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October, 2019

Gabriella Giardina talks telling a good story and new acclaimed film “Anthony”

Acting, for Gabriella Giardina, is more than simply performing. For this Italian native, acting means giving a voice to someone who may not have one, bringing life to people and their stories, and studying humanity and the world. On top of giving a memorable performance, Giardina aims to open the eyes of her audience and move their sentiments for noble causes.

This sentiment is evident in some of Giardina’s upcoming work, including two feature films, of which she is not currently able to reveal their names and plots. The two features deal with two very different social themes; one discussing self-improvement/self-discovery the other dealing with how one’s actions have unexpected consequences. The two vastly different roles allow her to demonstrate her versatility and talent to the world once again.

“I love what acting leaves; it is the experience of the character, as if I had really been living in their shoes. When you play a role, you become that person. Although you may not approve of their behaviors, you don’t judge that character or their experience, but 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 their shoes makes you become a better person. 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 vies, and this can only leave something inside you and make you grow every time,” she said.

Giardina’s most recent hit, Anthony, exemplifies the depth she can portray in a scene. The drama tells the story of a distressed woman and patient, who tirelessly searches to find a man by the name of Anthony, a figment that she believes once broke her heart, all the while being the subject of an unauthorized experimental procedure. It’’s a film that addresses the intertwining of awareness, fear, desire, and what it means to lose sight of one’s original self.

“I believe Anthony brings light to issues that a lot of times are kept in the dark or just not given the importance that they have, so telling this story is something that hopefully lets people know the that this is not ok and we need to be more compassionate towards there kind of problems. We can get the information we need, but the right way, without using someone’s struggle, and instead work towards helping that person out of it,” said Giardina.

Giardina played one of the leading characters Giorgia, a former psychiatrist practicing illegally with a private experimental group. The group, through a series of social experiments, aims to both assist as well as learn from the mentally ill. While the other two men have crime-like intentions of changing the tests, Giorgia is the level-headed leader who focuses strongly on guiding them back to the original idea, and that is to save a woman from a battered shelter. However, she begins losing control of this battle while the team drives this experiment in a completely different direction. She is a woman who has her own share of trouble that comes from her job, a study she chose to start and the person and individual that she is. Giardina completely captivates audiences with her portrayal of the character, impressing all she worked with.

“Working with Gabriella was fantastic, and I definitely hope to again. On set she hit every note and made working with her both painless and fun. Most people, after watching the film, immediately comment on her performance specifically, so that’s good news for me as a director,” said Hudson Long, Writer and Director of Anthony. “As an actor, Gabriella’s relationship to everything is crystal clear. You see the character she creates through the circumstances she understands, and that’s very powerful to watch on screen. You can tell she’s a professional. She took every direction I gave her vey well, made adjustments quickly and cautiously so that I really wouldn’t have to worry at all, and I didn’t. I really trusted her on set artistically and it really shows when you watch the film. I’m proud to have worked with Gabriella”

Giardina’s hard work and commitment to the character paid off, as Anthony has been making its way around various prestigious international film festivals. It recently was an Official Selection at Lift-Off Global Network Film Festival, as well as Montgomery International Film Festival, and the International Moving Film Festival, where the film was selected as a semi-finalist among 3,046 other films.

“When you are working on a film, a story, a character, you are so involved in the moment, in creating and understanding these people and the story you want to tell and deliver it at its best. You are present and caught up in each little detail of the process of making the film, from a table read, to your own personal and private study and work of your character and their point of view of the story, to being on set and interacting and creating the characters relationship and feelings towards one another, to wrapping up the set and following up with all the post production process. Throughout the process you are very devoted, involved and focused on what you are creating rather than thinking about the success that the project will turn out to be, or at least that’s the case for me. Once it’s finished and you realize ok this is great, you have your first share of satisfaction right there. It makes it more exciting and nerve wracking at the same time to share it with the public. We felt that  all the hard work paid off and we were able to tell the story we wanted to,” Giardina concluded.

- Zoe Sewell -