The feature debut of Italian filmmaker Alice Rohrwacher is a coming of age tale built around the odyssey of a 13-year-old girl trying to find her place in a culture she doesn't understand. After growing up in Switzerland, she finds herself in Reggio Calabria, a rural, deeply Catholic community located in the boot of Southern Italy. The daughter of a German father and an Italian mother, Rohrwacher grew up in rural Tuscany, but the film is not autobiographical. "I didn't grow up within the church or within organized religion, but that made me very free to look at it with fresh eyes," she explained in a 2014 interview. Rohrwacher spent time attending catechism lessons, reading confirmation manuals and visiting churches in Reggio Calabria as she developed the script, and she took the name Corpo Celeste, which translates to "heavenly (or celestial) body," from a collection of essays by the Italian writer Anna Maria Ortese. Rohrwacher spent weeks rehearsing with the cast, many of whom were non-professionals. That includes her young leading lady Yle Vianello, who she discovered in a rural commune in the mountains outside of Tuscany. "We knew straightaway she would be perfect for the role. She's never been to school and she'd never been to a big city before, so it was a huge journey for her." Rohrwacher shot with a handheld camera for "greater precision and greater freedom to the actors" and chose to shoot on Super 16mm film to give the film a "sacred aura despite the realism." Though Corpo Celeste is her first feature, Rohrwacher had made short films and documentaries and chose to set the film in Reggio Calabria after shooting a documentary in the city. "I liked the fact that the city expressed the contradiction all over Italy - this beautiful natural landscape, which is being destroyed by the people obsessed with modernisation. The city expresses what's going on in Italy."
by Sean Axmaker
Sources:
"Keeping the faith: Alice Rohrwacher on Corpo Celeste," Thomas Dawson. BFI web exclusive, June 19, 2015.
"Interview: Alice Rohrwacher," Violet Lucca. Film Comment, October 10, 2014.
"Interview: Alice Rohrwacher, director of 'Corpo Celeste'," Ben Nicholson. CineVue, September 7, 2012.
"Corpo Celeste at Quinzaine: an interview with Alice Rohrwacher," Joe Utichi. Film Italia, May 10, 2011.
"Sofia Coppola Interviews the Sisters Behind Her Favorite New Film," no author attributed. T: The New York Times Style Magazine, August 17, 2015.
Corpo Celeste
Brief Synopsis
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Set in Calabria, deep in the south of Italy, Corpo Celeste is the story of 13 year old Marta who is struggling to resettle after ten years growing up in Switzerland. Bright-eyed and restless, she observes the sights, sounds and smells of the city but feels very much an outsider. Marta is about to u
Cast & Crew
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Alice Rohrwacher
Director
Yle Vianello
Salvatore Cantalupo
Pasqualina Scuncia
Anita Caprioli
Don Lorenzo
Film Details
MPAA Rating
Genre
Drama
Foreign
Release Date
2011
Production Company
Arte ; Jba Productions ; RSI Radiotelevisione Svizzera ; Rai Cinema ; Rai Trade
Distribution Company
Film Movement; Ad Vitam Distribution ; Curzon Artificial Eye ; Film Movement ; Filmcoopi Zurich Ag
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 40m
Synopsis
Set in Calabria, deep in the south of Italy, Corpo Celeste is the story of 13 year old Marta who is struggling to resettle after ten years growing up in Switzerland. Bright-eyed and restless, she observes the sights, sounds and smells of the city but feels very much an outsider. Marta is about to undergo the rite of confirmation, and in the convention of the Catholic Church she starts taking catechism, hoping to also make some new friends. However, the doctrines of Roman Catholicism offer little in terms of life lessons or consolation, and she quickly confronts the morality of the local community, as well as the hypocrisy of the priest, who cares more about status than about his constituents. A series of subtle moments trace her journey as she both connects and conflicts with her mother, sister and the Sunday school teacher Santa. From experiencing her period to making a bold decision to cut her hair, Marta begins to shape her own life for the first time since moving back to Italy.
Director
Alice Rohrwacher
Director
Crew
Daniela Bassani
Sound Department
Jacques Bidou
Producer
Loredana Buscemi
Costume Designer
Emanuele Cecere
Sound Mixer
Marzia Cordo
Sound Department
Carlo Cresto-dina
Producer
Marianne Dumoulin
Producer
Giorgio Gasparini
Line Producer
Helene Louvart
Director Of Photography
Alice Rohrwacher
Screenplay
Luca Servino
Production Designer
Tiziana Soudani
Producer
Marco Spoletini
Editor
Film Details
MPAA Rating
Genre
Drama
Foreign
Release Date
2011
Production Company
Arte ; Jba Productions ; RSI Radiotelevisione Svizzera ; Rai Cinema ; Rai Trade
Distribution Company
Film Movement; Ad Vitam Distribution ; Curzon Artificial Eye ; Film Movement ; Filmcoopi Zurich Ag
Technical Specs
Duration
1h 40m
Articles
Corpo Celeste
Corpo Celeste
The feature debut of Italian filmmaker Alice Rohrwacher is a coming of age tale built around the odyssey of a 13-year-old girl trying to find her place in a culture she doesn't understand. After growing up in Switzerland, she finds herself in Reggio Calabria, a rural, deeply Catholic community located in the boot of Southern Italy. The daughter of a German father and an Italian mother, Rohrwacher grew up in rural Tuscany, but the film is not autobiographical. "I didn't grow up within the church or within organized religion, but that made me very free to look at it with fresh eyes," she explained in a 2014 interview. Rohrwacher spent time attending catechism lessons, reading confirmation manuals and visiting churches in Reggio Calabria as she developed the script, and she took the name Corpo Celeste, which translates to "heavenly (or celestial) body," from a collection of essays by the Italian writer Anna Maria Ortese. Rohrwacher spent weeks rehearsing with the cast, many of whom were non-professionals. That includes her young leading lady Yle Vianello, who she discovered in a rural commune in the mountains outside of Tuscany. "We knew straightaway she would be perfect for the role. She's never been to school and she'd never been to a big city before, so it was a huge journey for her." Rohrwacher shot with a handheld camera for "greater precision and greater freedom to the actors" and chose to shoot on Super 16mm film to give the film a "sacred aura despite the realism." Though Corpo Celeste is her first feature, Rohrwacher had made short films and documentaries and chose to set the film in Reggio Calabria after shooting a documentary in the city. "I liked the fact that the city expressed the contradiction all over Italy - this beautiful natural landscape, which is being destroyed by the people obsessed with modernisation. The city expresses what's going on in Italy."by Sean AxmakerSources:"Keeping the faith: Alice Rohrwacher on Corpo Celeste," Thomas Dawson. BFI web exclusive, June 19, 2015."Interview: Alice Rohrwacher," Violet Lucca. Film Comment, October 10, 2014."Interview: Alice Rohrwacher, director of 'Corpo Celeste'," Ben Nicholson. CineVue, September 7, 2012."Corpo Celeste at Quinzaine: an interview with Alice Rohrwacher," Joe Utichi. Film Italia, May 10, 2011."Sofia Coppola Interviews the Sisters Behind Her Favorite New Film," no author attributed. T: The New York Times Style Magazine, August 17, 2015.
Quotes
Trivia
Miscellaneous Notes
Released in United States 2011 (World Cinema)
Released in United States 2011
Released in United States 2012 (Spotlight)
Limited Release in United States June 8, 2012
Released in United States 2011 (Main Slate)
Released in United States 2012 (World Cinema)
Released in United States 2012
Limited Release in United States June 8, 2012
