Marco Pigossi and Marco Calvani, ‘High Tide’

0:12Hello and welcome to the Monaco Weekly. This time we look at the touching film High Tide, looking at the life of a heartbroken Brazilian immigrant in the queer mecca of Provincetown. The character is played by Marco Pigossi. The film is also the feature film directorial debut for Italian writer and director Marco Calvani. I had the pleasure to speak with both.

0:39What do you do? I clean houses. I'm here on a tourist visa. I can't really work, but I need the money. You are young, you're handsome, you can go anywhere, you can do anything. The only place I could actually go is home, and I don't want to. Welcome to Monaco Radio, Marco Calvani, the director of High Tide, and Marco Pigossi as well, the main actor from the film. I'm going to call you the Marcos, okay? We're going to find a nice way. Maybe I'll start with you, Marco Calvani. What a fantastic film. I know this was your first feature. You've done films before, but this is your first feature production.

1:18Tell us a bit more about the idea, because I know you wrote the film. From what I could see, you started with the idea during the height of the pandemic, right? And the film has some kind of topics that perhaps correlate with that. I think probably the most, the biggest element that relate to the pandemic was this melancholy, this desolation that the movie is drenched with and the character itself. And I probably was going through all of that. I mean, I was definitely going through that. I was gifted with a lot of health, thank God. And with that, with a lot of time to work, to write, to reflect on things in a different way.

1:57And I don't know, like I personally have been a storyteller of my life, but I never really told the story that it was a love story, a romance at its core. And something told me that that was the right time. On top of that, I've been a gay man all my life, but I never really portrayed gay characters at the center of my stories before. And I felt this calling from above or from within to do this for the first time. At that time, also, as you may remember, it was, you know, the last few months of the first Trump administration. Things were very heated. The Black Lives Matter finally became, you know, a topic of conversation at every single table.

2:39and also I'm a gay man, I'm an immigrant man living in the United States. Things were already changing drastically, not as much as right now, but still I felt called to use my voice to speak about something that was changing also inside of me about what am I doing here, for example. What was the question? What am I doing in the United States right now? What does it mean to have a home here? What does it mean for me to have a home and for somebody else not to have a home? And what is home really? No, that's fantastic. And it is a very sensitive film. It's interesting you mentioned that it was good for you to write, you know, about gay characters centered in the story.

3:16And I might do the same question to you, Marco Pigoso. Of course, we all, as a Brazilian, you know, I grew up, you know, watching your soap operas in the country. How does it feel as well to play, you know, the main role, very much a queer character, a gay man, going through so many things in his life? I mean, amazing acting. We could see in the face some of the desolation you've been going through. But tell us, is it a bit political to you as well in that sense to play a role like this? Thank you. Thank you for these kind words. So I think it all started, when I met Marco, he was already writing the script.

3:51He was around 70 % on the script. And we had a long conversation about coming out and finding yourself as a gay man and finding yourself as a queer person. And I was in this process of coming out publicly in Brazil. I wanted to do something for the community. I produced a documentary about queer people where we follow queer candidates at the municipal elections in 2020. But when I met Marco, I expressed this will I had. I wanted to talk about that through my work as an actor as well. I played a gay character before in a telenovela, but in that place where it was just, you know, gay characters could only exist if they were funny, if they were cute, if they were getting into the pain or the depth of what it means to be a gay man.

4:39And I didn't know Marco was writing a story about it. And the character wasn't necessarily Brazilian at the beginning. But when we talked about this, he realized that maybe it was for me. And he started writing the character for me. And we made this character Brazilian. So I feel like this is kind of a closure on my process of finding myself as a gay man, accepting myself as a gay man, embracing myself as a gay man. And there are a lot of similarities in Lorenzo's story with mine as a Latino queer immigrant. So I was able to give a lot from Marco to Lorenzo in a way. I say that this film is very personal.

5:20It's not autobiographical, but it's very personal. and it was something that I really wanted to portray and talk about. So I was very happy to, when I read the script for the first time and to be able to embrace this journey with Marco. And Marco Cavani, how funny did this film will be forever special in both of your lives, right? Because it's thanks to the film that you guys met, right? It's our first baby. We say it's our first child. And our dog will be merry mad if she could hear. Yes, making a film is always a miracle. Making a film with someone you love is something incredible. And making a film about love with so much love, it's the best gift one could possibly ask for.

6:09I always wanted to come to the U.S. I always thought this was the best place in the world. Everything is so broken here. Can I help you? Sometimes I feel like a stranger.

6:25I'm not afraid of being alone. So what are you afraid of? I said too many lies already. You know, now we are currently in Brazil, promoting the release of the film. And, you know, we opened a year ago in the U.S. And it's like the biggest thing, it actually, so many people leave the theater and so touched. And no matter if we're gay or straight, men or women, you know, they're really moved by the story. There's something so personal to us in this movie that became so universal. And honestly, I couldn't come out. I couldn't come to London at a better time. You know, sadly, you know, when I started to conceive the film four years ago, the topics, you know, like systemic racism and immigration, but always and already so on top of the politics agenda and on our minds.

7:23But right now, you know, the world's so fragmented and, you know, being ruled by all these fascists and hungry people and terrible people, I think spreading the message of the movie right now has become particularly relevant and important for us. And a film like this becomes more important indeed. And one thing I wanted to mention as well, you know, Marco Pigosas, for example, that it is, you know, the film in a way deals with this Trump's America. But I love how the film touches on topics like race in a very delicate way as well, because, you know, you could have easily perhaps not mentioned in that case.

