferragamo, Meta and his recent “Choose The Future” film with Italian outdoor brand Napapijri tells a tactile story of the world emerging outside and searching for a new equilibrium since the globally traumatic 2020, one in which important values such as intimacy and affection are upheld through a collective commitment to come together and choose the future.
“Pietro has a youthful and playful quality to his work that struck me–it draws you in and wraps you in a story with a sophistication that is connected to the human spirit,” commented Believe Media CEO Liz Silver. “You can dissect each piece for its artistry, down to how he casts for his projects. We’re excited to bring his talent to our clients and this market.”
Born in Milan to a family of film industry veterans, Pietro began working on sets as PA as a teenager. After graduating from Chapman University, Dodge College of Film and Media Arts with a degree in cinematography, he started working in the camera department for DPs such as Yorick Le Saux (Only Lovers Left Alive), Fabio Cianchetti (The Dreamers), Guillaume Schiffman (The Artist) and directors like Luca Guadagnino (I Am Love) and Xavier Koller (Journey of Hope).
Later, moving to Mexico City, Coppolecchia began directing his own projects including short films, documentaries and music videos. Often shooting on 16mm film, a format that not only allures audiences but is emblematic of his process, Coppolecchia was taken by the nuances it instills on set.
“Shooting on film seems to engage everyone on set different and that environment has influenced my whole production process,” noted Coppolecchia. “Everyone has to be in the moment, it’s more serious and exhilarating for everyone. Shifting between film and digital helps me work towards setting that tone and energy no matter the format we’re shooting.”
Coppolecchia joins a roster of directors at Believe Media known for such commercial work as Jake Nava’s film “Team Up For Excellence” for Rémy Martin from agency FRED & FARID which recently earned two D&AD Wood Pencils, Floria Sigismondi’s “A (Slightly) Life-Changing Story” for Meta from Droga5, and Bruno Aveillan’s Cannes Lion-winning “The Cry” for Fondation 30 Millions d’Amis.
“Beyond connecting with Believe on a human level, their roster of directors make work that embodies the intersection of narrative and brand,” commented Coppolecchia. “Everything with them has been straight forward from the onset of our introductions and that’s what made this feel like a good fit.”
Review: Malcolm Washington Makes His Feature Directing Debut With “The Piano Lesson”
An heirloom piano takes on immense significance for one family in 1936 Pittsburgh in August Wilson's "The Piano Lesson." Generational ties also permeate the film adaptation, in which Malcolm Washington follows in his father Denzel Washington's footsteps in helping to bring the entirety of The Pittsburgh Cycle — a series of 10 plays — to the screen.
Malcolm Washington did not start from scratch in his accomplished feature filmmaking debut. He enlisted much of the cast from the recent Broadway revival with Samuel L. Jackson (Doaker Charles), his brother, John David Washington (Boy Willie), Ray Fisher (Lymon) and Michael Potts (Whining Boy). Berniece, played by Danielle Brooks in the play, is now beautifully portrayed by Danielle Deadwyler. With such rich material and a cast for whom it's second nature, it would be hard, one imagines, to go wrong. Jackson's own history with the play goes back to its original run in 1987 when he was Boy Willie.
It's not the simplest thing to make a play feel cinematic, but Malcolm Washington was up to the task. His film opens up the world of the Charles family beyond the living room. In fact, this adaptation, which Washington co-wrote with "Mudbound" screenwriter Virgil Williams, goes beyond Wilson's text and shows us the past and the origins of the intricately engraved piano that's central to all the fuss. It even opens on a big, action-filled set piece in 1911, during which the piano is stolen from a white family's home. Another fleshes out Doaker's monologue in which he explains to the uninitiated, Fisher's Lymon, and the audience, the tortured history of the thing. While it might have been nice to keep the camera on Jackson, such a great, grounding presence throughout, the good news is that he really makes... Read More