John Michaels

June 14, 2017

Actress Gabriella Giardina talks upcoming films and living her dream

Gabriella Giardina has always seen herself as an actress. She has always loved reading great stories and exploring the different characters. She is a storyteller, and her passion comes from exploring all the characters in a story, going into their untold stories that made them who they are, and discovering the perfect way for them to be portrayed. She knows there is a great art behind the scenes of acting, which is becoming your character and finding your way of creating them, bringing them to life, giving them justice. She knows what it takes to discover what it takes to physically, emotionally and psychologically embody a character. It is this process, where creativity for actors is at its peak, where the depth and truth emerges and creates authenticity, that has captivated her since childhood, and why she loves what she does.

All those who work with Gabriella are not only impressed, but entranced by her talent. She has a natural ability to empathize with her characters and a deep understanding for what she does. Director and Producer Rob Reece has worked alongside Gabriella before, and knows what a one-of-a-kind actress she is.

“I remember when Gabriella first auditioned; I was highly impressed by her intensity and the ease in connecting with the characters assigned. She is a very talented, passionate, courageous and smart actress. She approaches her work and life enthusiastically with beauty, humor, grace and discipline. She is an actor of gravity.” said Reece.

Working as both a model and actress all over the world, Giardina has won over international audiences, and soon, she will be in several feature films for fans to see her doing what she does best, and what she loves most.

“Working in films has always been and is my biggest dream, ever since I was a child. There is so much depth in films, between the story of a single character and the story itself told in the film along with a message, it’s all beautifully combined together to create something unforgettable, artistic, masterpieces. There are so many layers of a character that as the story is told, you unfold and discover, and my job is to portray in the absolute best way all these layers and let it reach every member of the audience. I love beautiful stories, but it’s the combination of everything together that really makes me fall in love with a film. Let it send a message to the audience and not let it see me, Gabriella, but rather the character, their story, experience and message. Creating all of this is what I truly love,” she said.

Stepping outside of what she normally works on, Gabriella Giardina has some new projects in the pipeline, one of which is a children’s film The Bandit Hound 2, a sequel to the popular film about a dog that is trained to steal. In this film Gabriella will play the leading role of Maria , a young Italian girl who has come to the United States to pursue the dream of a prestigious degree that can redeem her and her family from social mediocrity. The character is an ambitious and tenacious young woman, who falls in desperation when she is robbed by a dog. With no more personal documents, passport, and the sum of money she had for the next few weeks, for the first time, Maria becomes the weak figure of the family with whom she will be confronted to find the strength and determination needed to face the challenges of that problematic moment. The role fit with Gabriella’s skills and background, both because she is Italian and thanks to her natural acting talent.

“I was happily surprised and honored when I was offered the role of Maria. She is a strong and determined girl, the kind who knows what she wants but which, for unforeseen events, loses her certainty, and her weaknesses and fragility emerge. I love this character because it is a deep and contemporary character and I think many young people can see themselves in this character, and maybe find inspiration and receive a message that will hopefully help them or guide them in life,” said Gabriella.

In a completely different style of film, Gabriella Giardina will play the leading role of the Sicilian Love Goddess in the upcoming film If This is Death. The production is an introspective story that evolves its narrative around a mythological expression of a male character that is antagonized with his life’s teachers through a veil. In this film Gabriella will play the main female character, the Sicilian Love Goddess, a role that looks perfectly tailored for her. She has in fact the physicality of the classic Sicilian goddesses, which, coupled with her classic theatre experiences strengthened by her studies in Latin and Greed classic literature, allowed an unique understanding of the role and made her the ideal interpreter.

“I found the structure of the script unusual and very interesting since it develops on the introspective analysis of the main male character through others, whose main female role is entrusted to the Sicilian Love Goddess. I am flattered because of the motivations and I’ll do my best to fulfill the trust that was placed in me and portray fully the depth of this character,” said Gabriella Giardina.

Making her way into the documentary genre, Gabriella Giardina will also be playing herself in the upcoming film Golden Box. It is a representation of how an intensive course can give answers to why and how some of the most relevant techniques, from Meisner, to Strasberg, or Adler, Hagen, Chekhov & the Stanislavsky, can be more powerful and effective according to the stage where they have to be applied, either is a TV work or a film. Through the analysis of “The Golden Box Technique”, the documentary will describe how the actors can benefit from the use of them and explore their creativity to deliver memorable performances.

“I am very thrilled to be working on this documentary. I have studied all these specific techniques for several years and have put them in practice in my work. To be recognized and selected as one of the best to represent them and represent acting and its craft, and the depth and breaking down every single detail of a character, script, and various routes to get where you need to get to create them, which is what I love, and share it with the world, is such a privilege. It will definitely also be a chance for me to learn and grow more because I believe that no matter in what stage of life you are, you never stop learning,” said Gabriella.

With a background in theatre, Gabriella Giardina was also selected for the upcoming film The Seagull, about Anton Chekhov’s story of life in rural Russia during the latter part of the 19th century. An aging actress Arkadina pays summer visits to her brother Sorin and son Konstantin on a country estate. On one occasion, she brings with her Trigorin, a successful novelist. Nina, a free and innocent girl on a neighboring estate, falls in love with Trigorin. As Trigorin lightly consumes and rejects Nina, so the actress all her life has consumed and rejected her son, who loves Nina. The victims are destroyed, the sophisticates continue on their way. Gabriella Giardina will play Arkadina.

“I believe that any actor who is proposed to interpret a classic play of an author such as Chekhov can only be incredibly thrilled. I read the play three times, and being Arkadina is an idea that leaves me breathless; the role is a big responsibility. I want to explore characters that push me further, and that’s exactly what Arkadina does,” said Gabriella.

Gabriella Giardina has seen success with films before. She had a starring role on the film Yaariyan, which won the Film Album of the Year at the Star Box Office India Awards 2014, and Best Music Director at the Stardust Awards India 2015 Jury’s Choice. It collected the maximum revenues across all commercial platforms in 2014.

“Anyone who is familiar with Bollywood cinema knows that musical sequences are a regular feature and they are made in big, with hundreds of background dancers who perform alongside the starring actors in every song. It’s really beautiful and I was just honored to being able to experience a Bollywood movie,” she said.

Yaariyan tells the story of a college student who must win a competition to save his college from being demolished by property builders. The movie is all about friendship, and how five friends stay by each other’s side through thick and thin. Gabriella played Elizabeth, an Australian student who befriends one of the main characters from the Indian team, while being a supportive friend to her own team, and therefore becomes integrally involved in the story. For the role, Giardina was required to not only act, but also dance, sing, and swim.

“Yaariyan is a story of friendship, love and experiences that teach life lessons to these young heroes. The movie won two awards and it makes me very proud,” she said.

With so many upcoming projects for audiences to look forward to, there is no doubt that Gabriella Giardina will continue to be an influential and important actress. Not only does she love what she does, but she is exceptionally good at it, and with that combination, there is no limit to what she can achieve.

“I love what acting leaves, it is the experience of the character, as if I had really been living in their shoes, because when you play a role you become that person; you don’t judge that character and that experience, although you may not approve of it, but that character and their story will become part of you. You do not necessarily have to share the character’s point of view, but to be able to put yourself in his shoes makes you become a better person. What I mean, is that being an actor gives us the chance to live the experience of many lives and learn to see and understand reality from different points of view, this can only leave something inside you and make you grow every time,” Gabriella Giardina concluded.

- John Michaels -