7:59But I think it was really, really nice the way you could put together with the character of James Bland. Yeah, I feel like that's exactly what Marco wanted to portray. You know, it's just this slice of life of this man, young immigrants trying to find himself in a language that is not his. And going through all that, you know, going through discovering racism, discovering the differences between the community, discovering the challenges of being a queer immigrant. So, you know, the film mentions many, many topics, but in a way, it just reflects the character going through them. It's not about giving a lesson or a conclusion to all these typical topics that they don't have actually a right answer.

8:45But going through all that. You know, Fernanda, I really wanted to make a film that was as close as possible structurally as the main character is. You know, as close as possible to him, to Lorenzo. Lorenzo doesn't know what's happening. It's just like it goes with the flow of these events that enter his path over the course of these five days that we portray him during the film. And he doesn't have enough tools to understand. The only thing he has is a heart and a willingness, an unconscious willingness to move forward. But he doesn't know until the very end, all these things that happen to me, all these people that he meets, that he meets along the way.

9:27They somehow inform and add to his experience that ultimately enabled this reaction first to run towards the fairy, towards Maurice. And then this might be a spoiler, you know, a societal moment. But I wanted for life to happen exactly as it happens in real life, in real time. Like life doesn't announce itself, right? It just keeps going and things happen. And you may have, you know, the night before a very abusive encounter at a bar like Lorenzo has at the beginning of the movie. But the following day, you still have to go to work. And you may still meet a beautiful African-American nurse who might, you know, add to your experience as a human being.

10:14I want to ask as well about the amazing supporting cast, Marisa Tomei. I mean, she's a fantastic actress. I mean, tell us, how did you invite her to be part of the movie as well? We have Bill Irwin as well. We feel so lucky, honestly. You know, Marco Pigossi, as you mentioned before, is a star in Brazil. I have been a theater maker all my life. This is my first feature film. So for me, in the film industry, I'm a baby. Marco Pigossi's career didn't immediately translate in the U.S. So when we started to put this film out and trying to find collaborators and, you know, let's call it what it is, money to make it, it wasn't easy.

10:56It was the first challenge we had because, in other words, we were nobodies. And so when Marisa Tomei decided to be part of it and to embrace the project, it really changed our life. It made actually the fact that she was attached, immediately, you know, people were paying attention in a different way. And so I want to believe that Bill Irwin, who's a gentleman and an amazing artist, who would have done it no matter what. But I'm sure that the fact that Marisa was already attached, you know, instilled some curiosity. And both amazing, amazing people and amazing, amazing performers. Marco can, here next to me, because he can tell you how much he loved playing opposite both of them.

11:42Yes. How was it for you, Marco? It was amazing. Maris is such a fantastic actor and so generous and so kind. And she has something that she keeps the scene alive all the time. She's always bringing something new, something different. She never repeats a take the same. She never gets stuck into something. She's always trying to bring something that is alive and that is fresh. And that's beautiful for an actor. In Brazil, we say acting, but in English, we say to play. And you don't play by yourself. you always need the other person and she gave me everything i needed so it was beautiful and beautiful i can't even start beautiful human being and an amazing actor he gave me everything i needed we created that connection and the bond immediately and um i think you can see that on the screen you know fernando something that probably we should say more this movie was done with more love than money and it was we did it in 17 days 17.

12:40it doesn't look like it it doesn't look like it That's why I'm telling you. Thank you. Because we're extremely proud of it. So that means that we had Marisa Tomei for a day and a half, Bill Irwin for two days and a half. So you know, as a cinephile, you know what it means to work with very little time. Yes. It's been a challenge, and it didn't feel that way. Honestly, the last time we saw Marisa at a Q &A, she said, Marco made us feel we had all the time in the world. I don't know why I did that. How? because I didn't feel ahead at all. But I'm glad that I was able to give them, you know, the calm and that they deserved it and they needed to act.

13:22But yeah, it's, you know, once again, to have Marisa and Bill, to come for such a little time, to the end of the world, you know, Provincetown is not easy to access. And for the little money we also offer, it was amazing. It was amazing. We feel so lucky. And finally, I want to ask both of you as well, because you are in Brazil now. The film is having its premiere. Things are going to be out in the cinemas in a few days. How is it? Because as well, there's a great moment for Brazilian cinema, the moment as well. We're living a very, very beautiful moment in Brazilian cinema. That's amazing to see finally the world, paying attention to Brazilian stories, to Brazilian culture, to Brazilian people.

14:02It's an honor to open this film at this moment where people are actually going to the theaters and appreciating Brazilian cinema. And I always say this is an American production, but it is a very Brazilian movie at its core. You know, we're talking about a Brazilian and our pains and our culture and our... So I am beyond happy to share this film with the Brazilian audience. I feel like for what we've seen in the two openings, the two opening nights we had here, I feel like they really connected and embarked on the journey with the characters. Yeah, I think they're really happy that we're sharing this movie with them too.

14:40They've been waiting for it a lot. We see a lot of, there's a lot of excitement here in the air. It's beautiful. I've connected very much with the film and thank you very much to both of you, to both Marcos for this amazing, amazing film. Thank you. Thank you, Fernando, for having us today with you. Thank you. Thank you. My pleasure, guys. Enjoy. Take care. Um abraço. I wish you could stay here forever.

15:07I've always had a sense that my life was happening without me. Somewhere far away. Was it here?

15:23Thank you very much, Marco Calvani and Marco Pigossi. High Tide is available on demand in the United States, will premiere in the cinemas of Brazil on the 20th of March, and we'll also be part of London's BFI Flare Festival on the 22nd, 23rd and 30th of March. The show was edited by Mariella Bevan. Thank you for listening.