Multimedia in AEGEE has been wide explored: we have an annual publication, we have, and had, several magazines, a TV channel and a radio channel. In every Agora, there is some time reserved for promotional videos, and after every Agora and EPM in the past few years we can watch and rewatch the aftermovie. How is it possible, then, that nobody has ever thought to shoot a movie about our organisation? Luca Giazzi from AEGEE-Bergamo worked on this idea called ‘The Art of the Possible’. Here is what he told us!
The AEGEEan: Please introduce yourself.
Luca: I’m Luca Giazzi from AEGEE-Bergamo, born in 1994. I’m studying Communication Studies at the University of Bergamo, Italy. Video has always been a presence in my life: my grandfather was production manager at RAI, Italian national television, and I’ve always been surrounded by video cameras and films. I began working on this field too on 2012: mostly music videos and weddings. I joined AEGEE in April 2015.
What is “The Art of the Possible”?
The Art of the Possible is a 50-minute-long documentary about some members of our association. It’s a real trip through Europe led by me and my girlfriend Raquel Corbalan to discover seven Aegeeans really different from each other. From the very first day we thought about such a project, we have been very clear: we don’t want to make a TV commercial for AEGEE – she’s been into it for a long time, but for me it was just six months. So we decided only to show what AEGEE means to those members and what they got from it so far.
Why did you decide to create such a documentary?
It’s always very hard to explain to our non-Aegeean friends what AEGEE is. Words are not enough.
What will it talk about?
It’s the real story of me and Raquel going around Europe and giving the chance to a bunch of members to say what they want. Without filters, without anyone to judge them or any previously-made texts: they simply speak up their voices, and there cannot be anything more genuine.
Who are the protagonists of the documentary?
Characters are Jorge Sánchez from AEGEE-Dresden, Anna Smailikova from AEGEE-Kyiv, Philipp Blum and Lucia Gavulová from SUCT, and Benoît Guiche from AEGEE-Toulouse. We’re still looking for other two, we will see.
How did you choose the interviewed?
Raquel has been in AEGEE since 2010, so of course she knew the right members who could fit into such a project.
Why did you decide to embark on this project?
Being a documentarist is not that easy: most of the time you’ve got a good story but no one who will listen to it, the audience is simply surrounded by too many video contents. When I first thought about ”The Art of the Possible”, it was clear that there could have been some members interested in watching it, even without knowing me.
Do you have a team or work alone? In case you have a team, please present them.
Raquel is the screenwriter – she basically worked on all the structure of the dialogues in the movie. Then there are Giacomo Corpino, audio engineer and composer; Marianna Lipinska from AEGEE-Kraków, fundraising manager; and Victor from AEGEE-Madrid who’s helping out with the shootings done in Spain.
What is the status of the production? What are/will be the phases?
We started working on the project in September 2015, and went shooting the first time on Christmas. Today only 2 people are missing in the movie, then in September we will start working on the editing, audio mastering and color grading.
You launched a crowdfunding on Indiegogo. Why? What will you use the money for?
As you can imagine, making movies requires money. In most cases, you’ll get back that money thanks to cinema tickets and DVDs; but as I told you, our plan is free streaming. I guarantee that we’re doing everything in order to save money but flights, food and insurance are impossible to avoid. Also, I’ve been working on the movie 10 hours per day since March, no matter if it’s weekend or not. For these reasons, we’re collecting money from friends, parents, and we kindly ask the help of every AEGEEan. Of course we know how much they love gadgets, so we’ve made t-shirts, postcards, stickers and many other things you can check on our fundraising campaign, ending on 24th June with a goal of 2500 euros. Today we’re at 65%, if you want to help out you can go here.
When will the film be released?
We’re planning to send the documentary to some indie-movie festivals around the world so it will take a few months before being public, but don’t worry: from the very first day we decided that it would be in free streaming with no limits of time. I’d love to launch it on next AEGEE Day.
How has the reaction been so far?
AEGEEans know that sharing is caring. During the first three days after the release of the fundraising trailer (the same we showed at AGORA Bergamo) we got 10k views, and our official page has been seen by 150’000 people, and they’re still rising!
Do you have any nice anecdotes during filming you can tell us ?
For the shootings in Cologne, Germany I managed to book the flights for two euros, so we decided not to spend more than two euros at time during all the two days on set. Surprisingly, we discovered that there are thousands of things available for cheap!
https://www.facebook.com/taotpmovie/videos/574573869391272/
Written by Erika Bettin, AEGEE-Verona