When did you decide you wanted to be an actor/director/ screenwriter?

I think it was the moment I started to write down some of the scenes and voices that I kept hearing in my head, and which would not go away. I do believe that the way one perceives things determines many things.  For most of my life, I've viewed daily events as though potential scenes from an unscripted movie or film. I don't know why this is the case. Maybe it's because when I was little, the highlight of the week would be when my sister and I were allowed to watch cartoons, and a few select movies on Saturdays. I remember being glued to our old Zenith TV because these were amongst the times, I was able to step into another world, and I was utterly fascinated by this process. It didn’t seem to matter that the television had poor reception and a twisted metal hanger for an antenna. On the weekends my sister and I would also craft makeshift rafts from spare pieces of wood we'd found on the ground from old trees or from wood that someone had thrown away. We'd then explore swamps and other bodies of water with the raft while we imagined having to fight off imaginary dragons or the enormous black water snake that we'd seen from time to time slithering across the surface of the water in a nearby neighbor’s pond. On the days our raft needed too many repairs I was content to just wander around the woods all day pretending to be whatever character I was into at the time either real or imagined. Of course, many kids do this, and it seems quite natural to them, but the difference was that I was still doing it when I was a lot older.  I think experiences like these, in nature, gave me a rich menu to draw from when writing later.

How did your family react?

One of the very great things about my family is that they are always supportive unless someone is going to get hurt. So, I am not sure if they would have supported me (at least initially) if I became a stunt rider and had to jump through rings of fire on a ninja style motorcycle but eventually, they would have probably come around if they saw it made me happy. However, writing scripts is in many ways just an extension of my work as a researcher and a writer.


Do you have a Muse or a Role Model?

There are several people I am very close to that I think of as role models. Other than this, the rest lived hundreds of years ago!


DWho's your biggest fan?

I would have to say it's my family.


What brings you inspiration the most?

Great performances and things that occur in the natural world.

Which actor or director would you like to work with?

There is a director from Rome that I am hoping to work with. She was mentored by Fellini but is in a league of her own. But in general, I would like to work with anyone who can intuit what I am trying to do creatively, appreciate it and then make it better. 



Have you ever seen a film that was better than the book?

I’m sure I have but I don’t remember specific instances. There are many books that would certainly be better as films; and with a great director, almost anything is possible.

What's the movie that taught you the most?

There are several of them but there is one that has stayed with me forever.  Actually, it is the same scene repeated twice and it is from the film: Camille Claudel, played by Isabelle Adjani and directed by Bruno Nuytten.  Camille was Rodin's muse and lover and was sent to him by her father as a young artist to be mentored by him. Rodin did not behave well and so the rest we can figure out. After several twists and turns in the story, Camille has a mental breakdown and gets committed to an asylum which is run by nuns and housed in a convent in France. The scene that haunts me the most depicts a lone tree which is in the center of a courtyard in the asylum Camille was banished to. We see her sitting in the courtyard and just staring at the tree when she was in her early 30’s. And then we see the same scene again, repeated at the end of the film, with her as an old woman.  If I recall correctly the tree had leaves in the first scene and was maybe barren at the end, which of course would have been symbolic of her being in the winter of her life.  Adjani did an amazing job...and the way she could depict this entire somber story world with just her eyes conveying all the emotion has stayed with me. And then there was the simplicity and austerity of the scene itself and the way in which it was filmed. To me that scene is so powerful because it shows how a simple visual can convey the passage of an entire lifetime being spent in the same place. In this case a miserable place for her to be. It was chilling and yet hauntingly beautiful.

About your artistic career, have you ever had the desire to quit everything?

Absolutely and when I get like that, all I want to do is to immerse myself in nature or listen to great music. 

On set what excites you the most?

I am completely new to the film set world but very familiar with the music production world. I would have to say that the adrenaline before a show - especially before a large production - is the most exciting. It's that moment when you know there is no going back and there can't be any mistakes. And this is why I love live music or performances.

And what scares you the most?

If equipment fails during a live show or performance, it can be quite stressful for everyone involved.

What's your next project?

I have been wanting to turn a 12-year research project I've been working on in Italy into a historical series.  The storyline jumps between 92AD and 2015 and the characters from the different eras haunt me and don't seem to let go; many also involve historically important figures and so it has been a fascinating journey.  However, I didn't get very far when I first attempted writing it because the stories that spun off the main story made it so large and layered, that it was hard for me to get control it and I decided to put it aside for a while. Now that I’ve finished Dinner with Dante, I’d like to write a few more short scripts and then return to the series and try to finish it.

You can steal the career of an artist you really admire, who do you choose?

I would love to be soprano Lisette Oropesa for a while (if she wouldn't mind!) but also, be able to go back in time and be Leonardo da Vinci. He was not only a great artist but seemed to have understood the natural world at a very high level. He also appeared to have an incredibly open mind. He was a true singularity and was hundreds of years ahead of his time and in so many areas. But in all honesty, if I could just go back and be his friend it would be enough for me. 

An actor/director/screenwriter is made of....

Flesh + blood + a fountain of passion and creative ideas.

For you Cinema is....

Endless creative possibilities or a symphony that bathes the listener in every possible emotion and truth on screen.

Do you think Black and white movies have a powerful impact?

I think they are some of the most powerful movies in the world and will probably always be. 

Have you ever dreamed of winning an Oscar?

I can't say I have but I have hoped, like every writer or artist, to have people appreciate my work because this is enough for me.

Do you think you're gonna win it?

Well, if I can borrow from the popular 1930's radio show, only the shadow knows!